K15aa Background Sound Record
The reference-location record for the southern noise-sensitive receiver group associated with the Elaine section of the Lal Lal Wind Farm.
K15aa is not presented as a single-dwelling issue
The significance of K15aa is broader than any individual receiver. K15aa is treated in this repository as the reference location used within the compliance framework for the southern noise-sensitive receiver group associated with the Elaine section of the Lal Lal Wind Farm. Individual receivers, including J14aa, are referred to only where a primary document identifies them or where necessary to explain application of the reference-location methodology.
Why K15aa matters
Background sound relationships are used to establish operational wind farm noise limits. The Trustee's Annex A records that K15aa was nominated as a reference location for background sound regressions used to establish noise limits applicable to multiple compliance locations at the Lal Lal Wind Farm.
The verification question
The key question for an independent reader is not whether any party is right or wrong. It is whether the disclosed administrative record enables the K15aa background sound pathway, mandatory definitions, NCTP requirements, monitoring chronology, agency custody and later reliance to be independently verified.
Governing definitions and requirements
Background sound
NZS 6808:2010 definition relied upon by the Trustee record: the A-frequency-weighted L90 centile level measured prior to the installation of any wind turbines in an area.
This temporal element is central to the K15aa record because later disclosed material records post-installation monitoring and subsequent reliance upon that dataset.
Notional boundary
NZS 6808:2010 definition: a line 20 metres from any side of a dwelling or other building used for a noise-sensitive activity, or the legal boundary where this is closer to such a building.
This definition matters because the NCTP requires operational noise measurements to occur within 20 metres of the dwelling and as close as practicable to the background monitoring location.
Mandatory language
Auditor correspondence records the NZS distinction between shall as mandatory for compliance and should as recommended practice. The repository therefore treats NCTP and NZS requirements using mandatory language carefully.
Documentary chronology
| Date | Document / record | Administrative significance |
|---|---|---|
| Aug–Sep 2017 | Original K15aa monitoring referenced in NCTP | The NCTP records that the data obtained at K15aa was significantly affected by a local noise source believed to relate to domestic air-conditioning and was not considered suitable for representing typical background noise levels. |
| Oct–Dec 2017 | Repeat K15aa monitoring referenced in NCTP | The NCTP records that repeat monitoring at K15aa was carried out and that analysis and incorporation into an updated background noise report remained to be completed. |
| 23 Jan 2018 | Endorsed Noise Compliance Testing Plan | The NCTP states that, prior to commencement of operation, an updated background noise report was to be submitted to the responsible authority detailing monitoring results for K15aa and any additional background monitoring. |
| 2019 | Monitoring later recorded in Annex A | Annex A records that material on the disclosed regulatory record indicates K15aa monitoring occurred in 2019 after wind turbines had been installed and that turbine operation occurred during part of the monitoring period. |
| Feb 2021 | SLR Compliance Baseline Noise Monitoring Report | Later record relied upon in relation to K15aa background sound. Annex D records DTP custody issues concerning the February 2021 SLR Compliance Baseline Noise Monitoring Report. |
| 1 Dec 2022 | SLR “Elaine Wind Farm – Noise Compliance” letter | Sets out SLR's explanation of the operator's noise compliance methodology for the southern noise-sensitive receiver group. It identifies K15aa as the relevant reference location for J14aa and records SLR's statement that pre-construction baseline monitoring at K15aa was completed in approximately October 2018. |
| 21 Oct 2022 | ARUP / DST correspondence | Records auditor correspondence concerning the K15aa transcription issue, NZS mandatory language, measurement location, notional boundary considerations and representative-location reasoning. |
| 2024–2026 | Council, DTP, EPA and OVIC disclosure record | The disclosed record records agency custody outcomes concerning baseline material, submission evidence, peer review / verification material and document identification. |
| 29 Jun 2026 | Crystallised Trustee record | Annex A, Annex D, SRAM v1.3 and the Documentary Verification Schedule organise the K15aa record into the Trustee's crystallised administrative and evidentiary record. |
Agency custody and disclosure record
Council
Annex D records that Council undertook searches for the “SLR 2018 Pre-construction Baseline Noise Monitoring Report @ K15aa” and that no such document was identified in Council records. It further records operator advice to Council that the reference was a clerical error and that the intended reference was to a February 2021 SLR background report.
DTP
Annex D records that DTP FOI decisions identified partial custody only. In relation to the February 2021 SLR Compliance Baseline Noise Monitoring Report, the record states that no documents were located evidencing submission of that report to the Department, the Minister or the Responsible Authority, and that DTP does not hold the baseline monitoring report underpinning noise limits.
EPA / OVIC
Annex C Version 1.1 records that FOI-100-2025 and associated OVIC correspondence concerned document classes including pre-construction and baseline monitoring material, associated auditor verification documentation, and authorising documents or instruments altering NZS 6808:2010 requirements. The disclosed record did not identify those classes as held by EPA following the OVIC process.
Documents to read first
This page should be read with the NCTP, Annex A, Annex D, Annex C Version 1.1, the SLR 1 December 2022 letter, the ARUP / DST correspondence and the Documentary Verification Schedule.