The Indian Medical Association has decided to hold awareness programmes about the health consequences of noise pollution among public and students.

Against the backdrop of India being the noisiest place in the world due to noise pollution generated by the vehicular traffic, unnecessary use of air horns, sound generated by industries (powerlooms, spinning mills and foundries), crackers, loud speakers, and excessive use of mobile phones, walkman, ear phone and other such gadgets, the IMA would sensitise the public to the dangers caused not only to ears but also the entire body due to noise above 80 decibels.

Excessive noise increases heart rate, blood pressure and leads to endocrinal changes, C.N. Raja, Secretary IMA – Nursing Home Board, told The Hindu .

Noise at night causes sleep disturbances, especially for elders and young ones. Hearing sound above permissible level produces personality changes, affecting human productivity and also increases the formation of free radicals in the human body. All these are proved by various scientific studies, Dr. Raja said, calling for implementation of rules and regulations and restrictions against noise pollution during the conduct of political meetings and festivals.

Earlier this month, the IMA formed a Working Group to fight against noise pollution and decided to have its sitting at New Delhi shortly.

The Working Group was formed along with the Association of Otolaryngologists of India (AOI) during the National Initiative for Safe Sound Leadership Meet and Workshop at Chennai recently.

At the meeting chaired by A. Marthanda Pillai, Immediate Past National President of IMA, the first-ever collective attempt to fight noise pollution was formed with K.A. Seethi, Past President of AOI, Kerala as the Chairman, John Panicker, Past President of AOI – Kerala as Coordinator, and Dr. Raja, Past President of AOI – Tamil Nadu and Past State Secretary of IMA as Convenor.

Prominent personalities in the group include Padmasri Mohan Kameswaran; Padmasri Santosh Kakkar, Former Director of AIIMS; Yeshwant Oke and Sujata Rao of Mumbai; Ajay Lekhe – President of IMA – Delhi; and Social Activist Sumaira Abdulali, Convenor, Awaaz Foundation, Mumbai.

The meeting adopted resolutions calling for correction of noise to safe level at industries and residential areas; evolving corrective plans to wean away youngsters from abnormal use of electronic gadgets and loud music using devices that pose threat to human ears and affect cognitive activities of brain; seeking a government policy on safe noise level in future for implementation by industries and other institutions; and implementation of the same in metropolitan and other major cities.

Source http://www.thehindu.com/

With Diwali round the corner, fire crackers in the city have started arriving in new avatars. Wave a Harry Potter wand, watch a peacock spread lights through its plumes or light up a Christmas tree and watch it’s white and silver flakes err, flames, via firecrackers.The phatakas are as zany as it gets this time and here’s what’s in store…

With Diwali round the corner, fire crackers in the city have started arriving in new avatars. Wave a Harry Potter wand, watch a peacock spread lights through its plumes or light up a Christmas tree and watch it’s white and silver flakes err, flames, via firecrackers.The phatakas are as zany as it gets this time and here’s what’s in store…

Noiseless, smokeless in demand

Apart from the usual phooljhari, anaar and chakri as well as ladi bombs, this year there is a demand for items based more on light than sound. “Well, I wouldn’t say these are completely noiseless, but noise-less,” laughs Abdulla Ghia of a fireworks store at Mohammed Ali Road.”Earlier, the big draw were atom bombs, but now people want more aerial items like the rocket, flashlights and fountains.” There is a `crackling peacock’ that actually seems to spread its wings when lit up, a musical ground chakri and one shaped like a swastika! Made of recycled paper, most of the eco-friendly firecrackers have a lesser chemical content and thus emit lesser pollution and noise. Take the long `magic whip’ -coloured strings that just throw small sparks and don’t emit smoke. “Most people no longer like that loud dhamaka, and ground atom bombs are no longer appreciated,” adds Murtaza Sabuwala of a fireworks shop ahead on the same road. ” A new cracker, which is meant to look like railway signal, emits a red then green light just like a real signal. Also popular are `diamonds’, which just emit light and are safe for kids,” he informs.

Bikes and kids’ fiction characters

The crackers come packaged in everything from the Hulk to Pokemon and designer motorcycles and cars. A Doraemon firework goes hissing into the sky only to fall back within minutes and there are assorted flat cracker cartoons that simply whoosh about two or three feet, minus any smoke.”Another big attraction this time is the Angry Birds cracker, which is just a 5colour assorted fountain with a small crackling sound,” says seller Himanshu Mehta. He adds that the Christmas tree, which throws out silver lights like flakes and Harry Potter pencils that light up like real wands, have been selling like hotcakes.

Shopkeepers welcome sc refusal on cracker ban

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court’s recent refusal to order a blanket ban on firecrackers during Diwali, has been welcomed by Mumbai vendors. Says Minhesh Mehta, hon. gen secretary of the Fireworks Dealers Welfare Association, “It’s a good thing that this has happened. After all, the pollution in the city is not only due to crackers, there is so much noise and air pollution due to traffic and that too, 12 months of the year! I feel we can’t ban crackers as it is a fundamental right of a citizen to enjoy him or herself, but that said, people also should burn crackers with some self-discipline and not beyond certain hours or in silence zones.”

Source: http://www.indiatimes.com/

India: Rajarampuri, Shahupuri noisiest roads in Kolhapur

Rajarampuri, Shahupuri noisiest roads in Kolhapur – The Times of India

Rajarampuri, Shahupuri noisiest roads in Kolhapur

Rajarampuri, Shahupuri noisiest roads in Kolhapur – The Times of India

KOLHAPUR: The city’s commercial areas Rajarampuri, Shahupuri and the Mahadwar road were the noisiest on Thursday as Ganesh Chaturthi was celebrated with sound levels exceeding 100 decibels.

Students from the department of environmental sciences of the Shivaji University, Kolhapur, monitored the sound levels in the city as the first day of the festival was celebrated.

Readings indicated that sound from almost areas crossed the permissible sound limits laid down by the Maharashtra pollution control board (MPCB). Sound levels should not exceed 55 decibels in residential areas.

Noise levels in areas of the city like Udyam nagar, Rajarampuri, Shahupuri, Laxmipuri and Mahadwar road, showed consistent readings of 90 decibels and above, even at night.

P D Raut, the head of the department of environmental sciences, told TOI, “The digital sound systems are mainly responsible for these readings. Data shows that sound levels were almost double the permissible limits. Rajarampuri area was the noisiest recording 107 dB, while Shahpuri followed with a reading if 106 dB.”

Two students actively participated in monitoring the sound levels using a noise level meter. Raut said that four ten-minute readings were taken over 60 minutes in a particular area and calculated accordingly.

Thursday’s readings show that very few Ganesh mandals have responded to the Kolhapur police’s appeal for not using high decibel sound system. Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com  

A right earful: Hong Kong’s noise pollutionHong Kong

Time Out Hong Kong | Big Smog | A right earful: Hong Kong’s noise pollution

Fewer people are now exposed to excessive levels of traffic noise than were a decade and a half ago, but the problem remains an issue in old urban districts, environmental officials say.

The Environmental Protection Department says it is in the process of updating a 15-year-old traffic noise pollution map for the city.

The latest data available on the departments website is from 2000, and shows at least 1.14 million people were exposed to traffic noise exceeding 70 decibels, which is the planning standard.

The [department] is in the course of reassessing the spatial distribution of traffic noise over the whole territory based on more recent traffic census data and the reassessment work is expected to be completed later this year, a spokesman said.

The department said preliminary results indicated the total number of people affected by traffic noise at levels higher than planning standards had been reduced, but old urban districts such as Kwun Tong and Yau Tsim Mong still remain the worst in terms of the number of people affected.

It added that prevention of noise problems through active planning processes and implementation of traffic noise abatement programmes, including the provision of noise barriers and low-noise road surfacing across the city, had helped lower the number.

In 2000, at least 37 per cent of people in Yau Tsim Mong were exposed to traffic noise higher than 70 decibels, as were more than a quarter of residents in Kowloon City, Sham Shui Po and Tsuen Wan.

The noise map on the current website factors in the year 2000s population of 6.6 million a figure that has since grown by nearly 10 per cent. Traffic flow is also likely to have changed significantly in that time.

Chinese University noise assessment expert Professor Lam Kin-che said noise mapping was an extremely expensive and difficult project to conduct, but was a credible way to trace noise pollution to its source. He said it was normal that such a study took a long time to update.

Lawmaker Cyd Ho Sau-lan, who chaired the Legislative Councils now defunct subcommittee on issues relating to air, noise and light pollution, welcomed the move.

The subcommittee had asked them to update this noise map before, she said, but added that more needed to be done as noise and light pollution were getting worse in certain areas, especially mixed commercial and residential districts.

Buildings are getting taller and there are fewer natural noise barriers. Noise pollution can seriously affect the quality of sleep and thus the health of residents.

A British study last month cited a link between traffic noise pollution and an increased risk of strokes and deaths, especially among the elderly. Experts in Hong Kong have called for health risks from noise pollution to be factored into environmental impact assessment reports.

But the department said a 2012 study it commissioned on 10,000 homes found no conclusive evidence that physiological responses due to noise exposure were associated with a long-term risk of cardiovascular disease.

Noise complaints have been dropping over the years. From 4,952 in 2010, they gradually declined to 3,859 last year. Complaints specifically about traffic noise have also dropped from 215 in 2010 to 88 last year.   This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as Fewer exposed to traffic noise as city grows

Microsoft Azure is helping create a noise tracking app in China
WRITTEN BY KAREEM ANDERSON  JUN 23RD, 2015

Image Credit: Microsoft Research
For those of us who dwell in urban populated areas, the occurrence of noise congestion can sometimes become a mere backdrop in our living conditions, like a soundtrack to a movie. The longer we live in an area, the more adept we become at dealing with the noise. However, studies are showing that noise pollution ranks among the most pervasive forms of harm against a persons well being. An overexposure to the drudgery of noise pollution can manifest itself in the harmful deterioration of mental and physical well-being of residents, according to an article in the Environmental Health Perspectives (ehp).

Thanks in part to a rising socioeconomic bubble in China, an article in The Economist predicted back in 2014, that 70 percent of China’s population will be living in cities by 2030. That prediction assumes that roughly 1 billion people will be moving into highly condensed areas, and this shift will contribute to a few serious problems. Among the potential problems that may arise, an increase in noise pollution is one that a few researchers are aiming to track. As the rise in factories, construction projects, and vehicles continue in China the audible assault on residents could be detrimental.

Image Credit: Microsoft Research

Investigators in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, with funding from Microsoft Research Asia, would like to implement better tools for tracking noise pollution in real-time. Professor Yanmin Zhu is leading a team in the development of a project called NoiseSense. NoiseSense is a service designed to map urban noise by using crowdsourced noise measurements from smartphone users, according to Microsoft Research. At first glance, the sound capturing app and subsequent usage almost resembles a Waze-like implementation of research. According to Microsoft Research, “They envision a noise-mapping service that will allow anyone to query the noise level in any urban area in the world. More importantly, NoiseSense could give authorities the information needed to devise and implement effective noise abatement strategies.”

Image Credit: Microsoft Research
While the app and research methods are forward thinking and inventive, Professor Zhu realizes that is only half the equation in addressing the problem. Once users are capturing and measuring noise levels, Zhu, and his team will need supercomputer systems on standby ready to hash the mountains of input data. Enter Microsoft’s Azure platform. Zhu spent six months at Microsoft Research Asia as the recipient of a Young Faculty Program award. While at (MRA) Zhu became very familiar with Microsoft’s growing research into urban informatics. Using a grant he received from Microsoft, Zhu applied the free cloud computing power of Microsoft’s Azure platform to supplement his research into his noise sensing project. As for the status of Zhu’s noise mapping app, “They have developed a system prototype for a real-time, fine-grained noise-mapping service on Microsoft Azure, and they have created noise-measuring smartphone apps for both Windows Phone and Android operating systems,” according to Microsoft.

Image Credit: Microsoft Research
Zhu’s research is another forward thinking use of how cloud computing and big data can help create applications with far reaching real-world results. Microsoft is also aiding in the expansion of urban computing, with projects designed to improve many other aspects of city life, including urban transportation and air quality and energy consumption. These are the early days for this type implementation of research, but if Microsoft’s Azure platform can position itself accordingly, Azure could be a necessary tool for researchers moving forward.

HCM CITY (VNS) — Noise pollution from street eateries, public broadcasting speakers, and neighbourhood karaokes has made hundreds of HCM City residents feel as though they are being tortured in their homes.

While affected residents said they could not stand the noise, local authorities in the effected areas claim they have carried out proper measures.

Ngo Hai Thanh (not her real name), a resident in the city’s District 12, said she has lost sleep for two weeks because of the noise from customers at a street eatery set up on in front of her home.

“The period from 8pm to midnight is the peak time for the eatery. Noise from tens of customers becomes a nightmare,” said Thanh, adding that sounds made during cleaning before the caterers leave the site for home ruin her final attempts to sleep.

Thanh works in a lawyer’s office and insomnia reduces her productivity.

In Viet Nam, street food is often served with alcohol, and people drinking alcohol speak louder than normal. To cheer their drinking, Vietnamese have their own slogan, “1-2-3-dzo,” which is a noisy trademark for Vietnamese street eaters and a nightmare to the ears of those who are not sitting at the table drinking alcohol.

Bach (not her real name), an elderly woman who is a resident of District 1’s Tran Quang Khai Street, said noise from eateries on the street causes her illness to worsen. Bach is 80 years old and had heart surgery just weeks ago.

“The eateries stay open until 3:00 in the early morning. Some of these people vomit and urinate on my fence, as well,” she added.

Meanwhile, residents in other areas of the city feel that noise from public broadcasting speakers can become unendurable. Since reunification in 1975, authorities installed loud speakers in every community for broadcasting daily news twice a day, in the early morning and at the twilight.

The speakers made a meaningful contribution during the hard times when people could not afford a TV set, a radio or a daily printed newspaper.

“I really need deep sleep after each hard night’s shift, but they turn the loud speakers on at 5:20am every morning. This causes me to suffer from insomnia,” said Tran Thanh Tuan (not his real name), a resident in suburban Binh Chanh District.

Tuan added that the speaker noise scares his son, awakening him, also.

Residents in Tan Phu District complained that they are fed up with the noise from karaoke, which is quite popular in the district.

Meanwhile, officials in the areas said they have dealt with complaints for many years and issued fines to those making noise. Dang Hai Binh, deputy head of District 12’s natural resources and environment division, was quoted by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper as saying his office had hired individual teams to measure noise levels and issue fines.

However, Binh admitted that customers in eateries obeyed rules only when officials came to check. Afterwards, the noise continues, he said.

Further, Le Ton Thanh, deputy director of HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, told the newspaper that monitoring noise pollution is the responsibility of ward authorities. The city authorities, in their licensing process, have regulated permitted noise levels.

Cao Chi Tam, a community head in Binh Chanh District, said loud speaker systems are required for the propaganda of the ‘new’ rural model meant for suburban and rural areas. He promised to reduce the street noise.

However, while officials spoke of restrictions applied to licensed karaoke services and authorised public speakers, no one has proposed a solution for noise from street eateries, which are found on almost every street in the city. — VNS

Source: http://vietnamnews.vn/

Noise barriers for PIE stretch Singapore

Noise barriers will be tested for the first time along an “at-grade” section of an expressway next year.
The 6m-high barriers will run for about 400m along the edge in each direction of the Pan Island Expressway (PIE) next to Swiss View and Greenbank Park.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) is calling a tender today and work will start next year.

“The location was selected because this stretch of the PIE has recently been widened, bringing the carriageway closer to residents,” LTA said.

Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MP Sim Ann said she has been pushing for noise barriers for the residents living next to the PIE.

“Among the neighbourhoods I look after, the Swiss View and Greenbank Park areas have been the most exposed to heightened traffic noise, and I welcome the fact that noise barriers will be installed at these locations first… LTA has heard us,” said Ms Sim.

The transport authority said the project will help to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of implementing noise barriers along at-grade sections of expressways.

Unlike viaducts and flyovers, at-grade sections often have roadside trees, lamp posts, signs, drains and uneven terrain – all of which can prevent construction of barriers, or limit their effectiveness, said LTA.

Since last year, the LTA has been testing the use of noise barriers. These were installed along Anak Bukit Flyover last October and LTA is also building them along West Coast Highway near Block 44, Telok Blangah Drive, and the new flyover along Braddell Road, near Block 138, Bishan Street 12.

“While these noise barriers are not intended nor designed to completely block out traffic noise, the trial will… allow for an evaluation of overall effectiveness and visual impact of such barriers,” LTA said.

LTA will also test the use of a low-noise road surfacing. It will study whether the inclusion of materials such as latex and rubber in the current asphalt mix can help to reduce traffic noise, which comes mainly from the friction between vehicle tyres and the road surface.

The durability of the new road surfacing will also be evaluated. Development of the new surfacing is expected to start next year.

Source: http://news.asiaone.com/

With New Environmental Protection Tax, the Polluter Now Pays in China too, also for noise pollution !

After decades of devotion toward economic and industrial development, China is beginning to address the environmental concerns that have pained the nation in recent years. China’s Environmental Protection Law, which came into force early 2015 and increased factory liability for pollution, may soon by followed by a new “Environmental Protection Tax” (EPT). China’s EPT is in its exposure draft stage until July 9, 2015, during which the public may submit comments.

The EPT is a culmination of the efforts of China’s Ministry of Finance, State Administration of Taxation, and Ministry of Environmental Protection. Companies operating within China should take caution to remain current on EPT draft policy, as it imposes strict tax regulations on polluting companies, as well as harsh penalties for violators.

As it stands now, the EPT is to further increase company responsibility for pollution within China, whether in the form of air, water, solid, or noise pollution. Minimum taxation amounts for pollution will be established on a national level. However, provincial governments will have the discretion to raise tax minimums to better mitigate the environmental concerns of the particular province.

Calculating Pollutant Tax

Measuring Pollutants

In order to accurately measure the quantity of pollutant emitted, companies will be permitted to install a State-approved pollution discharge monitoring device. The pollution discharge quantities recorded by the machine will be used to later determine the appropriate pollution tax amount to be imposed on the company.

In the event that a company does not purchase a pollution discharge monitoring device, a State-approved pollution monitoring institution will calculate pollution emission amounts.

Pollutant Equivalent Values

Pollutant Equivalent Values (EPVs) are numerical constants used in calculating EPT. Each different pollutant type is assigned its own EPV. For example, pollution through mercury emission has an EPV of 0.0005, while the EPV of carbon monoxide pollution is 16.7. Companies should familiarize themselves with relevant EPVs in order to anticipate the effects of the pending EPT legislation.

Calculations

Companies can calculate individual air and water pollutant emission tax by dividing the quantity of the pollutant discharged by the corresponding EPV. The number produced is referred to as the “pollution equivalent” and is then multiplied by specific tax rates set by the government.

For example, a company looking to calculate tax on 1000 kg of mercury would divide the 1000 kg by 0.0005 (mercury’s EPV). This calculation equates to a pollution equivalent value of two million, which is then multiplied by mercury emission current tax rate of RMB 1.2. After multiplying two million by RMB 1.2, the final tax on 1000 kg of mercury emission would total RMB 2,400,000.

Noise pollution due to construction is calculated at a rate of RMB 3 per one square meter of construction. However, pollution due to industrial noise is calculated based off the number of decibels the industrial noise exceeds standards established by the government. Industrial noise tax can range from RMB 350 per month (one decibel above standard) to RMB 11,200 per month (18 decibels above standard).

Solid waste taxation is determined by the amount produced, and ranges from RMB 5-30 per ton depending on the specific solid pollutant emitted.

Tax Exemptions

It is important to note that not all pollutant discharges within a company will be subjected to the new taxation. Water pollutants will be divided between heavy metals and remaining toxins, and only the five highest heavy metal pollutant equivalents and three highest remaining toxin pollutant equivalents will be taxed. Similarly, only a company’s air pollutants with the three highest pollutant equivalents will feel the effects of taxation.

Additionally, any company which empties pollutants in urban wastewater treatment plants or urban domestic waste treatment plants is exempt from the EPT. Pollution produced from vehicles, ships, trains, and planes, and agricultural production (except large scale) is not covered either.

Tax Collection

The current EPT draft states that tax collection should occur at the location where the pollution is discharged. China’s tax authorities have the discretion to choose how frequently the tax will be collected, either on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis.

In the event that a company emits pollution irregularly, the tax will be collected on a case by case basis.
Taxpayers must be careful to strictly follow tax collection procedures, as violations can lead to fines of up to five times the tax amount unpaid. China’s environmental protection departments also maintain the right to investigate and review any suspicious activities of companies operating within China at their own discretion.

Conclusion

As China turns its attention toward environmental protection, companies must be sure to stay current on China’s most recent legislation. The pending EPT is likely another step in the process to restore China’s environment, and companies unprepared for the adjustment may find themselves struggling to adapt to the changing industrial climate.

Source: By Elizabeth Leclaire, http://www.china-briefing.com/