The noise nuisance problem

One of the most pervasive and persistent problems facing many Guyanese is that of noise pollution.

While Section 175 of the Summary Jurisdiction (Offences) Act makes it a crime to produce any noise which is so loud, continuous or repetitive to cause a nuisance, this section of the law is rarely enforced. The reasons for lack of enforcement may be almost as numerous as the negative effects of noise.

However, considering the ubiquity of the problem and seriousness of its effects, the issue has to be addressed sooner rather than later at all levels of society, if we are to develop optimally.

The harmful effects of noise on human health are well established. Noise has adverse effects on all aspects of health, both physical and mental, and many of those effects can result in profound and permanent harm and even death.

The effect that consistent, prolonged exposure to noise can result in permanent and irreversible damage to hearing is well known. Medical experts say that such hearing loss causes “noise addiction”. This effect is familiar to Guyanese who travel regularly in mini-buses that play loud music or who live close to neighbours who engage in this dangerous practice. ersons who listen to loud music, over time, need to increase the volume of music in order to hear it, as their hearing is being constantly and permanently damaged. But, there are less known health effects.

Workplace and environmental noise has also been shown to cause narrowing of the arteries of the heart, high blood pressure, sleep disorders, diabetes, general defects in blood circulation, and, alarmingly, birth defects in babies.

According to studies by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), women who are subjected to noise during pregnancy have a significantly increased risk of giving birth to an underweight baby. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), an underweight baby is one weighing fewer than 2,500 grams or 88 ounces at birth. Underweight babies have a higher risk of general health issues. Additionally, the USEPA has found a cause-and-effect relationship between such babies and birth defects, most frequently harelip, cleft palate, and spinal malformations.

Researcher Lester Sontag of the Fels Research Institute for the Study of Human Development wrote, “The foetus is capable of perceiving sounds and responding to them by motor activity and cardiac rate change.” He said too, that the damage due to noise exposure is greatest when it occurs between 15 and 60 days after conception (before a woman may know that she is pregnant), a period in which major internal organs, including the brain, are formed.

Further, later developmental disorders may occur because constriction of a woman’s blood vessels in response to noise causes the foetus to be starved of an adequate blood supply.
The mental defects caused by noise exposure are also well documented. Psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, depression, personality changes, aggression and violent behaviours are all associated with noise exposure.

All noise exposure is harmful. A study conducted by Rockwool International, a United Kingdom-based company, has concluded that sudden impulse of noise may be just as harmful as long-term exposure. Medical experts have explained this finding by positing that the sudden rush of hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol into the bloodstream, may have permanent effects on organs.

In Guyana, there is a serious noise pollution problem. Almost every day someone posts on social media about a neighbour playing loud music, and few weeks pass without at least one `Letter to the Editor’ about the subject.

One letter writer recently lamented that every time his neighbour turns on “their noise cannons”, and he calls the police, there is seldom any response. So, lack of enforcement of the law is the other part of the problem.

Minibus operators subject their passengers to unhealthy levels of noise, often, with police standing right there. And, if you live near to a bar or hangout spot, being at home is a nightmare.

The government is aware of the issue; an inter-agency task force was established in July 2017 under the Ministry of Public Security. However, it is unclear whether the task force completed its work and made implementable recommendations.

In any case, given the magnitude, depth, severity, and apparent cultural entrenchment of the matter, the government is urged to re-examine the issue. Citizens, too, being aware of the threat to health, are encouraged to desist from creating noise nuisance.

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