Noise Levels in Weale, MI | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
39 dBA
Average noise across Weale
Soft rainfall
1
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
1% of Weale residents
61 dBA
Loudest residential point
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across Weale at 100-meter resolution, combining road, aviation, and rail sources. Green areas measure below 45 dBA. Orange and red exceed the EPA's 55 dBA outdoor threshold linked to long-term health effects. Use the layer toggles to view each source on its own or all together.
What the numbers sound like
- 30 dBAWhisper
- 40 dBASoft rainfall
- 45 dBAQuiet suburban street at night
- 50 dBAQuiet office
- 55 dBAEPA outdoor threshold: light traffic 100 ft away
- 60 dBANormal conversation an arm's length away
- 65 dBABusy restaurant
- 70 dBAHighway traffic 50 ft away
- 80 dBACity bus interior
Population Above the EPA Outdoor Threshold
The EPA's 55 dBA outdoor reference level is a common benchmark for residential noise exposure, especially for activity interference, annoyance, and long-term community noise concerns. About 1 Weale residents, or 1.0%, live above that level. By land area, 1.1% of Weale is above 55 dBA.
98.9% below 55 dBA
1.1% above 55 dBA
See how noise in Weale compares to similar-sized cities.
Noise by Part of Weale
Average noise levels for Weale residents, grouped by direction from the center of Weale. Southern Weale carries the highest population-weighted average; Eastern Weale carries the lowest. Just 1% of residents in Eastern Weale live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, about two-thirds of the share in Southern Weale.
Eastern Weale
34.9 dBA · Quiet
Soft rainfall
Northern Weale
40.0 dBA · Quiet
Soft rainfall
Southern Weale
41.8 dBA · Quiet
Quiet suburban street at night
Western Weale
41.5 dBA · Quiet
Quiet suburban street at night
Southern Weale sounds about 61% louder than Eastern Weale to the human ear, a 6.9 dBA gap. Every 10 dBA roughly doubles perceived loudness. Within any of these directions, two homes a quarter mile apart can still differ by 10 or more dBA depending on how close they sit to a major highway.
How far back from Haist Rd do you need to be?
Haist Rd produces an estimated 50 dBA at its loudest centerline points. Noise drops logarithmically with distance, with the exact rate depending on what's between you and the road. Tree cover, walls, terrain, and pavement type all matter. At roughly a quarter mile back, traffic fades into the noise level of a soft rainfall.
At source
50 dBA
Quiet office
165 ft
37 dBA
Soft rainfall
330 ft
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
660 ft
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 46% of Weale sits under tree canopy (heavier than most cities) and roughly 0% is impervious surface like pavement and rooftops. Both are folded into the per-place decay rate above. Heavier canopy pulls noise down faster with distance; impervious surfaces slow the drop.
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Rail Noise
Active freight rail runs through parts of Weale. For most blocks the rail-only contribution is small. Combined road-plus-rail noise rarely exceeds road noise on its own. The exceptions are the handful of blocks within roughly a quarter mile of the right-of-way during pass-through hours.
Use the Rail toggle on the map above to isolate rail's contribution from road and aviation.
How Noise Is Distributed Across Weale
The bar chart below shows the share of Weale residents in each noise band. About 100% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 0% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How Weale Compares
Weale sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how Weale's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Kilmanagh, Whites Beach, Wisner, and Bradleyville.
Average noise level (dBA)
Weale's 39.2 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Michigan as a whole averages 49.3 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than Weale because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 1.0% of Weale residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's in the middle of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 1.1% of Weale's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Michigan average of 19.9% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to Weale
- Distance from highways matters more than the neighborhood name. Two homes in the same zip code can differ by 20 dBA if one sits 100 meters from Haist Rd and the other 500 meters away. The model captures this at 100-meter resolution, so noise exposure changes block by block.
- Tree canopy can help reduce modeled noise exposure. Roughly 46% of Weale is under tree cover (heavier than most cities), and the dominant land cover is woody wetlands. Both are measured from federal USDA Forest Service and USGS satellite imagery at 30-meter resolution. Streets with 60% or higher canopy show 3 to 5 dBA lower noise than comparable streets with bare ground or pavement, which is why the per-place decay rate above already accounts for it.
