Noise Management Plan
A source-led guide to the available October 2022 Noise Management Plan, its relationship with the endorsed Noise Compliance Testing Plan, EPA documentary custody, auditor verification correspondence, Freedom of Information releases and the later planning permit amendment pathway.
The available October 2022 document
The document released through the EPA Freedom of Information record is titled Lal Lal Wind Farm — Noise Management Plan, Project No. 0467385, Version 3.0, dated 18 October 2022. Its document history records Draft, Final 01, Final 02 and Final 03 revisions.
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Document details and revision history
The extract records Version 3.0 and Final Revision 03 dated 18 October 2022.
Regulation 131E and auditor pathway
The NMP records procedures required by regulation 131E and states that an auditor is to review the NMP.
What the NMP says about the NCTP
The NMP states that the endorsed Noise Compliance Testing Plan provides the complete operational measurement procedure and that, where a conflict exists, the NCTP takes precedence. It also identifies the Marshall Day Acoustics NCTP and Background Noise Monitoring Report as the documents from which operational limits were derived.
Stated source documents
The extract identifies the Marshall Day NCTP and Background Noise Monitoring Report. The later SLR K15aa Baseline Report dated 16 February 2021 is not identified in this stated reference pathway.
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NCTP precedence and alternative locations
The NMP states that the NCTP takes precedence where a conflict exists and records that no alternative measurement points were identified at the time of writing.
Preferred operational measurement locations
The endorsed NCTP and the October 2022 NMP do not present the same preferred operational measurement-location framework. This comparison concerns preferred measurement locations, not the separate receiver noise-limit tables reproduced in the NMP.
| Receiver | Endorsed NCTP | October 2022 NMP | Section |
|---|---|---|---|
| H18aa | Preferred location | Preferred location | Elaine |
| K15aa | Preferred location | Preferred location | Elaine |
| K34aa | Preferred location | Not identified as a preferred location | Yendon |
| L18aa | Preferred location | Preferred location | Elaine |
| M29aa | Preferred location | Not identified as a preferred location | Yendon |
| N31ab | Preferred location | Not identified as a preferred location | Yendon |
Endorsed NCTP
The approved NCTP identifies six preferred locations, including the Yendon receivers K34aa, M29aa and N31ab.
October 2022 NMP
The NMP identifies H18aa, K15aa and L18aa as the three preferred measurement locations.
Further technical extracts
These extracts show how the October 2022 NMP describes background-noise adjustment and reporting. They are presented as statements made by the NMP, not as independent record findings.
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Adjustment for background noise
The NMP states that pre-operational background-noise data is to be used to adjust compliance-monitoring results.
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Operational noise reporting
The NMP states that compliance reports are to be submitted to EPA within six weeks of completing each stage of monitoring.
NMP chronology
The dates are recorded because EPA's later descriptions of the NMP post-date the October 2022 document and the earlier documentary-use record.
Version 3.0 prepared
The disclosed NMP records Final Revision 03.
Auditor verification requested
EPA later stated, in correspondence dated 21 June 2024, that it requested auditor verification in November 2023.
EPA documentary-use statement
EPA identified NMP project 0467385 among documents it had used when assessing compliance.
FOI-002-2024 decision
The October 2022 NMP was disclosed through the earlier EPA FOI process.
Revisions said to be continuing
EPA stated that the NMP was still undergoing revisions and had not yet been reviewed by an EPA-appointed environmental auditor.
Earlier verification request confirmed
EPA stated that auditor verification had been requested in November 2023.
Revised NCTP secondary-consent application withdrawn
The proponent requested withdrawal of the revised NCTP application submitted on 12 October 2023 after receiving further advice that additional areas required revision. The project stated that it would continue working with Marshall Day on the necessary amendments.
Internal review description
EPA stated that it had seen a draft NMP but had not been provided with a completed final NMP.
Date of draft clarified
EPA advised that the draft NMP was dated October 2022.
FOI-100-2025 decision
The same Version 3.0 NMP dated 18 October 2022 was again disclosed in the later FOI process.
Permit amendment and DTP clarification request
Following issue of the amended permit determination, the Trustee sent the October 2022 NMP and a request for administrative clarification to the nominated DTP contact on 18 May 2026.
Noise Management Plan — Primary Document Record
A consolidated primary-document record brings together the October 2022 NMP, EPA documentary use and FOI custody, the environmental-auditor pathway, the proposed NCTP revision and withdrawal record, and the later planning-permit transition.
The October 2022 document records Version 3.0, Final Revision 03. Within that NMP, the draft status is expressly attached to Revision 5 of the NCTP, and the NMP states that the relevant NCTP chapter would be superseded by an updated NCTP prepared to satisfy the Planning Permit noise conditions.
EPA later identified NMP project 0467385 among documents it had used when assessing Lal Lal Wind Farm compliance and confirmed that it had requested auditor verification in November 2023. The May 2024 FOI decision records that EPA did not hold the requested auditor verification. The later revised-NCTP secondary-consent application was withdrawn on 18 July 2024 before endorsement, while the project stated that revision work would continue.
Later EPA and operator correspondence describing the October 2022 NMP as a draft or as still being revised is preserved in the record and should be read alongside the document's own Final revision history and the separate NCTP revision pathway.
Read the administrative record directly
The source documents are presented separately so readers can distinguish the NMP's technical content from EPA correspondence and the later Trustee notice to DTP.
Transitional Condition 27A
The amended permit records that compliance with the endorsed NCTP and complaints plan is to be maintained until an NMP has been prepared and implemented in accordance with regulation 131E. The Trustee's 18 May 2026 correspondence sought clarification of how the October 2022 NMP, the EPA documentary record and auditor-verification history were reconciled within that transitional framework.