Noise and the UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)

Sustainable development involves the simultaneous pursuit of economic prosperity, environmental quality, and social equity, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) describe the major development challenges in these pursuits. The SDG Framework comprises 17 broad goals, that cover a wide range of issues including poverty, hunger, health, education, climate, sustainable cities and communities, amongst others. They were conceived as an indivisible whole, in that the goals relate to and depend on each other. In this context, one might have expected that noise, and its well established interconnected links to adverse economic, environmental and social impacts, might feature as a target of the SDGs. But this was not the case. Although noise and its management are not clearly identified in any of the 17 goals, this paper posits that noise is an issue cross-cutting through all of the goals. By analysing the issue of noise through the lens od the SDGs, the paper demonstrates the pervasiveness of adverse impacts associated with noise, and concludes that a failure to adequately address noise presents a significant challenge to the realization of sustainable development. The effects of noise need to be better integrated into concepts related to sustainable development, and commitments to meeting the SDGs must not be at the expense of the sonic environment.

Classroom Acoustics

In recent years the relationship between the quality of acoustic characteristics of a learning space and the learning process has received increasing attention internationally. It is clear that poor acoustics in school classrooms make them unsuitable for learning tasks that involve listening. While we now know appropriate values for reverberation time and background noise in classrooms, limited studies have been conducted to assess the performance of Irish classrooms. This research is conducting a nationwide survey of the acoustic characteristics in primary school classrooms in Ireland, one of the first of its kind in Ireland.

To date, reverberation times and background noise levels were measured in 30 classrooms, with the data collected used to assess compliance with standards set by the Irish Department of Education. Results show that 66.67% of Irish classrooms fail to meet the required standard. The results of this survey highlight the need for improvements in the acoustic conditions of primary school classrooms in Ireland to ensure that all students have access to an optimal learning environment.

Airport Noise

The concept of a balanced approach to aircraft noise management was officially Introduced by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 2001. At its core is a theme of sustainable development; to allow development of air travel without adversely impacting the acoustic environment. In Europe, Regulation598/2014 embraces this Balanced Approach and sets out a number of procedures for its implementation. For example, it requires Member States to identify competent authorities responsible for the process to be followed when adopting operating restrictions.

In the case of Dublin Airport, this regulation comes at an interesting time. Dublin Airport is Ireland’s largest airport and serves as a chief hub connecting Ireland to the world. Dublin Airport Authority has plans to extend the operating capacity of the airport, and in 2007 was granted planning to build a new runway. However, this planning approval was subject to certain conditions and included particular restrictions related to noise. The research examines how Regulation 598/2014 has influenced the development at Dublin Airport since then, and summarizes the perhaps unintentional consequences of Regulation 598/2014.