Sources of noise in the city.

Sources of noise pollution are growing and becoming more aggressive every year due to the increase in the automotive industry, the growth of industrial enterprises, etc. Today, these include:

• City vehicles;

• Rail transport (including overground metro lines);

• Air transport;

• Industrial enterprises;

• Construction;

• Repair work;

• Alarm and other noises of “household” origin;

• Incorrect location of urban multi-story buildings;

• Air intake shafts;

• Heat and power facilities.

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Types of noise in the city.

Noise pollution is divided into several distinct types:

• Structural noise (aka shock or vibration), which arises as a result of oscillatory movements in relation to something (the sound of a working punch, an elevator, stamping feet, clattering of heels, falling heavy objects to the surface, etc.);

• Airborne noise travels through the air without causing vibration on surfaces (spoken language, barking dogs, car alarms and noise from household appliances).

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Both types of noise can affect the body at once, for example, carrying out repair work in a house and sound from the street through an open window from the roadway.

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Noise paths.
Sound can be transmitted in two ways:

• Direct (sound transmission through adjacent surfaces or through a window);

• Indirect (sound transmission through the bearing and structural elements of the building).

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What is a safe or acceptable noise level?

A normal conversation is 60 - 70 dBA. ... A safe or acceptable noise level for constant exposure is 68 dBA or below. Hearing damage can occur when exposed to a constant background noise of 80 - 90 dBA. City traffic is typically 85 dBA.

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Noise pollution in decibels (dBA).
Every day, a person is faced with loud sounds that exceed the general noise standard.
Let's figure out what level of noise the familiar sounds that surround us reach.

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Forest noise (rustle of leaves) 10 dBA
Human whisper at a distance of one meter 20 dBA
Computer noise 30 dBA
Supply ventilation in the apartment 40 dBA
Noise from a working refrigerator 40 dBA
Cooking on an electric stove 40 dBA
Boiling kettle 50 dBA
Average TV volume 60 dBA
The noise of a working vacuum cleaner 70 dBA
Crying baby 80 dBA
Heavy traffic (rush hour) 80 dBA
Noise from a motorcycle and a train passing by 90 dBA
Noise from construction and repair equipment (hammer drill, chainsaw) 90-100 dBA
Music sound in a nightclub 110 dBA
Car horn 120 dBA
Noise from a passing jet aircraft 130-140 dBA
Explosion sound (fatal to humans) 200 dBA 

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Impact on humans and the environment.

What is the harm of noise and why is noise pollution an environmental problem? The World Health Organization (WHO) spent about 10 years studying this issue and in 2011 published a report with the lyrical title “Burden of disease due to noise as an environmental factor. Quantification of healthy life years lost in Europe "(Burden of disease from environmental noise. Quantification of healthy life years lost in Europe).

The report talks about the problem of the impact of noise on human health, namely, disorders of the cardiovascular system, cognitive function, the human nervous system, etc.

Sound, which is not systematic and does not exceed the critical values ​​of the noise level, is not dangerous for human life and health.

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Let look into the health problems arising from noise pollution.

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• Cardiovascular diseases.

According to the WHO, thousands of people die prematurely from cardiovascular disease caused by long-term exposure to high noise levels. Scientists have found that if a person is exposed to noise louder than 50 dBA (light traffic) or higher for a long time at night, this contributes to the development of hypertension, coronary heart disease, and heart failure.

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• Sleep disturbance.

Noise can affect a person's healthy sleep. Intermittent, sudden noises act extremely unfavorably on the human body, especially in the evening and at night. The harsh sound of a truck driving past your home is often frightening, especially for children and the elderly. Noise can affect the duration and depth of sleep: it is difficult for a person to fall asleep and it is difficult to wake up in the morning, insomnia may appear. Sleep often becomes superficial, and after waking up people do not feel rested. Lack of healthy sleep after a hard day leads to chronic overwork.

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• Cognitive impairment in children.

According to a WHO report, the effects of noise pollution on children's hearing aids lead to adverse cognitive impairment. Thus, children may lag behind in development, some have memory impairment and a low level of concentration.

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• Short-term hearing loss and deafness.

When exposed to loud noise, human hearing, as a rule, adapts and the hearing threshold rises. Therefore, after visiting quite noisy places, a person for a short time loses the ability to hear quiet sounds, but then hearing acuity is restored. But if you stay for a long time in places with sources of noise pollution (nightclubs, concerts, bars and sports events), you risk "earning" sensorineural hearing loss or even hearing loss. Continuous exposure to noise can negatively affect not only hearing, but also cause ringing in the ears, dizziness and headaches.

Sensorineural hearing loss is hearing loss caused by damage to the hair cells of the inner ear, the vestibular cochlear nerve, or the auditory centers of the brain.

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• Central nervous system disorder.

With prolonged exposure to noise on the human hearing aid, nerve cells are overstrained, which lose their ability to clearly coordinate the work of all systems of the human body. As a result, the level of irritability, nervousness, panic, anxiety increases, and depression can also develop.

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How to get rid of noise pollution.

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• Upgrade your windows. Pay attention to the thickness of the glasses, their number and the distance between them. Now you can install a double-glazed window with a triplex, which will absorb up to 40 dBA of noise.

• Rearrange your home. Place the wardrobe or chest of drawers against the wall, place the bed as far as possible from the wall, so you minimize noise from neighboring apartments.

• Lay a rug. You can put a fluffy beautiful carpet on the floor; it will also perfectly “eat up” unnecessary dBA that get into your apartment from the neighbors below.

• Use earplugs. Correct earplugs can remove up to 35 dBA of noise. Pay attention to the material from which they are made, it must be high-quality silicone, wax or polyurethane.

• Use insulation or a sound barrier in your home or vehicle. Sound insulation can reduce not only the noise from outside but it absorbs the noise inside as well, making your home or your vehicle peaceful and stress-free.

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Conclusion.
In the modern world, most of the noise pollution is created by people themselves: working with machines, loud phone calls in public places, races on highways, traffic and loud music in the car, repair work that neighbors have been doing for years, noisy holidays and huge crowds of sports fans chanting in support their team at the stadium.

We are more than compatible to reduce the level of noise pollution ourselves, even if it is only a few dBA, but if every second person strives to reduce the level of noise produced, then we will be able to extend the life of not only ourselves but also the younger generation.

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