Asia Pacific Journal of Research
Vol: I Issue XI, November 2013
ISSN: 2320-5504, E-ISSN-2347-4793
NOISE POLLUTION IN CHENNAI: A CASE STUDY
1Dasarathy.
A , K., PhD Scholar and Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering,
Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute University, NH4, E.V.R. Periyar Road,
Maduravoyal, Chennai 600095, India
2Dr.
T.S. Thandavamoorthy, FIE, Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, Adhiparasakthi
Engineering College, Melmaruvathur 603319, and Vice-President, ICI.
ABSTRACT
Noise is a prominent feature of the environment including noise from transport, industry
and neighbourhood. An important part of noise assessment is the actual measurement of
the noise levels. Continuous Leq measurement during day time (10.00–18.00 hr) was
carried out in residential areas and at an intersection on OMR (Old Mahabalipuram Road
in Chennai) during September and October 2012 for a week continuously. The results show
that the noise pollution at the places of measurements is wide spread throughout most of
the time. The noise in this area is composite in nature. Public participation, education,
traffic management, and structural design play a major role in noise management. An
attempt has been made to find the noise levels at OMR section; two sensitive places were
selected along OMR. It was observed that the noise levels were above the standards
prescribed by the CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) standards.
Key words : Noise, Pollution, Environment, Noise level, Road traffic, Noise index
INTRODUCTION
The perception of sounds in day-to-day life is of major importance for human well-being.
Communication through speech, sounds from playing children, music, natural sounds in
parklands, parks and gardens are all examples of sounds essential for satisfaction in everyday
life. In the modern world, development in technology, commerce, communication and
education has enhanced the urban growth both in developed and developing countries. With
global urbanization, there have occurred many environmental problems causing pollution and
environmental degradation. Out of many environmental problems, noise has emerged as one
of the major urban environmental pollutions1, 2. Environmental noise pollution has not been an
entirely new phenomenon, but rather has been a problem that has grown steadily worse with
time. Noise, defined as ‘unwanted sound’, is perceived as an environmental stressor and
nuisance3. Increasing noise exposure is today a serious problem for most cities and, high focus
is currently put into monitoring and calculating actual noise exposure levels to understand the
size of the actual problem4, 5. Noise is a prominent feature of the environment including noise
from transport, industry and neighbourhood. Transport noise is an increasingly prominent
feature of the urban environment, making noise pollution an important environmental public
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Vol: I Issue XI, November 2013
ISSN: 2320-5504, E-ISSN-2347-4793
health issue2,3. Noise pollution in urban cities is steadily increasing over the years4. Proportion
of people exposed to noise is greatly increasing.
This directly and indirectly affects the people that can lead to the health hazard5. Some of the
major health hazards caused by the noise as suggested by experts are permanent hearing loss,
high blood pressure, muscle tension, migraine, headaches, higher cholesterol levels, gastric
ulcers, irritability insomnia, increased aggression and psychological disorder5-7. In India, there
were very few researches on noise pollution being carried out. Even such surveys conducted
in the past have revealed that noise levels in urban areas are generally much higher than
recommended standards8-11. The main purpose of this study is to monitor and calculate actual
noise exposure levels to understand the magnitude of the actual problem and to develop
fundamental database to assist in the preparation of guideline for prevention of the noise
pollution and its control in this area.
STUDY AREA
The OMR selected for study purpose lies within Chennai Corporation under Sholinganallur
constituency. The corridor is fully developed with IT companies, change in land use,
clustered developmental works related to residential zones and 3 industrial estates. The
sampling locations were toll plaza at Perungudi and an intersection namely SPR tools.
EQUIPMENT
An important part of noise assessment is the actual measurement of the noise levels. The ‘A’
weighted network was used as it corresponds very closely to a person’s hearing sensitivity.
The noise level at two locations were measured with the help of HTC make Sound Level
Meter (3241 – c type II data logger) on a digital display type. The noise levels were recorded
from morning 10.00AM to 18.00PM at an interval of 10 s from Monday through Saturday at
both locations.
PARAMETERS CALCULATED FROM PRIMARY SURVEY
The following noise parameters such as Noise equivalent level, noise pollution level and
noise index were calculated. These are presented in figure 1 and figure 2.
d
e
c
i
b
e
l
120
l
100
e
v80
e
l60
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
40
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
20
0
L10
L50
L90
Leq
Lnp
TNI
LMAX
LMIN
LAVE
Figure 1 Consolidated values of all the noise parameters at Toll Plaza
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Asia Pacific Journal of Research
Vol: I Issue XI, November 2013
ISSN: 2320-5504, E-ISSN-2347-4793
100
d
e
c
i
b
e
l
90
80
70
MONDAY
60
TUESDAY
50
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
40
l
e 30
v 20
e
10
l
0
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
L10
L50
L90
Leq
Lnp
TNI
LMAX LMIN
LAVE LCPCB
Figure 2 Consolidated values of all the noise parameters at SRP Tools intersection
The noise Parameters are L10, L50, L90, Leq, Lnp, Lmin, Lmax, Lave, and NI12
L10, L50, L90 = noise level exceeded for 10%, 50%, 90% of the time in noise recording
Leq = L50+ (L10- L90 )2/60
Lnp, = Leq+ (L10- L90 )
NI = L90+ (L10- L90 ) – 30
Lmin, Lmax, Lave from data logger from sound level meter.
Ambient noise quality standards set by CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) for Leq are
presented in Table 3.
Sl. No
1
2
3
4
Table 3 Permissible noise levels13
NOISE LEVEL IN dBA
ZONE
DAY TIME NIGHT TIME
INDUSTRIAL
75
70
COMMERCIAL
65
55
RESIDENTIAL
55
45
SILENCE
50
40
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The ambient air quality standards set by CPCB are presents In Table 2 and Figs. 1 and 2
show the L10, L50, L90, Leq, Lnp, Lmin, Lmax, Lave, and NI. The Leq values are also presented in
figure 1 and figure 2 is compared with table 2 for both the locations and presented in figure 3
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Asia Pacific Journal of Research
Vol: I Issue XI, November 2013
ISSN: 2320-5504, E-ISSN-2347-4793
90
80
d
e
c
i
b
e
l
70
60
l
e
50
v
40
e
30
l
TOLL PLAZA Leq
SRP TOOLS Leq
CPCB LCPCB
20
10
0
Fig. 3 comparison of Leq with CPCB standards for both locations
None of the two places recorded below 45 dBA . The values are in the range of 44 dBA and
105 dBA. The highest noise level recorded was during Wednesday and Thursday. The
scenario is same at both the sample points.
The observed noise level at OMR areas are compared with other studies carried out in
different parts of India and it was found that, other urban areas also faced the similar trend of
noise pollution (Table 4). Thus, there is a need to create awareness among the people and
educate the citizens about the rising noise pollution, health effects, etc. Disseminate a key
message that control of noise at individual’s level will control noise pollution. There are
many legal provisions to control or check the noise pollution. Many laws and acts have been
amended to prevent the noise pollution but implementation of these laws is in vein.
Table 4 Comparison of noise levels with other studies in India
City name
Silent zone Residential zone Commercial zone Industrial zone
Vishakapatnam8
43.0-60
45-77
70-90
Ambur9
47.2-80.4
30.6-83.6
40-96.4
Lucknow10
67.7-78.9
74.8-84.2
11
Burdwan
60-90
69-110
Melmaruvathur12
36.5-92.6
51.4-102.4
42.6-102.4
40.2-99.2
Bolpur- Santiniketan14
20.5-78.5
25-80.5
42-98
Gwalior15
45.5-69.3
51.7-77.2
64.5-119.2
17
Dehradun
55.6-104.8
55.3-107.6
59.6-118.2
74.8-104.3
Mangalore18
43.2-97.2
50.6-97
56-99
51-91.80
OMR19
44- 105
19
present study
Road traffic is a major source of noise in urban areas with far-reaching and wide ranging
effects to human. India as a developing country, traffic noise pollution occurs seriously in its
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Asia Pacific Journal of Research
Vol: I Issue XI, November 2013
ISSN: 2320-5504, E-ISSN-2347-4793
urban and suburban areas. Noise interferes in complex task performance, modifies social
behaviour and causes annoyance. Studies of occupational and environmental noise exposure
suggest an association with hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
Noise pollution is emerging as an environmental problem in OMR areas and also other parts
of Chennai. This can cause negative impact on public health and welfare of people.
Considering the above aspects, we can conclude that traffic noise dominates the spectrum
of environmental noise. The people staying in noisy area especially above 70 dB(A) should
take precautionary measures in order to avoid noise induced hearing loss. Undoubtedly, there
is a need for further research to clarify this complex area, including better measurement of
noise exposure and health outcomes.
It is worth pointing out that in hot climates like Chennai area, where the majority of the
residents leave windows open for the purpose of facilitating natural ventilation, indoor and
outdoor noise levels are practically the same. Road traffic is a key source of noise in big
cities. The speed and exhaust system determines the noise released by road traffic. The contact
between tyre and the road surface is a dominant source of noise at speeds above 60 km/h for
light vehicles. In the present condition surface noise is likely to become an important issue to
be addressed in noise abatement strategies. In urban areas, fast acceleration and re-starting the
engine in traffic could result in emissions up to 15 dB higher than the normal levels of
emission resulting from smooth driving.
To reduce noise pollution several measures can be implemented such as proper maintenance
of vehicles and roads, proper checking of vehicles, poor and old vehicles should be banned
and plantation of trees. Most important to tackle noise pollution is to create awareness among
the people about noise pollution and its adverse effects. Also, application of appropriate
technology of providing noise barriers and enclosures will go a long way in abatement of
high level of noise.
CONCLUSIONS
A case study of noise pollution in crowded localities in Chennai is presented. Noise level
were measured at two very important locations situated on OMR, a software hub of the State,
i.e., one near the Toll Plaza and the other at an intersection near SRP Tools. None of the
places recorded the day time permissible value of below 45 dBA. The maximum recorded
value was 105 dBA. Such a high noise pollution can seriously affect the health of the people
as well as their functions. In order to reduce the noise level noise barrier has to be erected.
One possible solution to tackle noise pollution is growing more number of trees in the
sourrendings..
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