Introduction to Noise Pollution: What is it, What Can We Do?
What is Noise Pollution?
The impact that human activity has on the natural world is monumental, and not every form of harmful behaviour can be seen. Noise pollution refers to an invisible and destructive type of pollution that can have profound effects on both humans and animals, with harmful and excessively loud noises disrupting normal behaviours and even physically damaging and harming wildlife that may be in the vicinity of excessive noise pollution. Noise pollution affects both animals and humans on land as well as aquatic life, as human industries take to the oceans to find sources of oil and other resources to dig up from the depths of the sea bed. Noise pollution has profound impacts on the physical and physiological well-being of those who are exposed to this kind of pollution and it is important that we are aware of the impacts that this may have on our lives.
What is the Source of Noise Pollution?
Many different natural sounds occur in nature, from the rustling of leaves to the sounds of waves breaking along the shore of a beach, and so not all noise will register loud enough to be considered noise pollution. Many different sources of noise pollution can impact the lives of both humans and animals and any sound that is registered to be above what naturally occurs within nature is considered to be a disruptive level of noise. Human industry and standard day to day activities that are common occurrences are a large source of noise pollution, with highways, aeroplanes and even just a construction site producing extremely high levels of noise.
What are The Causes of Noise Pollution?
There are many noise pollution causes, and they involve certain types of human industry. There are many ways that this kind of pollution can impact the environment and the following are just a few of the most common types of noise pollution seen today.
Traffic Noise
The noise that traffic generates can be harmful to the environment and as large highways and stretches of road develop across countries all over the world, habitats in these areas suffer greatly. Noise pollution that results from traffic can harm ecosystems that occur near these roadways, with excessive exhaust noises and hooting impacting how creatures and animals live and survive within certain areas. Though the effects of noise pollution depend on the number of vehicles that make their way through areas over a certain period, it is important to consider how loud noises from cars can impact the ecosystems that exist near different roads and freeways.
Air Traffic Noise
Noise from aeroplanes can be very harmful to environments that are near airports, both for animals and humans alike. When planes take off, land and are in the air, they emit very loud sounds that have both harmful physical effects and harmful psychological effects, though we may not even realise it! Many animals and ecosystems are forced to move away from areas that are located near airports as this air traffic noise is extremely harmful!
Construction Sites
Constriction sites have tons of different types of loud noises, from drills drilling into concrete to trucks that transport large quantities of materials. Like other causes of noise pollution, the harmful effects can impact the lives of both animals and humans, with increased blood pressure inducing stress and often even causing issues with insomnia.
What are The Effects of Noise Pollution?
The effects of noise pollution can be detrimental in both physical and psychological ways. When humans or animals hear loud noises, we are immediately on the lookout for threats, which increase blood pressure and the functioning and reactions of our brains. The following are just a few ways that these different effects can negatively impact our lives.
Physical
The physical effects of noise pollution can be detrimental to the health and well-being of those located near areas where loud noises are produced very often. As our bodies are designed to be aware of loud noises, whenever we hear them we have a spike in adrenaline and our hearts begin to pump blood faster through our bodies. Having these reactions too often can cause issues with blood pressure leading to increases in the risks of having issues like heart attacks. Physically, extremely loud noises can also negatively affect our hearing, with issues in this regard becoming more precedented the older that we get. To avoid issues like the ones discussed above, it is important to look at reducing the number of loud noises that we are exposed to in our day to day lives.
Psychological
As loud noises often lead to indications that something threatening and potentially harmful is nearby, loud noises also have a profound psychological effect on our minds. Loud noises often induce a sense of stress or anxiety, which often leads to instances of anger and even depression. With ailments like the ones mentioned above on the rise as there are increases in noise pollution, eradicating instances where loud noises may affect our psychological health is imperative.
What Are The Solutions To Reduce Noise Pollution?
Many noise pollution solutions involve eradicating the objects and things that produce extremely loud noises from our environments. Having an environment where noise remains at a manageable and natural level will reduce the stress that we place on our bodies and help to eradicate the effects that come with having loud noises constantly around us. With things like electric cars and a reduction in the number of times that we use aeroplanes to travel, you will find that there will be fewer physical and psychological noise pollution complaints and issues that affect the health and well-being of ourselves and those around us. Finding the best solutions to solve the issues and effects of noise pollution and the negative impact they have on our bodies means adjusting our environments and being aware of the different levels of sound that we surround ourselves with.
