Construction noise and dust plans (DEP) for facade work in NYC
Every construction site in New York needs a noise mitigation plan before work starts, posted on site and confirmed in the DOB application. What the plan covers on a facade job — jackhammers, saws, sandblasting, the hoist — when DEP must approve an alternative plan first, and the dust rules for grinding and cleaning masonry.
Last checked: Oct 23, 2026
Key facts
- Noise plan required for every site before work starts (AC §24-220); filed through DEP’s online forms, printed and posted on site
- DOB application asks you to confirm the site has a Construction Noise Mitigation Plan
- Alternative plan when strict compliance is not possible; the work it covers waits for DEP’s approval
- Barriers STC 30 or better when DOB requires a fence and a receptor is within 200 ft
- Dust wetting for drilling and grinding; hoods, fans and dust collectors for sandblasting (15 RCNY Chapter 13)
Does a facade job need a DEP noise mitigation plan?
Yes. Under AC §24-220, anyone doing construction in the city must adopt a noise mitigation plan for each site before work starts, and the DOB permit application asks you to confirm the site has one. DEP takes the plans through online forms, and the plan must be printed and posted at the work site. It lists the noisy devices — on facade work, typically jackhammers, saws, sandblasting equipment and a crane or hoist — and the barriers and quieter equipment used with them. When strict compliance with the rules is not possible, an Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan is required, and the work it covers waits until DEP approves it. Dust has its own rules, in 15 RCNY Chapter 13: wet methods where there is drilling or grinding, and hoods, fans and dust collectors for sandblasting.
Key considerations
Who needs a plan, and when
AC §24-220 requires anyone performing construction work to adopt and implement a noise mitigation plan for each site where a device or activity defined in §24-219 is used. DEP says the plan must exist before construction or renovation starts, every site must have it on location, and the DOB application asks you to check that it is in place. DEP’s construction plan form is marked “must print and post on worksite”.
What goes in the plan
The Construction Noise Mitigation Plan form (DEP, revised February 2024) starts with the main devices — among them jackhammers, concrete saws, sandblasting equipment and cranes — with the mitigation chosen for each, such as quieter makes and models or a noise shroud; backup alarms, pumps and hoists are listed separately. It then asks which barriers will be used under 15 RCNY §28-101(g): the perimeter barrier or DOB construction fence, or a temporary or moveable barrier. DEP’s guide to the Noise Code gives the example: jackhammers must have noise-reducing mufflers and/or portable street barriers.
Barriers
When DOB requires a perimeter barrier or construction fence and the site is within 200 feet of a receptor, the noise barrier must reach a Sound Transmission Class of STC 30 or better, tested under ASTM E90, with no gaps between panels. Where practicable it should break the line of sight to indoor receptors within 200 feet and up to 20 feet above grade, and it may not be taller than 15 feet, canted top included.
The contact sheet
DEP asks every contractor to post its Construction Noise Contact Sheet on a fence outside the site. The sheet names a contact person and says where the plan can be seen from 7 am to 6 pm and, if an after-hours variance was approved, after hours.
The alternative plan
When strict compliance with the noise rules is not possible, AC §24-221 and 15 RCNY §28-104 require an Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan. All the work it covers is postponed until DEP has the plan and approves it, and the approved plan is posted at the job site. After-hours work claimed on undue hardship also needs an approved alternative plan, and DEP rescinds it if DOB or DOT does not grant the after-hours approval (see After-Hours Variance). DEP’s noise-monitoring rule of April 21, 2026 applies only to new buildings of 200,000 square feet or more, not to facade repair.
Minimal-noise work is a short list
DEP’s Minimal Noise plan (15 RCNY §30-01 et seq.) covers a short list of quiet activities done without power tools — on the outside of a building, only roofing membrane and insulation before the windows go in — and its signer certifies that no power tools will be used within 25 feet of a legal residential unit in the building or next door. A facade crew grinding, cutting or drilling works under the regular plan.
Dust
AC §24-146(c) bars building work without the precautions DEP orders to keep particulate matter from becoming airborne, and DEP’s dust rules are in 15 RCNY Chapter 13. DEP’s dust mitigation form lists the measures: wetting wherever there is drilling, grinding or similar work; hoods, fans and dust collectors to enclose and vent sandblasting and similar operations; and, where renovation is done by hand, debris, bricks and other material taken down by chutes, buckets or hoists. Where large dust-producing equipment is used (DEP’s example is a rock crusher), the form describing it and its dust controls is kept on site as an addendum to the noise plan; it is not filed with DEP, but it must be available to inspectors.
Silica, for the crew
For the workers, OSHA’s silica standard for construction (29 CFR 1926.1153, Table 1) sets the controls for handheld grinders used for mortar removal, or tuckpointing: a grinder with a commercially available shroud and dust collection system, a collector moving at least 25 cubic feet per minute per inch of wheel diameter with a filter of 99% efficiency or better and a cyclonic pre-separator or filter-cleaning mechanism, and a respirator of APF 10 for up to four hours a shift, APF 25 beyond.
Complaints and inspections
Neighbors report construction noise through 311. When complaints come in, a DEP inspector checks that the plan is posted and followed, which decides whether the plan needs to change. Near schools, hospitals and houses of worship, DEP expects the plan to be designed with those neighbors in mind.
Checklist: noise and dust on a facade job
- Before work starts, file the noise mitigation plan through DEP’s online form, listing every device: grinders, saws, sandblasting, the hoist, any crane.
- Print and post the plan on site, and post the contact sheet on the fence.
- Confirm the plan in the DOB application.
- If the rules cannot be met strictly, get DEP’s approval of an Alternative Noise Mitigation Plan before that work.
- Use the barriers and the quieter equipment the plan names.
- Grind and cut with water or with shrouds and dust collection, and keep the dust controls written down with the plan.
- On a complaint, show the inspector the posted plan and how it is followed.
Sources
- NYC DEP, Construction noise rules, regulations and forms
- NYC DEP, Construction Noise Mitigation Plan form (revised February 2024): devices and barriers
- NYC DEP, Minimal Noise Mitigation Plan form (15 RCNY §30-01 et seq.)
- NYC DEP, Alternative / Noise Mitigation Plan contact sheet
- NYC DEP, A guide to New York City’s Noise Code
- NYC DEP, New construction noise monitoring rule requirements (effective April 21, 2026)
- NYC DEP, Building and construction emissions: construction dust rules (AC §24-146; 15 RCNY Chapter 13)
- NYC DEP, Dust mitigation plan form (addendum to the noise mitigation plan)
- U.S. OSHA, 29 CFR 1926.1153: respirable crystalline silica in construction (Table 1)
Checked against the official text on October 23, 2026.
Related guides
- After-Hours Variance (AHV) in NYC: nights, weekends and the three-business-day ruleWork before 7 am, after 6 pm or on a weekend needs an AHV, filed in DOB NOW: Build at least three business days ahead. $130 to $650 to file plus $80 a day, the documents DOB will not take after you submit, and how renewals work.
- DOT permits for facade jobs in NYC: sheds, scaffolds, containers and street closuresThe DOB permit covers the shed, not the street. Material, containers, cranes, a pedestrian walk or a sidewalk closure each take a DOT permit from NYCStreets — most $50 for 90 days. The 2026 holiday embargo runs November 15 to January 2.
- Ordinary repair or work permit: the distinction that drives the scheduleBrick repointing, sealant, crack injection and cleaning require no work permit. Parapet rebuilds, lintels, shelf angles, cornices, steel and pinning do, and so does stone or terra-cotta patching on buildings over six stories. Where the line is drawn.