Day 322 of 365 - Noise Pollution

Although I wrote a post some time ago about my preference for quiet, this one is about environmental noise which is so bothersome.  Two, no three, power tools which make extremely irritating noise, are an all too frequent occurrence in my neighborhood.

Two of them are courtesy of the people who come once a week to take care of the grounds where I live.  The sound of the lawn mowers is somewhat tolerable.  It's when the trimmers and leaf blowers come out that I want to slam the windows shut.  Those two devices make such a grating sound that I don't know how the users can stand them!  Just when you think they are finished, they start up again.

Gas powered leaf blowers make 80 to 92 decibels of noise, weed whackers 96 decibels and hedge trimmers up to 103 decibels.  Aside from the noise, these gas powered devices create polluting exhaust emissions.  Some communities have actually banned them, or restricted their hours of use.

Noise above 85 decibels can cause permanent damage to hearing.  Imagine the exposure those workers in grounds keeping receive!  Most of them don't use hearing protection.

I was wondering if I am becoming more sensitive to noise as I get older.  It seemed to me that I used to be able to more easily tune out background noise.  It turns out that just may be true.  A study done at my local university a year or so ago found that it is a brain sensitivity issue, not an ear issue.  As we age, the brain becomes less able to filter out and adapt to extraneous sound.  Oh boy, one more thing to contend with as time marches on.

The other regular culprit in my noise repertoire is from a home garage on an adjacent street.  The owner must have a woodworking shop in his garage.  Either he is operating a business from there or he is renovating his entire home.  In any case, it is not unusual any time from 8 a.m. onward to hear the whining sound of a table saw, on any day of the week.

Add in seasonal road and utility work and tree trimming, which brings more heavy equipment and trucks into the area and it makes me long for the quiet of a snow blanketed winter day.  ( I know, I can't believe I just said that, but it's the image that came to mind to soothe me.)

About 30 percent of adults over 65 will suffer from age related hearing loss, which is due to degenerative changes in the cochlea, the coil shaped part of the inner ear.  The heightened sensitivity to certain volumes and frequencies of sound is a secondary symptom.  I did have my hearing checked a couple of years ago and it was still fine then.  Perhaps my sensitivity is just an indicator of my cochlea wearing out. :(

We are heading out of the city to a more rural area for a couple of days.  It will be much quieter where we are going.  My ears and brain will appreciate the respite from excessive noise.








Comments

  1. jodyAugust 23, 2019 at 9:00 AM

    yes quiet is so welcome that is why being at the lake cottage is so restful that sometimes i have trouble staying awake especially when reading.

    ReplyDelete

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