How noise affects sustainability

I survived acoustics. The disturbing flashbacks to Year 12 maths were not enough, so thankfully having a maths teacher extraordinaire type sibling who took time out from educating the next generation to help the current one (putting into practice another of the ESD principles - intragenerational equity!) meant I eventually, and successfully, completed the assessments.

The question has been asked on more than one occasion, usually by disturbed loved ones as I attempted to pull my hair out, what on earth does acoustics have to do with sustainability?

As it turns out, the study of acoustics in this subject was for the benefit of mechanical engineers who in the future will be designing stuff operating in an environment near you - anything from the car you drive, the air-conditioner you switch on, the processing plant next to your hobby farm, to your next state-of-the art sound system.

You see, we now take well-designed, quietly operating equipment for granted but, the designers of tomorrow still have to learn the principles of noise (and its reduction) today.

Reading around the subject of noise is revelatory. The World Health Organisation considers occupational noise as a burden of disease. Unsurprisingly their data shows there are no recorded cases of death caused directly by noise. However it is the third highest risk affecting Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALY). This measure combines the burden due to death and disability in a single index. Each year represents the loss of the equivalent one year of full health. So while occupational noise won't kill you, it appears it will not make you stronger either.


Occupational noise is not the only form of noise which is bad for your health. Environmental noise has been the focus of the WHO Europe who suggest that excess noise "can disturb sleep, cause cardiovascular and psychophysiological effects, reduce performance and provoke annoyance responses and changes in social behaviour". In reality, this is when noise may lead to death - indirectly that is...

So, in a nutshell, sustainable societies are those where the inhabitants can communicate effectively so being able to listen to each other helps. It is also beneficial if the inhabitants are not being made ill or being driven to acts of violence because of undesirable noise in their environment. Noise levels can and do affect sustainability!