Sound level meters & Noise dosimeters for Environmental noise monitoring industry - Health and Safety - Health and Safety Monitoring and Testing
Environmental Noise is one of the fastest growing areas of noise monitoring, mapping and control. The EU has introduced a number of Directives aimed at increasing the level of information about Environmental Noise across the EU. In 1996, data from the EU Green Paper on Future Noise Policy estimated that around 20% of the EU`s population, or close to 80 million people, suffer from noise levels that experts consider to be unacceptable. Most of these people become annoyed and suffer from sleep deprivation, which experts fear will lead to adverse health effects. An additional 170 million citizens are now living in so-called "grey areas" where the noise levels cause serious annoyance during the daytime.
Causes of Environmental Noise
Many of the demands of modern society result in the creation of noise sources, such as larger airports, additional power stations and higher road traffic levels.
In addition to this, the expansion of towns and cities, driven by the demand for housing, has often resulted in the development of land near to existing noise sources. These trends have meant that many more industries are now required to monitor their environmental noise impact.
