EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Chapter 4: Environmental Noise Environmental Noise 1. Introduction Environmental noise is ‘unwanted or harmful outdoor sound’ arising from all areas of human activity. Although noise is a product of many human activities, the most widespread sources of environmental noise exposure in Ireland are various forms of transport. Annoyance is one of the most prevalent responses to noise. Annoyance is described as a stress reaction that encompasses a wide range of negative feelings such as disturbance, dissatisfaction and distress. An individual’s response to noise depends not only on exposure levels but also on the context, the situation and personal factors (EEA, 2019a). The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported extensively on the health impacts of environmental noise pollution. The human ear hears sound pressures over a wide range of frequencies. Decibels (dB), which are measured on a logarithmic scale, correspond to the way our ears interpret sound pressures. Figure 4.1 outlines some comparative noise levels for outdoor and indoor activities (US DT FAA, 2020). Figure 4.1  Comparison of indoor and outdoor sound levels (Source: US DT FAA, 2020) Noise and Health The WHO has identified long-term noise exposure as an important public health issue and the second most significant environmental cause of ill health in western Europe after air pollution. In 2018, the WHO published the Environmental Noise Guidelines for the European Region (WHO, 2018). The guidelines set out how noise pollution in our towns and cities is increasing and how excessive noise, particularly from transport sources, has negative impacts on human health and wellbeing, adversely affecting sleep and cardiovascular and metabolic function. Night- time exposure to high levels of road traffic noise affects more than 78 million people in the 33 member countries of the European Environment Agency. In Europe more than 17 million people are exposed to high night-time noise levels from railways and approximately 1.3 million are exposed to high night-time noise levels from aircraft (EEA, 2019b). Data for Ireland from the transport noise mapping work, coordinated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), are also available. These data are discussed later in this chapter (see section 2 for relevant discussion). 85