The Problem
The Need for Field Data on Urban Noise Pollution to Improve Decision-Making
Noise Pollution: The Second Biggest Public Health Risk After Air Quality
The Impact and Trends of Noise Pollution
As urbanization accelerates and noise pollution increasingly threatens public health and economic stability, effective solutions demand accurate, real-time data. In the digital age, such data is foundational, especially in sectors like generative AI, where high-quality, diverse data drives innovation.
Other Notable Trends Include:
Today, there are over 800 million noise-sensitive people worldwide.
Projections from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that 2.5 billion people will experience hearing loss by 2050.
The United Nations (UN) estimates that 68% of the population will live in cities by 2050, making them more crowded and noisier. This urban growth will bring safety, health, access, and mobility challenges, and noise pollution will become a significant issue for current and future communities.
The European Environment Agency ranks noise and air pollution as being among the most harmful environmental exposures to public health. Often referred to as the “forgotten pollutant,” environmental noise is now recognized as a severe public health issue. Excessive exposure to noise can lead to various health effects, from annoyance and sleep deprivation to more severe problems, such as hearing loss and cardiovascular disease. In children, noise exposure has been linked to cognitive impairment.
The WHO estimates that in Western Europe alone, one million healthy life years are lost each year due to traffic-related noise. Furthermore, the EU's social cost of road and rail noise exceeds €40 billion per year. In economic terms, noise pollution has a significant impact. For example, it reduces property values; studies have shown that properties in noisier areas can lose 1.9% of their value per additional decibel. Indeed, in France, noise pollution costs €156 billion a year. In addition, noise pollution increases healthcare costs by contributing to health problems, and it reduces productivity at work and school by causing sleep disturbance and difficulty concentrating. High noise levels can also reduce tourism revenues as visitors seek quieter destinations.
The European Union’s Zero Pollution Action Plan aims to reduce environmental noise by 30% by 2030. However, the current method of noise mapping, which relies on sampling small parts of cities and scaling the data, often leads to inaccurate representations and ineffective mitigation strategies. A more accurate approach to noise mapping could significantly improve efforts to address this growing problem.
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