The Environmental Impact of Construction Noise

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When people speak about construction they always think of the carbon footprint of construction but I’d like to take a look at the noise footprint of destruction of old buildings and construction of new buildings.

I live close to a quarry. If I open the windows I can hear the noise of tracks grating along as diggers and machines move around and drop construction rubble and other materials either onto the ground, or into the truck’s back. A few days I counted at least eight diggers working simultaneously. That’s a lot of noise.

Roof Replacement

A year or two ago I had several weeks of noise pollution that came from the replacement of a roof. They moved the old tiles, removed the wooden beams, and then they had to put new ones. The noise lasted for weeks or even months.

Destruction of Old Buildings

In Switzerland you see that densification is taken seriously. As soon as a single family has moved out of their old homes developers come in, flatten the old building, after just 30-50 years of use, and build something new. A building nearby has been demolished over three days, so far, and the noise is constant, from the time they start their shift until the time their shift ends. The result of this noise pollution, and environmental pollution, is that windows need to be closed and white noise needs to be produced.

The Noise of Construction

Once the buildings are demolished we are then condemned to months of construction noises. We are condemned to the sound of stone cutting, brick cutting, trucks and other machines. We are condemned to hundreds, if not thousands of hours of construction noises, for each building.

My Concern

My concern is that huge amounts of energy are being wasted to build homes that last for one family, before being demolished, and a new building constructed. Every building destruction and rebuild results in a year or two of noise pollution, if not more. That noise has an environmental impact and the Swiss do not worry about it. You can’t fly an ultralight plane, but you can demolish a building and build another, without worrying about noise pollution.

My Idealism

While preparing dinner yesterday I was tempted by the idea of having noise pollution regulations for construction, that would force builders to consider their environmental noise impact. I would measure the base noise level of a construction site, before works begin, and if construction is in a quiet place, it should not be allowed to exceed a certain noise level, for two reasons.

The first is that noise pollution is disruptive. It breaks focus, hence the need for white noise, but it also takes away the freedom to open windows to cool down buildings. During summer heatwavess this means that buildings that could easily be cooled, become impossible to cool down, due to environmental noise pollution.

I found it quieter when I spent 21 days in the middle of Geneva, and when I lived in Meyrin, by the airport, than I do in villages where they want to densify where people live.

Europe is looking at noise pollution, mainly focused at traffic, but I believe that construction noise pollution should be addressed. For four or five years I have suffered from construction noise pollution. It is now so bad that I rarely open windows for more than a few minutes at a time, in between bouts of noise pollution. Before moving in this noisy village I would open windows in the morning, and close them before sunset. I have lost that feedom due to noise pollution

And Finally

Due to noise pollution the Outside Air Temperature is 19°c but I can’t take advantage to cool my 28°c apartment because if I open the windows I will get construction noise permanently. After three years of living in a warm apartment over the summer months I have acclimated. I would like to regain the freedom to cool my apartment, by opening windows, without suffering with the noise of construction.

I miss being able to open a window in the morning, forgetting about it, and then closing it in the evening. I hope that other people feel the same way, and that with time, new noise regulations will come into being.