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Noise pollution, or sound pollution, is the propagation of noise or sound with potential harmful effects on humans and animals. The source of outdoor noise worldwide is mainly caused by machines, transport and propagation systems.
Environmental noise is an accumulation of noise pollution that occurs outside. This noise can be caused by transport, industrial, and recreational activities. [1] Noise is frequently described as 'unwanted sound'. Within this context, environmental noise is generally present in some form in all areas of human, animal, or environmental activity.
Noise health effects are the physical and psychological health consequences of regular exposure to consistent elevated sound levels. Noise from traffic, in particular, is considered by the World Health Organization to be one of the worst environmental stressors for humans, second only to air pollution. [2]
Noise pollution has been linked to metabolic syndrome, a group of health conditions including abdominal obesity and high cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar and blood pressure.
Noise pollution can cause or exacerbate cardiovascular diseases, which can further attribute to a larger range of diseases, increase stress levels, and cause sleep disturbances. [56] Noise pollution is also responsible for many reported cases of hearing loss, tinnitus , and other forms of hypersensitivity (stress/irritability) or lack thereof ...
Electric and hybrid vehicles could reduce noise pollution, but only if those vehicles make up a high proportion of total vehicles on the road; even if traffic in an urban area reached a makeup of fifty percent electric vehicles, the overall noise reduction achieved would only be a few decibels and would be barely noticeable. [12]
Background noise is an important concept in setting noise levels. Background noises include environmental noises such as water waves , traffic noise , alarms , extraneous speech , bioacoustic noise from animals, and electrical noise from devices such as refrigerators , air conditioning , power supplies , and motors .
A noise barrier (also called a soundwall, noise wall, sound berm, sound barrier, or acoustical barrier) is an exterior structure designed to protect inhabitants of sensitive land use areas from noise pollution. Noise barriers are the most effective method of mitigating roadway, railway, and industrial noise sources – other than cessation of ...