can you give me some information on noise pollution?

Answer 1

noise pollution, human-created noise harmful to health or welfare. Transportation vehicles are the worst offenders, with aircraft, railroad stock, trucks, buses, automobiles, and motorcycles all producing excessive noise. Construction equipment, e.g., jackhammers and bulldozers, also produce substantial noise pollution.

Noise intensity is measured in decibel units. The decibel scale is logarithmic; each 10-decibel increase represents a tenfold increase in noise intensity. Human perception of loudness also conforms to a logarithmic scale; a 10-decibel increase is perceived as roughly a doubling of loudness. Thus, 30 decibels is 10 times more intense than 20 decibels and sounds twice as loud; 40 decibels is 100 times more intense than 20 and sounds 4 times as loud; 80 decibels is 1 million times more intense than 20 and sounds 64 times as loud. Distance diminishes the effective decibel level reaching the ear. Thus, moderate auto traffic at a distance of 100 ft (30 m) rates about 50 decibels. To a driver with a car window open or a pedestrian on the sidewalk, the same traffic rates about 70 decibels; that is, it sounds 4 times louder. At a distance of 2,000 ft (600 m), the noise of a jet takeoff reaches about 110 decibels—approximately the same as an automobile horn only 3 ft (1 m) away.

Subjected to 45 decibels of noise, the average person cannot sleep. At 120 decibels the ear registers pain, but hearing damage begins at a much lower level, about 85 decibels. The duration of the exposure is also important. There is evidence that among young Americans hearing sensitivity is decreasing year by year because of exposure to noise, including excessively amplified music. Apart from hearing loss, such noise can cause lack of sleep, irritability, heartburn, indigestion, ulcers, high blood pressure, and possibly heart disease. One burst of noise, as from a passing truck, is known to alter endocrine, neurological, and cardiovascular functions in many individuals; prolonged or frequent exposure to such noise tends to make the physiological disturbances chronic. In addition, noise-induced stress creates severe tension in daily living and contributes to mental illness.

Noise is recognized as a controllable pollutant that can yield to abatement technology. In the United States the Noise Control Act of 1972 empowered the Environmental Protection Agency to determine the limits of noise required to protect public health and welfare; to set noise emission standards for major sources of noise in the environment, including transportation equipment and facilities, construction equipment, and electrical machinery; and to recommend regulations for controlling aircraft noise and sonic booms. Also in the 1970s, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration began to try to reduce workplace noise. Funding for these efforts and similar local efforts was severely cut in the early 1980s, and enforcement became negligible.

Answer 2

Noise pollution can be defined as any unwanted or offensive sounds that unreasonably intrude into and disturb our daily lives Noise originates in all sorts of ways, but, in general, increasing noise pollution is primarily the result of the increasing population of cities. More people mean more road, rail and air traffic, more industrial noise, and more neighbourhood and recreational noise.

Answer 3

Noise pollution is unwanted human-created sound that disrupts the environment. The dominant form of noise pollution is from transportation sources, principally motor vehicles, aircraft noise and rail transport noise. Other diverse sources are factories, amplified music, air-conditioners, and construction work. Noise regulation by governmental agencies effectively began in the U.S. in the year 1972 with passage of the Federal Noise Control Act. Noise pollution refers to any offending noise which comes from an external source, and it is equivalently referred to as environmental noise. The word noise comes from the Latin word nausea meaning seasickness. Sources of noise Main articles: Roadway noise, Aircraft noise The overarching cause of most noise worldwide is generated by transportation systems, principally motor vehicle noise, but also including aircraft noise and rail noise. Hybrid vehicles for road use are the first widely sold automobiles in 100 years to achieve significant noise source reduction. Poor urban planning may also give rise to noise pollution, since juxtaposition of industrial to residential land uses, for example, often results in adverse consequences for the residential acoustic environment. Besides transportation noise, other prominent sources are office equipment, factory machinery, appliances, power tools, lighting hum and audio entertainment systems. With the popularity of digital audio player devices, individuals in a noisy area might increase the volume in order to drown out ambient sounds. Construction equipment also produces noise pollution. [edit] Human health Main article: Noise health effects Principal noise health effects are both health and behavioral in nature. The following discussion refers to sound levels that would be present within 30 to 150 meters from a moderately busy highway. [edit] Hearing The mechanism for chronic exposure to noise leading to hearing loss is well established. The elevated sound levels cause trauma to the cochlear structure in the inner ear, which gives rise to irreversible hearing loss. The pinna (visible portion of the human ear) combined with the middle ear amplifies sound levels by a factor of 20 when sound reaches the inner ear. In Rosen's seminal work on serious health effects regarding hearing loss and coronary artery disease, one of his findings derived from tracking Maaban tribesmen, who were insignificantly exposed to transportation or industrial noise. This population was systematically compared by cohort group to a typical U.S. population. The findings proved that aging is an almost insignificant cause of hearing loss, which instead is associated with chronic exposure to moderately high levels of environmental noise. [edit] Cardiovascular health High noise levels can contribute to Cardiovascular effects and exposure to moderately high (e.g. above 70 dBA) during a single eight hour period causes a statistical rise in blood pressure of five to ten mmHg; a clear and measurable increase in stress [1]; and vasoconstriction leading to the increased blood pressure noted above as well as to increased incidence of coronary artery disease. [edit] Annoyance Though it pales in comparison to the health effects noted above, noise pollution constitutes a significant factor of annoyance and distraction in modern artificial environments: The meaning listeners attribute to the sound influences annoyance, so that, if listeners dislike the noise content, they are annoyed. If the sound causes activity interference, noise is more likely to annoy (for example, sleep disturbance) If listeners feel they can control the noise source, the less likely the noise will be annoying. If listeners believe that the noise is subject to third party control, including police, but control has failed, they are more annoyed. The inherent unpleasantness of the sound causes annoyance. What is music to one is noise to another.