Noise pollution alarming in port city

. PHOTO: STAR

Noise pollution in the port city has reached an alarming level as about 30,000 buses, trucks and auto-rickshaws with their roaring sounds reign the roads.

Noise from vehicles has made the lives of city dwellers miserable.

Whether it is 8.00am, 12.30pm, 6.00pm or 10.00pm, it has no difference. From early morning to late in the night, the sound of 'harsh' vehicles that ply recklessly is most deafening.

"We get up from bed amid noise pollution, go to work amid noise pollution, return home amid noise pollution and go to bed amid noise pollution," said Monwarul Haq Shamim, a physician at Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH).

According to sources in the Department of Environment (DoE), about 20,000 auto-rickshaws, 4500 trucks and 4000 buses ply city roads. And these vehicles not only are polluting environment but also causing serious risk to the public health as silent killer.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has fixed acceptable sound limits for silent zones at 45 decibels (db) during the day and 35 db at night. Day and nighttime specifications for other areas are: residential areas (50 db and 40 db), mixed areas (60 db and 50 db), commercial areas (70 db and 60 db) and industrial areas (75 db and 70 db).

Noise level has surpassed the levels in all areas in the port city recommended by WHO.

As per medical science, the sound tolerant capacity of a human being is 45 to 70 decibels. But, the figure currently in Chittagong stands between 85 to 110 decibels what the DoE said is alarming.

"Just a little louder conversation creates noise pollution of about 60 decibels, the electric horn of vehicles up to 100 decibels while factories, industries, workshops and repairing of engineering instruments produce 80 to 100 decibels," said DoE sources.

Hydraulic horn of the trucks and buses causes the worst sound hazards and produces 125 decibels of pollution, sources said.

"The extent of noise pollution by bus, truck and auto-rickshaw sometime differs slightly depending on density or rush of vehicles at some city points and thoroughfares," DoE Director in Chittagong Mosharraf Hossain said.

He said the 'faulty' buses, trucks and auto-rickshaws reign throughout the day at Anderkilla, Chawk Bazar, GEC Intersection, New Market, Muradpur, Sholoshahar No-2 Gate, Tigerpass, Dewanhat, Agrabad Commercial Area, Bandar, Station Road, WASA Crossing and Bohaddarhat Intersection points. And sound pollution takes it's worst toll at these areas.

He said, "Although hydraulic horns are banned, most of the buses and trucks use those defying law."

"Our job is to identify the vehicles with excessive decibel and inform the law enforcing agencies concerned for proper action against the vehicles. And we do conduct survey each year in the cities in this regard," said a DoE chemist requesting anonymity.

Acting on our findings or survey, sometime the traffic department of Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) takes actions but most of the time the faulty vehicles ply without any problem, he added.

The auto-rickshaws and tempos with faulty silencer pipe or without filter also attribute to the serious noise pollution, sources said.

Physicians said that noise pollution causes blood pressure, headache, peptic ulcer, insomnia, indigestion, hypertension and permanent hearing impairment and children are the worst victims.

"Noise pollution cut down the retentive faculty, creates headache, insomnia, indigestion and deafness. It may also cause harm to the hearts and liver cirrhosis," said child specialist Dr Nasiruddin Mahmud.

Doctors and DoE officials said that the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) could help reduce noise pollution while renewed fitness certificates to the vehicles.

"If the BRTA set a mandatory sound limit for the vehicles during the renewal of fitness certificate noise pollution would surely come down to a great extent," they said.