Every so often, the Weyburn Police Service gets called upon to enforce the City of Weyburn’s noise bylaw. So, what constitutes a breach of the noise bylaw? Well, that depends on a number of circumstances. 

Sergeant Shane St. John with the WPS pointed out that despite some believing to the contrary, the noise bylaw doesn’t take effect at 11:00 p.m. 

“It’s a 24-hour-a-day bylaw,” St. John explained. “So, if that noise is bothering you, and it’s louder than it should be and it's bothering the public, we can address it with that person.” The bylaw itself explicitly states that while 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. is when it can be considered a time of rest for most people in Weyburn, the bylaw applies to all noise that is likely to disturb a reasonable person in an area where people are present or residing. 

Violations depend on the kind of sound, the volume and duration of the sound, the nature of the event or activity that the sound comes from, and whether the sound has an intimidating, insulting or vulgar quality, among others.  

So, what happens when the Weyburn Police Service receives a call about the noise bylaw? 

St. John said that if the noise is louder than it should be and is bothering the public, it can be addressed with the person responsible for the noise.  

“It can be a warning,” St. John added. “If it continues, it can be a ticket.” He added that in many cases, they do like to issue a warning first, but there are records if there have been previous noise complaints. 

A ticket for breaching the noise bylaw in Weyburn starts at $200, with the maximum amount being $1,000.