Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
filed against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for revision of its airspace
rules that has brought increased aircraft noise to five states in the northeastern part
of the United States [31]. Additionally, there are numerous media reports of resi-
dents around Heathrow airport who protested the expansion of this airport because
of the potential of increased noise to their community. Bronzaft et al. [32] found
that transportation generated noises headed the list of complaints by participants
who completed a community noise survey. However, it should be pointed out that
people in this survey also complained about noise from neighbors, pets, construction
sites, power garden equipment, as further evidenced from the results of three on-line
surveys of neighborhood noise conducted by Bronzaft and Van Ryzin [33]. Their
surveys indicated that annoyance was the number one response to intrusive noises
amongst the New Yorkers who responded to the survey as well as the respondents
from across the United States.
There has been some doubt cast on the accuracy of data collected from surveys
with respect to assessing how annoying noise is. Some say that people who are more
sensitive to noise are more likely to respond to noise questionnaires. This criticism
can be overcome by providing data on large samples. However, even if we were to
accept that there are individuals who are more sensitive to the noises around them,
as there are those who are less sensitive, most people would probably fall in the
middle of the normal curve and would very likely be annoyed by certain noises.
Kryter, well-recognized for his topics on noise, at first questioned the reliability of
attitude surveys of noise but finally concluded that the reliability was greater than he
had originally thought. After examining a number of studies, Kryter stated, “Thus,
although noise annoyance can perhaps be a burden that creates problems for highly
sensitive people, it appears that it creates the most annoyance for persons engaging
in normal behavior; that is, it occurs most often in normal people [6].
Annoyance to intrusive noise very often involves communities, e.g., noise from
a nearby airport, from a new construction, from urban mass transit systems, or from
passing boom cars with community members complaining that noise interferes with
use of back yards and terraces, prevents them from keeping their windows open,
interferes with concentration, and disturbs sleep. Berglund and Lindvall [3], after
reviewing many surveys dealing with effects of noise on annoyance, have concluded
that annoyance in response to noise is prevalent amongst a majority of residents and
that annoyance is probably the most common response to a noisy environment. They
go on to say that noise complaints are commonly referred to government agencies.
In fact, in fiscal '05 and '06 over 350,000 noise complaints came into New York
City's 311 complaint line (personal communication to Bronzaft from 311 staff).
Annoyance does not begin to cover the wide range of negative reactions asso-
ciated with noise pollution which includes anger, disappointment, dissatisfaction,
withdrawal, agitation, exhaustion, and helplessness [3, 33]. If the noise continues
unabated, and the sufferer gives up hope of relief, then the individual may expe-
rience what psychologists call “learned helplessness.” Learned helplessness is a
psychological response to a lack of control over the noise. The individual gives
up trying to remedy the situation and stops complaining but inwardly feels dis-
gusted, unhappy, and angry. Thus, the reaction goes beyond annoyance, eliciting a
