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March 2019 Issue 130 headlines

Noise sinks HMO in Egham

Another HMO has been refused at appeal due to potential noise from additional pedestrians.

Alton Park ‘screams’ spectre threatens flats

Plans for old folks’ flats near Thorpe Park theme park are on hold due to concerns of screaming from roller coasters.

Noisy fighter jets prompt judicial review

Noisy fighter jets could be too loud for a school and housing near the Lakenheath RAF base in Suffolk.

Airport home too noisy in Leeds

A proposal for a home made out of shipping containers beneath the Leeds/Bradford runway has been rejected at appeal due to noise.

Night time noise omission

A plan to boost London’s night time economy does little for noise.

Shooting okay

A landowner has successfully defended a nuisance action against noise from shooting.

Leisure noise

Oadby & Wigston Borough Council has been criticised over failings in assessing a nuisance from a leisure centre, Increased use of loud music in the centre caused problems for neighbours.

Studio allowed at appeal

A recording studio in Nottingham initially refused on noise grounds has been allowed at appeal.

European aviation expansion impacts set out

A huge 112-page report on European aviation reveals continuing growth of aviation traffic and noise.

WHO upside down

In our report on WHO noise guidelines last month, we erroneously got the conclusions of Accon’s study upside down.

Fan silenced

Licensing laws have been used to silence a fan at a noisy takeaway.

Scottish guv

Steve Williamson was elected as the new chair of the Scottish Noise Advisory Group, to succeed Dr Bernadette McKell.

Scotland noise

Transport Scotland is consulting on its latest five yearly draft action plan, which begins in 2019 and runs until 2023.

Upstairs flat noise again

Another case has emerged with councils being criticised for handling of noise nuisance from upstairs flats with poor sound insulation.

Traffic and pedestrians sink 11 flats

Another planning appeal has reinforced that even small amounts of extra traffic and pedestrians can lead to planning refusal (see also p1 story).

Action week dates

Noise Action Week will return between 20th and 25th of May this year.

Scotland re-looks at firework nuisance

Scotland is consulting on the use of fireworks. It notes noise made by setting off fireworks can be a nuisance, and the disturbance can cause distress to both people and animals.

Covenant used to protect pub

A novel covenant for new residents near existing noisy venues may prevent future noise battles.

HS2 monitoring relies on NOAELs and SOAELs

Detailed monitoring is underway for noise impacts of HS2.

Crawley fears Gatwick

Crawley Council has decided to oppose expansion at Gatwick. The airport is proposing to boost capacity by using an emergency runway (Noise Bulletin November p4).

Turbine nuisance action succeeds

A long-running nuisance case against three 80m turbines has succeeded. The detailed judgment just released shows the terms of the injunction. A long running battle against three noisy wind turbines has succeeded. Papers released earlier this month confirm details of noise-sufferer Rosie Milne’s win in her private nuisance action against Stuartfield Windpower which runs three turbines at West Knock Farm in Aberdeenshire.

Greenwich prosecution

A resident who drove neighbours to despair by persistently playing excessively loud music has had to pay £750 following a successful prosecution by the Greenwich Council.

Sensitivity matters

New Zealand researchers have compared aviation noise with noise sensitivity.

Fracking noise: is it an issue?

Fracking is being opposed by local authorities despite central government backing. Noise and other environmental issues are in dispute, finds Lis Stedman

January/February 2019 Issue 129 headlines

Between-flat noise unpicked by High Court

A 15,000 word High Court judgment will likely form a future precedent for the vexed issue of noise spillage between flats.

Buck-passing leads to Ombudsman rap

A tricky noise problem straddling across two local authorities has attracted the attention of the local authority ombudsman.

Aberdeen error

The Ombudsman has criticised Aberdeen City Council which refused to investigate noise from a council-owned car park.

Purge ventilation dominates Cemex appeal

A quarry operator has challenged retrospective planning permission given to a householder in North Yorkshire. A 16,000 word appeal judgment is dominated by discussions on purge ventilation and SOAELs.

Colchester destruction

Magistrates have ordered the forfeiture and destruction of sound equipment confiscated last July from a Colchester resident following a second prosecution by Colchester Borough Council.

Turbine infrasound spreads 15km

Finnish researchers claim that wind turbines create infrasound that spreads up to 15km.

UK onshore wind collapses

New onshore wind installations fell by nearly 80% in 2018 to the lowest level since 2011 says RenewableUK. Last year 598MW of new onshore wind was installed, made up of 263 turbines at 54 sites, down from a record 2,666MW in 2017.

Arguments begin on Heathrow court case

Lawyers have begun convoluted pre-trial arguments in the high profile challenge to expansion at Heathrow.

Noise leads to Ombudsman rap

Halton Borough Council has been criticised by the Local Authority Ombudsman for failing to properly investigate nuisance from an incinerator.

Anglesey dog kennels rejected due to barking

Dog kennels in a residential area of Anglesey have been rejected at appeal due to noise. Attempts to say noise would not be noticeable using averaging were rejected.

Motorcycle noise

MP Hugo Swire has quizzed Parliament on motorbike noise. He asked: “When will government publish the research it has commissioned to support police and highway authorities in combating and enforcing against excessive noise from motorcycles.”

BS 4142 machines

BSI has recently consulted on BS 4142 rating and assessing sound from industrial and commercial sources.

Fracking & wind

An MP has highlighted the differences between heavy regulation of fracking and light regulation of wind turbines.

UK may not need new WHO

A packed IoA meeting discussed the new WHO noise guidelines. Some felt they were flawed and may not lead to many changes in the UK, found Jack Pease

Accon surveys suggest 3dBA difference between metrics

A key difficulty in the new WHO guidelines is that they are couched in terms of Lden rather than LAeq favoured in Britain. So the 45dBA Lden proposed as an aviation annoyance threshold by WHO must not be directly compared to (for instance) 55dBA aviation annoyance numbers produced by the UK couched in LAeq 16hr.

Stigwood highlights WHO thoughts on turbines

Consultant Mike Stigwood has highlighted that WHO’s guidelines now mention wind turbines and low frequencies.

Aviation plans set out in green paper

The government is seeking views on its aviation strategy, which was published in December 2018. Lisa Russell reports.

CAA report ‘Aviation Strategy: Noise Forecast and Analyses’ (CAP 1731)

Published alongside the Aviation 2050 green paper is a report on noise forecasts and analyses (CAP 1731) produced by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Flightpaths key to growth

As well as the aviation strategy (previous pages), flightpaths are again being analysed, finds Lis Stedman

Airspace feasibility review released

The NATS report, submitted earlier in 2018 to the DfT and now reviewed by the CAA, looks at the feasibility of airspace modernisation in the south of the UK, from Birmingham in the north to Bristol in the east and the Channel in the south, covering 15 airports in total. It considers whether there is sufficient capacity to accommodate airports’ potential future demands for airspace, to establish the extent of interdependency between the various airports’ future demands for airspace, and to propose an initial plan to deliver airspace change.

December 2018 Issue 128 headlines

Edinburgh nuisance fuels Airbnb backlash

Noise concerns are central to a backlash against short term rentals (eg Airbnb) in Edinburgh.

Chocks away for lower noise but increase plane annoyance

As Noise Bulletin went to press, Government released a consultation proposing a dramatic rise in flight numbers and acceptance there may be more annoyance.

Drone noise

A Freedom of Information request suggests growing numbers of complaints of drone nuisance.

Festival tests licensing regime

An appeal has been tabled against stiff noise conditions on the Wireless Festival in London. It follows a huge licensing inquiry that has concluded drawing in 1,286 pages of evidence, much of it on noise.

Cornwall flats refused due to industry noise

A block of flats has been refused at appeal due to noise concerns.

New WHO guidelines applied to Heathrow

A Heathrow activitist has compared new WHO guidelines against guidelines for Heathrow noise.

WHO change agreed?

Ruth Cadbury MP asked in Parliament what steps Defra is taking to align UK noise pollution guidelines with the new WHO guidelines.

Westminster moots busker plan

Westminster City Council is planning tougher rules on buskers.

Lambeth rebuilds noise team reversing cuts

Lambeth has recruited a new noise team having been criticised for abolishing its previous team to save money.

Service pressure

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has challenged local authorities not to “throw out the rule book” when redesigning services in the face of budget and resource pressures.

WHO snippet

Noise researcher Anna Hansell informed the recent Epuk conference in Birmingham of background to the recent updated WHO noise guidelines.

Healthy housing concerns

Noise is among the top concerns of a Parliamentary group demanding action for healthier homes.

45dBA contour

Following identification by WHO of 45dBA as the preferred cut off for health impacts near airports, Brentwood MP asked Government in Parliamentary Questions: “What estimate he has made of the number of people who live in the 45 Lden noise contour around Heathrow airport.”

Council failures on night time chillers

The Ombudsman has found against the London Borough of Tower Hamlets for a second time over delays in acting against excessive chiller noise.

Barn provokes bitter row

A bitter row over a barn conversion has spilled over to the Birmingham High Court.

Noise commissioner finally appointed

The Independent Commission on Civil Aviation Noise (ICCAN) is seeking part time commissioners having finally – after months of delay – appointed a lead commissioner.

WHO guidelines misused, claims Baker

A consultant is claiming WHO is being routinely misused.

Night tube prompts headaches

Earlier this Autumn the London Assembly heard in detail of efforts to keep noise down as a result of the night tube.

Ultrasound puzzle studied

Research carried out by Apex Acoustics has identified widespread public exposure to ultrasound. Lisa Russell reports.

Aviation limbers up for expansion

In the run up to this week’s Green Paper release (see news page one), a raft of aviation policy papers and announcements were released, finds Lis Stedman

November 2018 Issue 127 headlines

WHO guidelines updated

The much anticipated World Health Organisation environmental noise guidelines have finally been released in a high profile ceremony in Basel.

City strategy

The City of London has released a draft transport strategy that aims to remove traffic in a bid to cut noise, air pollution and accidents.

Ealing wins 2018 John Connell Awards

The Noise Abatement Society (NAS) has had its annual John Connell Award ceremony held in Parliament at Westminster.

English plans shows increase

English noise action plans released for consultation suggest far more people are subjected to noise than five years ago.

More Scottish important areas

Scotland has released its noise action plans. Noise important areas have dramatically increased in number.

Fracking plea

20 environmental charities and campaigning groups spearheaded by CPRE have joined forces demanding that the Government drops its plans to ‘fast-track fracking’.

Quieter power for Islington canal boats

The Canal & River Trust and Islington Council are creating an ‘eco-mooring zone’ for visiting boats between York Way and Danbury Street on the Regent’s Canal in London in a bid to cut noise and pollution

West Berkshire investigated on MUGA trouble

The local authority Ombudsman has dropped a case against West Berkshire council for failing to properly handle a complaint over a MUGA (sports ground). The complainant is having to take civil action.

Sealed windows OK

A planning appeal has failed but noise objections were sidelined

Departing planes are lower

A comprehensive CAA report on airport departure noise suggests that planes are heavier and lower than before making them potentially noisier.

Gatwick sets out back-door expansion plan

Gatwick is to move a taxiway 12m to give it sufficient separation from the main runway to allow it to operate as a second runway for take offs.

Bristol student £250 fines

Bristol University has introduced a stiff student code of conduct that can lead to £250 fines for those making excess noise in the community.

Westminster leaver

Stroma has announced the appointment of Phil McIlwain to a senior position in its Acoustics team.

NPS in March

Five judicial reviews of the National Policy Statement for airport expansion will be heard in one rolled-up hearing in March.

Sound judgment

A full judgment has been published for an appeal that centred on poor noise insulation between flats in Bristol (Noise Bulletin October p3).

PDR questions in Parliament

Lords have demanded to know what the Government is doing about substandard accommodation created under new PDR relaxation.

Barking battle

A Northampton woman was fined £615 after being found guilty of breaching an abatement notice served for excessive dog barking at her property

WHO sets out new guidelines

Lis Stedman takes an early look at new World Health Organisation noise guidelines that underpin so much policy in the UK

AEF comments on implications for aviation policy

For aircraft noise, the relevant guidelines are “For Lden, we strongly recommend reducing noise levels to below 45 dB Lden, as noise above this level is associated with adverse health effects. For night exposure, the guidelines strongly recommend reducing noise levels to below 40 dB Lnight, as aircraft noise above this level is associated with adverse effects on sleep.

More from Euronoise!

In the second part of our report from the huge Euronoise conference, we look at the myriad of topics discussed during the summer event. Here, many uncertainties still surround the health impacts of transport noise and new research seeks to fill the gaps.

Aug/Sept 2015 Issue 95

Fast track fracking – or else

Ministers are to fast track fracking applications by obliging planning authorities to hurry up.

Motocross challenge fails in Surrey

A judicial review against planning permission for a motocross track in Surrey has failed.

Supercar sanctions

Noisy supercars in Knightsbridge are to be controlled via a Public Space Protection Order.

Fenland Tigers back in court

The landmark Fenland Tigers motocross noise nuisance case has once again been in the Supreme Court – this time about costs.

Bad neighbour judicial review fails

A pub has failed in its bid to see off a housing development fearing future complaints.

MPs launch Heathrow probe

The Environmental Audit Committee is holding an inquiry into the implications for Government commitments on carbon emissions, air quality and noise should the Airport Commission’s recommendation of a third runway at Heathrow Airport be adopted.

Steeper flightpaths

Heathrow is to trial a steeper landing approach as part of a ‘ten point blueprint’ for noise reduction to cut noise.

Wales grants

The Welsh Government is urging community groups and third sector organisations to bid for small scale project funding (£1,000 to £15,000), including projects to tackle noise and air pollution and create tranquil green spaces.

Greenwich fine

The Royal Borough of Greenwich has successfully prosecuted a Greenwich husband and wife for causing an on-going noise nuisance.

Tranquillity threatened

CPRE says the decision to expand Heathrow is flawed and threatens tranquillity over a wide area of south east England.

Not a mention

Defra’s annual report has been released. Noise and nuisance are not mentioned once.

‘Independent’ reports released

The first three reports from the ‘independent’ amplitude modulation wind turbine working group have been published.

Bill to force nuisance liability on turbines

MP David Davis wants to make onshore wind turbine operators liable for noise complaints in a Private Member’s Bill.

Just turn it on.....

NTi Audio’s XL2 Sound Level Meter has a newly-available “locked run” mode of operation.

Shorter hours

A consultation is underway on Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea proposals that would reduce the permitted number of hours noisy construction work can take place in the borough during the week, and prohibit noisy work on Saturdays. This would mean that contractors would no longer be able to carry out demolition work, piling or drilling, which are audible at the site boundary, on the weekend.

IoA probe flawed?

The anti-wind Renewable Energy Foundation has criticised the Institute of Acoustics consultation on amplitude modulation (Noise Bulletin May p1).

Noise complaint indicators released: patchy map

Defra has released a compendium of environmental indicators. Noise complaints – based on CIEH surveys – appear static but a regional breakdown is shown.

Common mapping

Legislation enabling a new European common mapping method has come into force. Directive 2015/996 replaces Annex II of 2002/49/EC and follows on from the CNOSSUS scrutiny of common mapping methods.

Noise and air independent

It is known that noise and air quality exposure both contribute to ill health effects but it is very hard to tease out differences because exposure maps look very similar for both pollutants. There is a large risk of confounding.

Europeans talk noise

Euronoise gave the opportunity for noise policy to be put into both a European and wider context through presentations on latest developments in topics including the END and the WHO guidelines.

Policy lessons from the noise-aware Dutch

Euronoise delegates heard about projects under way in the Netherlands to take forward a new noise mitigation programme that combines noise-reducing pavements, noise barriers and insulation of houses along existing routes.

Aircraft annoyance compared

A session on airport noise and its management produced some topical papers – ISVR’s Ian Flindell presented on two issues, with Rod Self, Antonio Torija and Athanasios Synodinos on estimating variation in community noise due to variation in aircraft operations, and with Paul Le Masurier on a combined qualitative/quantitative approach to the design of noise annoyance studies.

July 2015 issue 94

Planning guidance takes shape

New professional planning guidance (dubbed ProPG) being mooted by acousticians could be based on four acoustic levels - but it must not be confused with scrapped PPG24 noise planning policy guidance

Railway to be served nuisance notice

Stirling Council is stepping up action against railway operators for noise near Alloa.

Brownfield boost

As NB went to press, the Chancellor removed the need for planning permission on brownfield land.The implications of unregulated residential development in noisy urban areas will be of concern.

Fracking fail

Two fracking wells in Lancashire have been refused on noise grounds despite officers recommending approval.

Fight goes on

Protesters say the Airports Commission decision in favour of Heathrow is far from the end of the story. Heathrow has been chosen despite huge noise impacts.

Par houses okay

A planning inspector has overturned Cornwall Council's refusal of 44 homes next to a China Clay works and railway line in Par.

London noise lifts stroke risk

London researchers believe that there is evidence - albeit weak - that noisy traffic reduces life expectancy.

Notice withdrawn for dog noise

Thanet District Council has withdrawn a noise abatement notice following claims that the notice was incorrectly served and evidence had been tampered with.

US noise costs $4bn

A study suggests a 5dBA reduction in ambient noise could cut £4bn in health costs.

Turbine impacts understated

A retrospective study of ten wind farms has found that noise impacts can be underestimated at the planning stage.

Offshore guide gone?

A good practice guide originally aimed at noise from offshore turbines could be dropped by the Institute of Acoustics following misuse.

HS2 go ahead

The incoming majority Conservative Government has confirmed that HS2 is to go ahead. HS2 includes considerable spending on noise mitigation.

Hotel refused on appeal

An Ilford hostel has been told it cannot convert into a hotel because of noise from a nearby nightclub.

MUGA appeal fails in Sussex

A High Court challenge to the relaxation of noise conditions

ANC winners

Winner of last months ANC awards environmental category was consultant Hoare Lea for work on numerical environmental noise monitoring.

Waste fine

A Devon wood waste company has been fined £20,000 for failing to deal with noise pollution.

Tenant jailed

Birmingham County Court has given a custodial sentence of 20 weeks to a city council housing tenant for continuously breaching his anti-social behaviour order, originally served for causing noise and nuisance to his neighbours.

Wind turbine commission suggests noise

The Australian Senate select committee on wind turbines has issued an interim report recommending a formal probe on noise health impacts.

Racetrack moves to judicial review

Planning approval to allow a country house estate to build a new racetrack in its grounds have gone to Judicial Review.

Model aircraft noise monitored by Svantek

Svantek has supplied a compact, lightweight SVAN 971 sound level meter to the British Model Flying Association (BMFA) where it is being used to help assist clubs with environmental noise related issues and to ensure the long-term protection of model aircraft flying sites.

Subsidy cut and plannng becomes local

Wind farms are to have their subsidy cut. and local plannng authorities can now object

NI Etsu probe?

A Parliamentary Question in Northern Ireland suggests doubt on the future of Etsu for assessing wind turbines.

NI Etsu probe?

A Parliamentary Question in Northern Ireland suggests doubt on the future of Etsu for assessing wind turbines.

Noise no bar to Heathrow growth

Overwhelming noise and air quality disbenefits from expansion at Heathrow have been trumped by the economic arguments, finds Lis Stedman

Commission releases noise and health effects review

Along with the general conclusions of the main report, the Airports Commission released a thinkpiece on aircraft noise and health compiled by Charlotte Clark of Queen Mary's London.

Fracking noise gets political

Noise was a key factor in Lancashire County Council's recent refusal of applications involving shale gas extraction by fracking. Lisa Russell looks at the issues involved.

June 2015 issue 93

Theme park ‘not annoying

An urban extension in Cornwall is set to go ahead despite objections from Flambards theme park which fears that screaming tourists would give rise to complaints from occupants of new houses.

RES put on ‘notice’ over Den Brook

Protesters have ‘served notice’ on Den Brook wind farm developer RES that they will continuously monitor excess noise if the farm is built.

Fracking U-turn

Stop Press: as NB went to press noise objections to fracking in Lancashire appear to have been overcome.

FAA revisits aviation annoyance onset

The US FAA has launched a major study looking at possible changes in the impact of aviation noise and annoyance.

Heathrow appeal underway

Heathrow Airport is appealing against Hillingdon’s refusal to grant planning permission for limited expansion of the existing airport.

Flight path changes cause continued worry

Aviation pressure groups have come together to have a say in future flight path changes.

Acoustic camera updated

Norsonic has released new software for its Nor848a acoustic camera which is available in different size arrays. The camera dish comes in 0.4m, 1.0n and 1.6m diameter sizes.

CPRE renews tranquillity plea

CPRE has repeated its call for tranquillity in the face of continued threats to build new homes on green belt land. It has carried out a survey of authorities – very few councils have tranquillity plans in place.

Bunds to cut noise from Mallory Park

Bunds and noise fencing aim to cut 10dBA noise from Mallory Park race circuit in Leicestershire.

Open source model ready for beta testing

MAS Environmental is putting the finishing touches to a new website offering simple online noise modelling – free of charge.

Wind now local

The incoming government’s Queen’s Speech has signalled changes to onshore wind planning procedures through a new Energy Bill.

Airbnb change

Legislation is being introduced to bring London into line with the rest of the country in terms of short term lets.

Sharps staff

Consultant Sharps Redmore has three new members of staff this month, Lee Bearman, Emily Brown and Stephen Jay.

Connells return

The John Connell awards will be repeated this year. The awards were paused in 2013 but ran last year.

AM model out

Software has been released to predict amplitude modulation from wind farms.

Horizontal update

Environment Agency H3 Horizontal Noise Guidance has been updated to reflect the new version of BS4142.

Dairy refusal

An Arla megadairy near Aston Clinton, Bucks, has failed in its bid to overturn a planning condition to install a noise bund and replace it with trees.

Campbell Cup

Consultant Bickerdike Allen has once again won the Campbell Associates annual Acoustic Cup.

Welsh grants

Welsh Government has announced a new approach for issuing grants to local authorities for air quality, noise and tranquil green space work.

Turbine talk in Glasgow

So much is happening on wind turbine noise that it supports popular international conferences. Jack Pease reports from last month’s busy Glasgow wind turbine noise conference.

US noise costed

A US study has suggested that a 5dB reduction in ambient noise could yield an economic benefit of $3.9bn.
Researchers tried out a ‘new’ approach to costing noise by placing environmental noise in context with other pollutants.

Down but not out

Noise Action Week was muted as austerity bites – but still some were able to summon up enthusiasm. Lis Stedman reports.

Big fine

A Birmingham man who repeatedly breached noise abatement orders by playing his music loudly at his Handsworth home was found guilty in his absence of two offences under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court.

May 2015 Issue 92

Three choices for AM

IoA wind turbine experts have put forward three methods for rating amplitude modulation from wind farms.

Lack of assessment detail prompts refusal

Lack of proper information on noise has contributed to refusal of an anaerobic digester at a pig farm in Duns, near Berwick.

Cotton Farm probe

The controversial Cotton Farm wind farm is to be investigated by a council.

£2,300 for noisy dogs

A woman who left her two dogs to bark so excessively that her neighbours felt like moving out of their home has been ordered to pay £2,320 after appearing before magistrates at Bury St Edmunds.

Defra guide to noise options

Defra has posted a guide aimed at explaining to the public how noise nuisance should be dealt with by local authorities.

NPL devises potential calibration method

The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) has developed an optical method for remotely measuring sound pressure inside a fully anechoic chamber which is the first to provide direct traceability to the SI base units.

Flight path frenzy prompts new forum

Heathrow Airport has set up a new community noise forum including representatives of the airport, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), National Air Traffic Control (NATS), British Airways, local authorities, community organisations and campaign groups.

Kildare separation

County Kildare in Ireland is considering introducing a 1.7km separation zone for wind turbines.

Jukes down

CIEH chief executive Graham Jukes is to step down following 15 years at the organisation.

NI premises review

Northern Ireland is consulting on changes to entertainment licensing.

£2,000 penalty

A King’s Heath resident has been fined £400 with £1700 in costs by Birmingham Magistrates Court.

Saunders joins

Dan Saunders, previously with Bruel & Kjaer, has joined consultant Vanguardia.

Taller turbines

A wind energy task force has proposed taller turbines.
There are fears that yet-taller turbines would worsen noise impacts when there is wind at high levels but calm conditions at ground level reducing the masking effect of wind.

Clean bill of health?

A huge Canadian Federal Government study says there are annoyance impacts from wind turbines but doubtful evidence of direct health effects.

....yet another clean bill of health

Canadian medical experts have come to similar conclusions to the non-related large government study reported above. But experts say there may be some health effects resulting from turbine noise.

Election prompts demands

Noise campaigners representing different organisations came together to call on the next Government to take noise seriously.

Statutory notices plummet in CIEH survey

Local authorities are once again being asked to contribute to the annual CIEH survey of noise nuisance. Results feed into the Department of Health’s Public Health Outcome Indicator on noise – latest results show a sharp drop in numbers.

Noise action week looms

Noise Action Week 2015 is imminent – it runs from May 18th – 23rd.

Winds bids in

Tendering has closed for the Decc review of wind turbine amplitude modulation

Night fight

Stop Stansted Expansion urged recent election candidates to support a ban on night flights at Stansted.

Complaints cost money

Experts know that it is far easier to avoid complaints in the first place – now following a freedom of information request some value has been put on the cost of dealing with them, finds Lis Stedman

Who complains, and where

An independent survey has tried to uncover the regional pattern of noise complaints, reports Lis Stedman

Short-let noise timebomb

Legislative changes and a recent court case about short-term letting have focused attention on the potential for neighbours to suffer from noise when holidaymakers party loudly. Lisa Russell looks at the issues involved with sub letting along the lines of AirBnB

April 2015 Issue 91

£109m a year for nuisance?

A nuisance complaint costs local authorities up to £7,500, a Defra report suggests.

Action week may help?

Noise Action Week says highlighting noise issues could save money in the long run.

Licensing cuts ASB

A controversial £500 per year landlord licensing scheme pioneered by the London Borough of Newham may have cut anti social behaviour.

Noise barriers shortlisted for M40

Six proposals have been shortlisted in the second phase of a competition to design and produce a cost effective, innovative noise barrier, Highways England has announced.

Mayor directs City Airport refusal

London Mayor Boris Johnson has blocked plans for expansion of London City Airport because of noise concerns.

1,150 ‘mitigations’ by 2020

Highways England has taken over from the Highways Agency. Highways England will work to a series of ‘operational metrics’ including noise and other environmental constraints.

Probe into AM runs late

Decc’s promised review of amplitude modulation appears to have stalled, it was revealed during Parliamentary questions

Noise remains a problem across Europe

Noise remains a problem across Europe, an important pan-EU state of the environment report suggests.

Cobbing to Arup

Colin Cobbing has joined the leadership team of Arup’s UK acoustics business.

Levy amended

Amended supporting guidance for licensing authorities on the late night levy has been published.

Dig the Moles

Svantek has launched the MOLES (Miniature Outdoor Logging of Environmental Sound) system.

Big numbers

Some 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults are at risk of hearing loss due to the unsafe use of personal audio devices, including smartphones, and exposure to damaging levels of sound at noisy entertainment venues such as nightclubs, bars and sporting events, according to WHO.

Nuisance tested in High Court

The legal value of an environmental health officer’s opinion has been tested in the High Court.

Regulator could limit thwarting of fracking

Fracking will have local impacts – including noise – says an industry task force. It suggests there should be a shale gas regulator.

ANC awards

Entries are invited for 2015 Association of Noise Consultants Excellence in Acoustics awards.

Overzealous Pickles?

Epuk and CIEH have written to communities secretary Eric Pickles with a Freedom of Information request, asking for evidence to support his statement that “Too many town halls have been over-zealous in trying to silence church bells and village clocks which have chimed for decades, if not centuries”.

Entertainment dereg

Entertainment licensing has been further deregulated.

Military bangs sink log cabins

A leisure complex of 12 log cabins has been turned down at appeal because of excess noise from a military firing range. Holidaymakers would be exposed to too much noise and complaints could close down the facility.

Stansted flight fight

Pressure group Stop Stansted Expansion continues its fight against amended flight paths.

Inspector overturns refusal despite 30-fold traffic increase

A planning inspector appears to have understood the subtleties of low background noise, amenity and nuisance but then agreed plans for 114 homes despite extra traffic noise from a 30-fold increase in traffic in a quiet cul de sac.

New runways cause headaches

Feature: Responses published to Airports Commission runway plans near London

What value sleep?

A new report discusses how to put a value on five impacts caused by environmental noise from transport. Lisa Russell reports.

March 2015 issue 90

Sleep effects to be considered

A report has been quietly slipped out by Defra suggesting sleep disturbance must now be considered when considering environmental noise.

Northern Ireland seeks turbine review

Northern Ireland politicians say that noise assessment rules for wind turbines need reviewing.

Etsu endorsed

UK Government has once again been asked in Parliament to reconsider Etsu. It replied: “The Government takes seriously the impact of noise from wind turbines. Potential noise impacts are considered within the planning process in accordance with ETSU-R-97, and taking into account any guidance on good or best practice that the Government has published or endorsed, before any decision is taken.

Block on fracking: decision delayed

Lancashire planners have delayed a milestone decision on fracking. Earlier this year noise was a key part of the decision of Fylde Borough Council to recommend rejection (Noise Bulletin Jan/Feb p1).

Crowdfunded action

Cash-strapped organisers of Noise Action Week have turned to crowdfunding in a bid to fund this year’s activities.

Extra insulation for Heathrow

Just one day before consultation on airport expansion near London ended, Heathrow Airport has upped its offer to insulate homes where householders are bothered by aircraft noise. More generous grants may mean houses in south London could qualify.

CAA warns against ignoring noise nuisance

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has called on the aviation industry and decision-makers to be much more ambitious in confronting aviation’s environmental challenges – including improving compensation for communities – or else face the prospect that essential additional runway capacity may never be built.

MPs study aviation noise

MPs have scrutinised noise at Heathrow Airport. An all-party Parliamentary inquiry culminated in a 76 page report on problems and possible solutions to aviation noise.

Regulation benefits

Noise is the third most cost-effective area of regulation within Defra, a report suggests.

Noisy processions

Scottish Government has studied the impact on the community of public processions. Some 67% have expressed annoyance over noise.

Noise and air

US researchers have tried to disentangle health effects of a busy freeway.

Average hides industry noise

A housing development has been approved at appeal with the consultant citing WHO guidelines which downplay industrial noise impacts.

Motorsport noise petition triggers response

A petition calling for waivers for motorsports venues against incoming complainers has drawn sufficient support to demand a government response.

Ride quiet

For any local authorities hoping to take part in Noise Action Week and keen to tackle the issue of noisy off-road motorbikes,

WHO assessment underestimates

A study in an academic journal compares various assessment methods including World Health Organisation guidelines, BS8233 and BS4142. The findings reflect issues such as the planning case (see news, left) where experts play off metrics against each other.

Open source model promising

Air pollution modellers have used the open source (free) ‘R’ software to model noise exposure. They have found over one million people are exposed to noise over 65db.

Green walls can cut noise impacts by 15dBA

Spanish researchers used recycled boxes filled with coconut fibre, acting as ‘soil’ in a green wall intended to cut noise. They were all planted with Helichrysum thianschanicum, a popular shrub for gardening in the Mediterranean region, with an average height of 40 cm.

Den Brook fails High Court application

Den Brook protesters have been rebutted by the High Court. Protesters had sought permission to challenge the weakening of a planning condition intended to prevent amplitude modulation at a proposed wind farm (Noise Bulletin December p4).

Four year term

An elderly man has been given a four year prison sentence for stabbing a neighbour following an argument over noise.

Car cruise injunction arguments explained

Lawyers have analysed the High Court endorsement of an injunction issued by four Black Country councils against noisy car cruisers.

City airport agreed

Newham Council has agreed to grant planning permission to expand City Airport in East London.

New branding for Campbell Associates

Campbell Associates has rebranded – and announced the date of its popular annual charity fund raiser.

Noise Attitude Survey reveals decreasing tolerance

People are less tolerant of noise than they were in 2000 and many head off to quiet areas for a break. Lisa Russell looks at the implications of the newly published National Noise Attitude Survey 2012

Noise across Europe

The EEA’s eponymous report on noise in Europe 2014 throws up some interesting statistics, the most widely-reported being that around a quarter – about 125 million – Europeans could be exposed to levels of road traffic noise above legal guidelines.

January/February 2015 issue 89

Noise set to block fracking

High profile fracking operations near Blackpool may be thwarted because of noise.

Landlord is responsible for party house din

A court has dismissed an appeal against the Borough of Poole’s decision to issue a Noise Abatement Notice on a residential property in Sandbanks used as a party house.

More annoyed

As Noise Bulletin went to press, Defra released the long awaited Noise Attitude Survey.

Another turbine case hits the High Court

A High Court battle rumbles on and has growing parallels with the landmark Jane Davis/Deeping St Nicholas case (Noise Bulletin December 2011 p1).

‘Sensations’ linked to turbines

An in-depth study of residents’ ‘sensations’, monitoring data and turbine operational characteristics has uncovered possible causes of annoyance.

…while Canadian study fails to find effect

A study by Health Canada suggests there is no link between wind turbine noise and ill health.

No health effects, says review of reviews

An academic journal review of wind turbine noise suggests wind farms do not cause health effects due to infrasound.

Be Noisewise

Mary Stevens, formerly of Epuk, and Gwyn Mapp, formerly of Bureau Veritas, have jointly set up a noise policy website Noisewise.

Simulation ‘vague’

A report for DfT has analysed public attitudes towards the compensation procedures and noise consultations for the HS2 high speed railway.

NI closure

Northern Ireland’s dedicated noise website has closed.
l www.noiseni.co.uk

ASB review

Consultation responses have been published following the Scottish review of the anti social behaviour noise regime. The noise provisions which came into force in 2005 introduced a fixed penalty notice for domestic noise offences for any part of the day or night.

Decision trends

Wind turbine consultant Dick Bowdler has tabled an analysis of key issues presented at wind turbine inquiries.

HS2 bung

Compensation has been increased for those living near the line of the proposed HS2 high speed railway line between London and Birmingham.

Guidance tackles bad neighbours?

Important changes have been made to planning practice guidance on noise. Changes affect nuisance and planning.

Road and rail NPS released

Noise features in a new National Policy Statement for National Networks. The NPS sets out overarching planning policy for highways and rail infrastructure (but not HS2 which is being taken forward under a Hybrid Bill).

Noise becomes KPI in roads plan

Noise has been included as a key performance indicator in Highway England’s business plan.

Turbine group criticises Pickles bias

RenewableUK says a report by the Communities and Local Government (CLG) Select Committee, shows that Secretary of State Eric Pickles is picking on wind turbines.

M40 test bed

The Highways Agency says it is looking for new ideas for noise barriers. It will focus on the M40 near High Wycombe – where there has been a long standing campaign to reduce traffic noise (Noise Bulletin Oct 2013 p4).

Needham in

Simon Needham has joined Atmos Consulting’s acoustics and noise team, headed up by principal consultant Emma Parsons, to meet a growing demand for assessment work, both as stand-alone projects and as integral parts of comprehensive planning applications and environmental chapters of formal EIAs.

Mapping journal

A new open access journal specialising on noise mapping has been launched.

Patchy reporting across Europe

125 million Europeans could suffer from noise above recommended guidelines – but this could be an underestimate because of poor reporting.

Noise report prompts High Court showdown

Planning permission has been quashed by the High Court because a planning authority failed to make public a noise report.

BB93 revised

Building Bulletin 93 (BB93) has been revised. It covers minimum performance standards for the acoustics of school buildings.

Lewis leaves

Huntingdonshire EHO Toby Lewis has joined consultant WSP.

Wind yield tool

A new modelling tool allows onshore wind developers to identify the best way for maximum energy output while fully complying with noise limitations.

Pressure builds on bad neighbour laws

The public seem baffled that a person can knowingly move next to a noisy business and then complain about it. Lis Stedman reports

Talking about thumping

Competing initiatives are under way in a bid to move forward the understanding and hence management of noise caused by amplitude modulation from wind turbines. Lisa Russell finds out whether there could be a consensus.

Dramatic reduction in amplitude modulation?

Acousticians at Hoare Lea were surprised by the extent of the reduction in AM that was achieved by alterations to the turbine blades at sites that were causing complaints.

December 2014 Issue 88

Roads plan cuts 1,150 hotspots

The Autumn Statement outlined Government plans to spend £15bn on new roads in England.

More details emerge on three runway options

The Airports Commission has released a more detailed appraisal of the three remaining runway options for South East England.

AM conditions: third study promised

The Government has finally caved in to pressure to investigate wind turbine amplitude modulation (unexpected thumping) and possible planning conditions.

Stop press: party house and landlord liability

As NB went to press, a magistrates court in Bournemouth ruled that landlords and agents (in this case of a party house in Sandbanks) are liable for noise nuisance from their tenants. More next month.

Scottish guidance

Following a petition, Scottish Government will prepare guidance on good practice community engagement methods for wind proposals.

The Cambridge three

Cambridge City Council has prosecuted three people for breaching abatement notices.

Kids affected

The German Federal Environment Agency has released advice on noise for schoolchildren, highlighting that one in eight have some form of hearing impairment.

Homes sunk due to noisy m’way

New housing next to the M6 motorway in Cheshire has been refused on noise grounds. Some of the homes were just metres from the busy motorway.

Mental health care home allowed

An appeal has thrown out suggestions that shouting from residents of a mental health hospital could be sufficient to refuse planning permission.

Railway nuisance action contemplated

Stirling Council says rail noise at Alloa amounts to a nuisance. But railways are generally exempt from nuisance enforcement.

Navel gaze looks forward

Defra has belatedly released a report mulling over what might or might not happen about noise in the future.

Office-to-home fears raised

The Mayor of London and planning bodies are arguing that technical changes to the planning system that will see an end to the ability of authorities to exempt themselves from permitted development right relaxations.

Ombudsman finds council needed an expert

The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman has told East Ayrshire Council that it should have got expert external help if it was unable to fully understand noise arguments on a wind turbine.

Crossrail – the sequel

Consultation has started on safeguarding land along the route of Crossrail 2.

Sound advice

Welsh Government has updated its Sound advice on noise leaflet to include advice on new anti social behaviour powers.

Sedgemoor gets tough

Police forced entry into a property in Bridgwater where there had been repeated complaints of excessive noise and breaches of an enforcement notice.

Fullabrook breaches limits

The Fullabrook wind farm is breaching noise limits at seven out of eight monitored locations.

Appeal against condition fails

Protesters have failed to overturn planning permission for a wind turbine on grounds including noise.

High Court confirms Den Brook condition can be amended

The High Court has agreed that a council can change noise conditions on a wind farm despite them being imposed by a previous High Court hearing.

2013 air traffic rise leads to more noise

Rising aircraft numbers has led to a modelled increase in noise in 2013.

Stansted changes are not welcomed

Flightpath changes at Stansted have not been welcomed by locals.

Heathrow concessions

Consultations have already prompted concessions from Heathrow which has offered an enhanced compensation package which includes an offer to buy homes in villages in close proximity to a new runway at 25% above unblighted market value

Housing & health

The usually regulation-shy US has released new healthy housing standards.

More barriers please

A report by environment and transport groups including the Campaign to Protect Rural England and the Campaign for Better Transport is calling for £3bn to be invested over the next five years in a range of ‘green retrofit’ improvements for existing roads.

ANC’s proposed certification scheme

The ANC is considering introducing an optional certification scheme for its members, said Jonty Stewart of Wight Noise and Southampton Solent University, who chairs the ANC certification committee.

BS4142 is finalised

All 943 comments on the draft of the new BS4142 have been pored over and the standard is now out. Lisa Russell reports.

Midnight lawn mowing is now possible?

The Grass Group was present at the awards to further the cause of its interesting Infinipower mower, which is claimed to be virtually silent.

John Connells return to reward excellence

Back after a break last year, the Noise Abatement Society’s John Connell awards provide glitzy recognition of good work on noise. Lis Stedman reports

November 2014 issue 87

Rival group set up to fight AM

An independent expert group has been set up to form a workable planning condition and methodology to deal with wind turbine amplitude modulation.

New anti social powers kick in

New powers have come into force that provide additional powers to deal with anti social behaviour including noise.

Judicial review

As Noise Bulletin went to press, wind turbine amplitude modulation was back in the High Court.

Elmbridge win

Elmbridge Council in Surrey has won this year’s Noise Abatement Society John Connell local authority award.More details of winners and runners up next month.

WHO chime test

Church chimes have been spared despite busting WHO ‘limits’.

Cattle prompt housing refusal

Noise from a prized Aberdeen Angus cattle herd has contributed to a refusal for a 19 home development in Worcester.

Acousticians failing

A US hearing expert says those complaining of low frequency noise from wind turbines have been let down by acousticians and learned bodies.

Share good practice

Environmental Protection Scotland is currently creating a repository of ‘noise wins’, i.e. best practice and successful outcomes to noise problems.

Channel 4 plea

Channel 4 is making a pilot for a new series on dispute resolution. It is looking for people who are currently in dispute with a neighbour who may benefit from having their case looked at by a professional mediator and arbitrator (effectively a private court). Email disputes@windfallfilms.com

Summers winter move

Steve Summers of Anderson Acoustics has joined growing consultancy Accon UK.

Noise eviction

A woman has had her New Forest home repossessed and has been given a five-year Anti-social Behaviour Order (ASBO) after a catalogue of noise and abuse against her neighbours.

Waste planning

Detailed planning practice guidance for waste in England has been revised replacing PPS10.

IoA publishes AM group terms

The Institute of Acoustics has published the terms of reference and scope of work of its wind turbine amplitude modulation working group.

Government defends policy change

The Government has defended its recent policy change that has led to a number of wind farms being refused permission.

20m turbine notification

Scottish Government is consulting on improving good practice for neighbour notification for wind turbines.

Wales pollution staff suffer

Welsh local authorities’ ability to deal with noise and other local pollution has been disproportionately affected by cuts.

Plane toolkit

Arup is funding PhD research aimed at delivering a better understanding of noise related issues for airport stakeholders and affected communities, with one of the key outputs anticipated to be a noise illustration and communication toolkit.

Joint effort

Airbus, British Airways (BA), Heathrow Airport (LHR) and NATS have launched a partnership to study and develop operational procedures to reduce the number of people affected by noise at Heathrow.

END under review

The European Noise Directive is under review.

Amber Valley secures £5,000 dog fine

Amber Valley Borough Council has successfully brought a prosecution against a Heanor man who has continued to allow his dogs’ barking to be a nuisance to his neighbours.

Flight paths – concentrate so polluter pays

Consultant Gwyn Mapp says that concentrating aircraft flight paths should make it easier to apply the ‘polluter pays’ principal.

IEMA guidelines arrive at last

Our feature reviews and explores the new IEMA guidelines on noise assessment

Busking noise

This feature reviews busking noise and what local authorities and regulators are doing about nuisance

October 2014

issue 86

Free school need overrules noise
Noise objections against a proposed free school in Buckinghamshire have been overruled by the Secretary of State.

Aviation lobby mourns loss of PPG24
Aviation interests have warned that the withdrawal of PPG24 leaves a policy vacuum that is leading to housing developments in areas where aircraft noise may be annoying.

Tideway decision leans on NPSE
Noise impacts featured in the decision to approve the Thames Tideway wastewater tunnel in London.

Den Brook again
Den Brook wind farm is back in the High Court with local protester Mike Hulme judicially reviewing the local council’s decision to retrospectively weaken a planning condition limiting amplitude modulation.

Permittng Info requirements
Guidance has been updated by the Environment Agency to help applicants provide the necessary supporting data for noise impact assessment predictions to support industrial activities. The information sits alongside H3 horizontal guidance on noise.

Boris Island rejected
The Airports’ Commission last month rejected plans for a new airport in the Thames Estuary. ‘Boris Island’ was promoted by the London Mayor mainly due to the noise benefits of a remote hub airport compared to an extra runway at Heathrow.

Bad neighbour objections to homes overuled
425 homes have been approved despite being near noisy industry.

Glasto checks on noise
Noise measurement specialist Richard Wilson of The Event Safety Shop used Cirrus equipment to monitor occupational noise levels at the 2014 Glastonbury Festival.

Alarm code = off
Regulations have been laid to repeal the official code of practice on burglar alarms as part of Government drive to cut red tape.

Consultancy growth
The latest report from business intelligence and market research firm Environment Analyst finds that the UK environmental consultancy sector expanded by 5.2% in 2013.

Private nuisance explored
A resident has been refused a protective costs order to enable a court action against a noise and dust nuisance for an opencast coal mine in Wales.

Landlord liability for nuisance tested
Further analysis of the recent costs decision in the Coventry v Lawrence speedway Supreme Court case (Noise Bulletin August/September p4) suggests the case may prove useful in setting out a landlord’s liability for noise nuisance from a tenant.

Northern Ireland adapts English policy
Northern Ireland has adopted a noise policy similar that used in England.

IEMA at last
IEMA guidelines on noise have been finally published – nearly 20 years after they were started! More on the Guidelines in Environmental Noise Impact Assessment next month.

Busking guide
Liverpool is the latest city to produce a code of practice for busking.

Make some noise
A publican’s body has launched the Make Some Noise campaign in a bid to fight nuisance actions which threaten the closure of noisy venues.

Mapping journal
A new open access journal specialising on noise mapping has been launched.

Fullabrook: 2yrs and no data
Residents near Fullabrook wind farm are still awaiting results of noise monitoring over two years since turbines started operating prompting noise complaints (Noise Bulletin October 2012).

Shipdham: Leave noise to nuisance laws
Excess amplitude modulation from wind farms can be adequately dealt with through nuisance legislation, communities secretary Eric Pickles has said. But impact on tranquillity has helped sink a wind farm proposal.

Cornwall: No AM?condition – no permission
A wind turbine has been turned down because no amplitude modulation could be agreed.

Permission granted without AM condition
A wind farm has been approved by the Secretary of State despite causing excess noise for three households.

Last two notes
The final two supplementary guidance notes for the Institute of Acoustics’ good practice guide on wind turbine noise assessment have been published.

Environment diluted
DG Environment is being amalgamated with other departments as part of the Juncker review of European governance.

Noisy trucks
The Association of Noise Consultants (ANC) believes that relaxing lorry speed limits will lead to more noise.

Speakers boosted
Epuk has boosted topics at its forthcoming conference to be held in Aston on the 16th October. Topics now include action on noise and health.

Ireland win
A project in Ireland has won the European Soundscape Award 2014 for its work on acoustic planning and urban sound design. The prize was presented by the European Environment Agency (EEA).

Focus falls on aircraft tracks
A series of apparently technical consultations on where planes fly were not expected to cause controversy. But then people some distance from airports realised they might be badly affected, finds Lis Stedman

Guide to boost quiet areas
The recent publication of new guidance on quiet areas is helping local authorities around Europe gain fresh impetus in identifying and protecting them. Lisa Russell reports

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August/September 2014 issue 85

Experts ignore no-guidance plea
Experts have come together to produce planning guidance on noise – despite Government saying it does not welcome third party guidance.

Arsenal loses on appeal
Noise was at the forefront of a High Court planning appeal from Arsenal football club which is seeking to hold more pop concerts.

Kirklees cuts back
Kirklees Council is streamlining its noise complaint procedures.
It says increasing numbers of noise complaints were taking a long time to investigate and “did not consider the customer experience of the person complained about”.

Wetherspoon opts out
Discount pub giant Wetherspoon says it is to avoid paying late night levies by closing pubs early.

Ecohouse refused due to turbine
Planning permission for an ecohouse close to a wind turbine has been refused on appeal. The judgment centres on the dilemma of protecting amenity while allowing sustainable development.

IoA commence turbine thumping probe
The Institute of Acoustics has set up a group to look at wind turbine amplitude modulation.

Turbine approvals subside due to Pickles
CPRE has called for more planning guidance as it notes that turbine approvals have slumped by 20%. But it says that the approval rate has dropped only because so many are being called in by Communities Secretary Eric

Taylor confirms Govt input
Giving evidence to the Parliamentary High Speed Rail committee last month, noise expert Rupert Thornely-Taylor has confirmed Government was involved in putting numerical values on noise annoyance.

Noise annoys
A survey by noise insulation firm Saint-Gobain Isover, suggests more than a quarter of UK homeowners say they suffer with noisy next-door neighbours, but fewer than half have attempted to resolve the problem themselves.

Concrete din
Villagers living next to the concreted section of the A417 in the Cotswolds have produced a report on the impact of the noisy road.

Wind notes out
Supplementary guidance notes on Etsu wind turbine assessment have been finalised by the Institute of Acoustics.

Court report
Martin Court has joined Sharps Redmore on a full time basis. He has previously led on noise at Tendring Council’s environmental health department.

Call-in justification
Government has justified its extension of additional scrutiny powers for onshore windfarms.

£800 fine
A tenant of a Greenwich council flat in Woolwich, has been fined £800 for playing loud music. Following complaints from neighbours,

Low-tech mitigation...
Straw bales have been used at the Ravenstonedale Festival in Cumbria to cut noise nuisance.

... as high tech barrier nears market
Sonobex, a newly formed technology spin-out from Loughborough University, has won funding from the Technology Strategy Board, to bring its SonoBarrier acoustic fences to market.

Fenland Tigers back in Supreme Court
The landmark Fenland Tigers motor sport noise case has been back in the Supreme Court.

Night-time rollover
Consultation on rolling forward the existing night flight regime at London airports has concluded with the Government agreeing to the move.

Dreamliner may be (genuinely) quieter
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner has been monitored and appears “significantly” quieter than planes such as the 767 and A330 that it will replace.

More planes less noise
Heathrow Airport says it has independently shown that a third runway would be quieter.

Indoor listening to outdoor sound
Simulations produced by acousticians at Arup have been used to give people along the planned High Speed Two (HS2) rail route an idea of how the trains will sound. Lisa Russell reports.

US lawsuits tackle noise
Americans are notoriously quick to use the courts. Lis Stedman finds out how US law deals with noise

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July 2014 issue 84

NPPG helps sink biogas bid
A biogas plant has been turned down on appeal because of traffic noise impacts.

Defra to go?
News is emerging that Defra’s noise team is to be halved from the current estimated six posts.

No mention of noise in research strategy
Defra has released its strategy for research. Noise, nuisance and amenity are not mentioned once.

GLA to stage ‘rescue’ of PPG24?
Further alterations to the London Plan will be discussed in front of an independent planning inspector on 1st September.

Hacan disputes Heathrow will be quieter
A future expanded Heathrow will not be quieter than now as the airport claims, says protest group Hacan in a new report.

In the shadow of Heathrow
Three videos have been chosen to share £15,000 of prize money for the best Heathrow anti-third runway film.

John Connell’s restart
Following a break in 2013, the John Connell noise awards will once again be revealed at Westminster on 5th November.

CAA health update
The CAA has produced a report to update findings of its 2013 aircraft noise and health report (Noise Bulletin March 2013 p6).

New homes standard?
BRE has unveiled plans to develop a voluntary sustainability standard for new homes that will allow developers go beyond minimum regulation and provide increased choice for the consumer.

LAeq’s v Lmax argued in court
Westminster has lost its bid to refuse noisy supermarket deliveries following a High Court challenge.

Pavement seating rejected in Judicial Review
Noise concerns were at the centre of a High Court dispute over permission given to a restaurant with pavement tables.

Arup scoops ANC award
Arup Acoustics’ work on the High Speed 2 – Sound Demonstrations (HS2) project has won the environmental acoustics award category of the Association of Noise Consultants’ (ANC) annual awards scheme.

Election winners announced by IoA
Monitor equipment expert William Egan (pictured right) takes up post as president of the Institute of Acoustics.

Four airports get B&K WebTrak
Manchester Airports Group has taken on a new Airport Noise and Operations Monitoring System (ANOMS 9) from Bruel & Kjaer.

BV Burton
Nigel Burton has joined Bureau Veritas as technical director to lead the acoustics and vibration group in the London Bridge office.

Student competition
Environmental Protection UK?is holding a student prize competition with £500 on offer for a winning paper on noise, air pollution or land
contamination.

NATS consults
NATS is consulting on changing the use of existing departure routes from Stansted Airport.

Health discussed in Japan meeting
Lis Stedman reports from the ICBEN Noise and Health meeting held in?Japan

Noise Action Week
Despite the cuts, Lisa Russell finds innovation and determination among local authorities ensuring that Noise Action Week continues to get the message across.

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June 2014 issue 83
Runway proposals tabled
London Mayor Boris Johnson has stepped up pressure against runway expansion at Heathrow.

Den Brook simmering
Arguments are continuing over the disputed amplitude modulation (thumping) condition for the proposed Den Brook wind farm in Devon. Protesters are warning that they may resort to a Judicial Review.

Smartphone apps could be fit for purpose
An academic study has compared various smartphone apps as a means of monitoring occupational noise.

Anti social noise rethink
Scottish Government has put out a call for evidence to support a policy review of the noise regime under the Antisocial Behaviour (Scotland) Act 2004 Part 5. The Noise Act-style powers allow issuing of fixed penalty notices against fixed noise limits for domestic nuisance.

ANC shortlist released for noise awards
The shortlist for the 2nd Annual Association of Noise Consultants acoustic awards has been revealed.

Mallory Park notice
Councillors have agreed the terms of a noise abatement notice to control Mallory Park racetrack nuisance.

Barking judgement
A Burntwood resident was fined £300 for breaching a noise abatement notice.

Cumulative noise sinks turbines
A Scottish Borders wind farm has been refused by Scottish ministers due to cumulative noise impacts.

WebTAG updated
WebTAG assessment modules have been updated.

Belgian Bart
Cirrus Research has appointed Bart Buermans as its new European export sales manager as part of its strategic expansion across the continent. He was previously sales manager

Noise Opex rises
A Government survey of environmental protection expenditure shows that in 2012, the latest available year of data, operational expenditure on noise rose.

Campbell Associates hosts charity Acoustic Cup
Last month acoustic consultancies gathered for the annual Campbell Associates Acoustic Cup 5-a-side football competition.

CAA talks tough on noise
The Civil Aviation Authority has released a policy thinkpiece on aviation noise with support for a noise tax.

Heathrow defends noise burden
Aviation is dominating the news at the moment – and will do so for many years as the Airports Commission is hit with ideas for three new runways. Lis Stedman reports

CIEH mulls over noise and health
Managing noise for better health was the subject of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health’s latest annual noise conference. Lisa Russell reports

Using mobile apps for noise nuisance cases
Elmbridge Borough Council’s new mobile app is the latest stage in an initiative that began in 2008 with improvements to the online advice offered by the council and has continued with development of an online toolkit branded with eye-catching graphics as well as an earlier app.

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May 2014 issue 82

New nuisance powers
Powerful anti-noise nuisance possibilities within new antisocial behaviour powers are discussed in Parliament

Onshore wind freeze?
The Conservative Party has indicated that it will put a brake on onshore wind farm development.

Calm is the new preferred term for quiet
A European good practice guide on quiet areas suggests the term ‘calm’ is a better descriptor than quiet.

LFN found at Aussie windfarm
Internal measurements of wind turbine noise at an Australian windfarm suggest amplitude modulation (thumping) is present and may not be picked up by outdoor monitoring using recommended settings.

HS2 enters Hybrid Bill stage with new guide
The promoter of the High Speed 2 rail line from London to the north of England has released an information paper on noise. It includes definitions of LOAELS (lowest observed adverse effect level) and SOAELS (significant observed adverse effect levels) (Noise Bulletin December p1).

Turbine refused
North Somerset Council has refused permission for a 33m tall turbine on noise grounds.

NPPF under scrutiny
MPs are to investigate the operation of the National Planning Policy Framework in its first two years of operation.

Fracking relaxation
Exploration for onshore gas (essentially fracking) will be exempted from the need to obtain IPPC permits.

Dion din fine
A man who made neighbours’ lives a misery by blasting out Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On has had his sound equipment seized.

Smooth climbs change noise
Aircraft carrying out smooth climbs may increase noise in some places and reduce it in others, a CAA report suggests.

Flightpath concentration policy questioned
The policy of concentrating flight paths has come under scrutiny following complaints by Sussex villagers.

Exeter prosecution
Exeter City Council has prosecuted a resident for three breaches of a noise abatement notice.

Three LIFE projects to include noise research topics
Three EU LIFE projects covering noise issues have received funding, it has been announced.

Quiet delivery guidance out
DfT has released a package of guidance notes aimed at making it easier for firms to deliver at night if they do it quietly.

IoA raises fears on draft BS4142 code
The Institute of Acoustics has finalised its response to the proposed changes to the BS4142 noise standard which is heavily used in the absence of UK noise policy and planning guidance.

Soundscape award
The European Soundscape Award 2014, run by the European Environment Agency, is open for applications. The award aims to draw attention to the most innovative product, campaign, innovation or scheme solving a noise problem.

Legislation scrutiny
Government has published its terms of reference for the strategic long term review of environmental legislation.

New Cirrus GM
Monitor firm Cirrus Environmental has appointed a new general manager as it expands its UK presence with a new office in Cambridgeshire.

Duty cuts good
Fuel duty cuts are very successful, the Treasury claims – based on modelling which excludes ‘externalities’ such as air and noise pollution.

Tranquility theme rides high
Inclusion of tranquility as a factor in assessing the shortlisted airport expansion options is the latest proof of a rising awareness of the importance of safeguarding peaceful spots. Lisa Russell reports.

Automating data collection
Lis Stedman takes a look at using ‘cheap’ sensing to collect noise data prompted by Dublin's use of Intel environmental sensors

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April 2014 issue 81

Nuisance uncovered by FoIs
Churchill Insurance has carried out a huge exercise to establish the extent of nuisance across local authorities.

Hinckley rap for motor circuit noise
The Local Authority Ombudsman has found against Hinckley and Bosworth Council for failing to stop excess noise from the Mallory Park racing circuit.

Thumping notice
Aberdeenshire Council has served a noise abatement notice on a wind farm specifically requiring ending of amplitude modulation (thumping).

Airports probe tightens criteria
The Airports Commission has released its appraisal framework to support decision making for increasing runway capacity in the south east of England.

Gatwick runway plans out
Gatwick is consulting on plans for a second runway.

Watchdog progress
Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) has welcomed the pledge at the recent Aircraft Noise Summit to push for an independent noise ombudsman.

Buskers fail in Camden
The High Court has rejected an appeal against the London Borough of Camden’s plans to regulate buskers to cut noise nuisance.

Anti social in
The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill has now completed its passage through Parliament and has become an Act. ).

Dublin monitored
Chip maker Intel is working with Dublin City Council to provide cheap noise and environmental monitors across the city.

Noise cost update
Consultant Ricardo-AEA has updated costs of noise. It has calculated the external costs of noise and other environmental pollutants arising from transport.

Guidance adopted with few changes
National Planning Practice Guidance on noise has been finalised.

Change of use
There were 852 responses to proposals to allow change of use of shops to houses.

BB93 consultation: responses encouraged
IoA members are being urged to respond to the Department for Education’s consultation on school acoustic standards.

World Cup extension
Government has consulted on bypassing Temporary Event Notices as a means of extending opening hours for the World Cup.

Noise agreement
The European Parliament voted in favour of a Commission proposal to bear down on vehicle noise.

Sound generator
Electric and hybrid electric vehicles will be fitted with sound generating devices to provide audible warnings for pedestrians/visually impaired persons.

Huddersfield fine
A Huddersfield man has been fined for playing loud music failing to comply with a noise abatement notice.

News from the IoA wind turbine meeting held in Wales

Focus falls on indoor noise
Wind turbines may cause low frequency noise problems, some delegates at the IoA wind turbine conference suggested, with the focus shifting from noise measured outside to that experienced inside.

Noise odd man out in turbine assessment
Noise is the odd man out in the environmental assessment process, consultant Dick Bowdler claims.

Proposed planning condition will fail
There was much debate at the IoA wind conference held in Wales last month about the efficacy of planning conditions aimed at dealing with excess amplitude modulation from wind turbines.

Good practice guide discussed
Etsu good practice guide working group chairman Richard Perkins of Parsons Brinckerhoff told the IoA conference that the group was unable to reflect the findings of the Renewable UK research into amplitude modulation

Den Brook again
Wind farm developer RES has resubmitted its application to amend a condition limiting amplitude modulation from the pro-posed Den Brook wind farm.

£3000 fine
A Redditch woman has been fined £3,087 for causing a noise nuisance to her neighbours.

Awards open
Entries are now open for this year Association of Noise Consultants acoustics awards which will be presented on 24th June. There are four categories covering architectural acoustics, environmental noise assessment, transportation noise control, and sound insulation Entries close on 23rd May.
www.association-of-noise-consultants.co.uk

Teams sought
Campbell Associates’ five-a-side charity football tournament is now in its third year and is seeking entrants.
www.justgiving.com/ Acoustic-Cup2014

BS4142: key to noise assessment?
The committee behind the new draft BS4142 is likely to find itself sifting through a considerable number of comments if recent discussions among acousticians are an indication. Lisa Russell reports

Nuisance redefined?
Coventry v. Lawrence will become perhaps the most important precedent on nuisance for quite some time

Coventry v. Lawrence undermines wind farms
Consultant Gwyn Mapp has warned that the Coventry v Lawrence case will undermine the use of Etsu assessment of wind farms.

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March 2014 issue 80

Private nuisance defined?
An important and definitive Supreme Court decision has redefined the issue of whether planning permission can sanction nuisance.

BS4142 out for consultation
An update to BS4142 – which deals with industrial noise – has been released for consultation.

BS8233 finalised
Meanwhile BS8233 Guidance on sound insulation and noise reduction for buildings has been updated replacing the previous 1999 version.

£127k court costs
Redbridge Council has won a five year legal battle with a noisy Essex nightclub.

£1,000 bung for Gatwick noise
The properties most affected by a second runway at Gatwick would receive £1,000 a year from the airport as a sweetener to reduce objections to expansion plans.

London levy
Islington Council is the first London borough to introduce a late night licensing levy to help tackle crime and nuisance.

Noisy vehicles
The European Parliament has watered down the Commission’s proposal on noise emitted by cars, vans, trucks and buses.

Competence set out
The Government has concluded its review of EU laws and how they relate to the UK.

MUGA trouble hits High Court
The High Court has dismissed an appeal against granting of planning permission to a games area.

World Cup relaxation worries Epuk committee
The Epuk noise committee is concerned at the government decision to re-consider a relaxation of licensing laws during the World Cup this summer.

Hum notice
Highland Council has served an abatement notice on energy firm SSE.

£8,000 fine
A noisy late-night karaoke bar in East Putney has been ordered to pay more than £8,000 in fines and court costs after admitting numerous licensing breaches.

Heathrow four times noisier
An update to the Anase report claims that Heathrow is four times noisier than official figures suggest.

Magistrates given more leeway for high fines
Environmental offences in England and Wales are now covered by bespoke sentencing guidelines.

Airports appraisal
Protesters have argued against the Airports Commission’s draft appraisal framework document intended to help it decide where to increase capacity (Noise Bulletin Jan/Feb p2).

ASBOs applies to housing
New anti-social behaviour legislation has been changed and will now include provisions for dealing with nuisance in all residential settings.

RAF contours
Noise contours have been published for RAF Brize Norton as part of the MOD’s noise mitigation measures programme to reduce the effect of noise disturbance from military activities.

Aviation offer
Monitor firm Cirrus Environmental and Casper, a specialist aviation web-based visualisation and monitoring software firm, have announced a partnership on airport noise monitoring.

SLR buys HFP
SLR Consulting has bought North American acoustics firm, HFP Acoustical Consultants, which has offices in Houston, Texas, and Calgary in Canada.

Ministry of Sound wins noise fight
A scheme to build flats right next to a noisy nightclub has highlighted the difficulties of safeguarding both residents and existing businesses. Lisa Russell reports.

Action plans for England and Wales
Lis Stedman looks at English and Welsh Action plans

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January/February 2014 issue 79

Sealing-up solves nightclub row
The Ministry of Sound nightclub in London’s Elephant and Castle has been ‘saved’ by London Mayor Boris Johnson, the club claims.

Nuisance church clock partially silenced
In a situation which echoes the Ministry of Sound’s concerns about loan nuisance complainers invoking nuisance duties (see news above), a church has decided to stop its clock chiming overnight.

Blog beefs up
Noise Action Week preps In the run up to Noise Action Week, which has a health theme this year, there is now a regular blog on the NAW website and Twitter. Specialists are invited to contribute.

Runway options whittled down
An interim report by the Airports Commission has suggested new runways at Gatwick or Heathrow. An airport in the Thames Estuary remains an option.

Condition found to be legal in judicial review
A judicial review has failed to overturn a decision allowing building of a wind turbine in Northumberland.

Dog fine
Wolverhampton City Council has prosecuted a dog owner over continued barking despite issue of a noise abatement notice.

Twin study on noise
Finnish researchers studied twins to see whether noise sensitivity led to early retirement through ill health.

Speed limit may cut noise
A speed limit is being considered for a section of the M1. It is primarily prompted by air quality problems but it will also cut noise.

Wales retains NECs for planning
Wales has released details of its round two action plan on noise. Places such as Cardiff have set out additional quiet areas.

Fracking safeguards
Fracking could lead to some noise impacts, a strategic environmental assessment suggests.

Noise affects memory
Italian researchers have used innovative virtual reality techniques to test the impact of a new motorway – and associated noise – on the public.

Eire set to junk Etsu limits
The Irish Government is consulting on wind energy development guidelines. A consultation document signals a move away from variable limits based on Etsu towards a fixed 40dBA limit.

Cirrus launches Invictus
Cirrus Environmental has launched its Invictus portable noise monitor.

Lighter and tougher from Campbell Associates
Campbell Associates has developed a new kit which aims to bring a new versatility to remote environmental noise assessments.

NI gives partial endorsement to guide
The Northern Ireland Executive has given partial endorsement to the IOA’s Good Practice Guide to the application of ETSU-R-97 for wind turbine noise assessment.

Final wind turbine notes published
The IOA has published for consultation the final two supplementary guidance notes (SGNs) to support its A Good Practice Guide to the Application of ETSU-R-97 for the Assessment and Rating of Wind Turbine Noise (the GPG).

Wind condition necessary
The wind turbine industry body Renewable UK appears to have caved in to pressure to contemplate a condition to deal with amplitude modulation. But at 5dBA, and based on Etsu assumptions, critics are not happy finds Jack Pease

A short history of noise policy
Noise policies across the years have been analysed in a report to Defra. Lis Stedman sees what the archives have to offer

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December 2013 issue 78

HS2 ES: 50,000 pages long

The Environmental Statement for the London to West Midlands High Speed 2 (HS2) line is out. It consists of 50,000 pages – many of which are on noise.

24 Acoustics solves museum ‘spin’ mystery

The mystery of a spinning statue at a Manchester Museum has been solved by consultant 24 Acoustics.

Record keeping leads to £1,500 rap
The Local Government Ombudsman has criticised Birmingham City Council for poor record keeping which led to continued problems from a noisy tenant.

Tigers in court
A controversial precedent defining how planning permission can permit nuisance is back in court.

Before and after turbine test
Scottish Government is funding a study comparing actual impacts of wind turbines compared to the impacts predicted in environmental statements. Noise, visual and shadow flicker impacts are being considered.

IoA dragged into ‘cover up’ row
The Institute of Acoustics has been dragged into claims of a cover up.

Complaint statistics inconsistent
A series of Freedom of Information requests have highlighted huge differences between London boroughs on how they record noise complaints.

Brize drop
Noise near Brize Norton airbase has dropped, an Amec report suggests.

Wind pre-consult
The Government is promising greater pre-consultation for wind turbines.

Dog injunction backfires on complainer
A homeowner complaining of nuisance noise from the flat above has lost his case and had to pay over £10,000 in counterclaim damages.

Policy review for NI planning
Northern Ireland is consulting on a noise policy statement (NPSNI).

Nuisance notices up in Northern Ireland
Complaints static, prosecutions down and notices are up – so says the latest noise complaint statistics for Northern Ireland.

Recognition for Swiss tyre campaign
A Swiss consortium of public and private partners led by The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) won the European Soundscape Award 2013 for its communication campaign.

Deliveries fine
A meat firm in Birmingham has been fined £10,000 for night time deliveries which caused a noise nuisance.

Stewart questions role of ‘noise deniers’ “
Are climate activists the new noise deniers?” asks UK Noise Association chair John Stewart in issue one of a new newsletter published by UKNA.

Rollover for nightflights regime
Nightflights at London airports will continue. The Government wants to roll over the current regime for a further three years.

Ombudsman key to Heathrow expansion
London business lobby group London First says a noise ombudsman is needed if expansion at Heathrow is to go ahead.

Heathrow funds quiet outdoor classrooms
Heathrow Airport is spending £1.8m funding ‘adobe’ quiet classrooms in 21 local schools.

Annoyance compared
Swedish researchers have compared actual annoyance against annoyance predicted by European Noise digital noise maps.

LimA update
Brüel & Kjær’s latest version of its environmental noise mapping software, Predictor-LimA, is now

ASB: nuisance versus annoyance
Environmental health officers are worried by plans to give police and social housing officers powers to deal with noise. Lisa Russell reports.

Aviation responses revealed
Lis Stedman finds out who said what in response to plans to expand aviation capacity

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November 2013 issue 77

Planes cause heart attacks

Aircraft noise is associated with an increased risk of stroke, coronary heart disease, and cardiovascular disease. These are the conclusions of an important study reported in the British Medical Journal.

Noise prompts refusal near nightclub
A planning inspector has refused permission for new apartments near a Maidstone nightclub.

Etsu consult
As Noise Bulletin went to press, the Institute of Acoustics released supplementary Etsu guidance for consultation.

Newcastle first with night time levy
Newcastle upon Tyne is the first UK city to adopt a late night levy. The money will be used to ameliorate negative impacts including noise nuisance.

ANC makes noise on planning
A rushed session was squeezed in to the recent ANC Birmingham conference to discuss the latest ‘beta’ guidance on planning practice guidance (Noise Bulletin October p1|).

Four awards in inaugural ANC competition
Four firms were honoured in the first Association of Noise Consultants awards event.

ANC launches Green Book on measurement
The Association of Noise Consultants has formally launched its guide to noise measurement. Dubbed the “Green Book”, it complements the ANC Red Book on groundborne noise and vibration.

Dodgy Rions
The Association of Noise Consultants has warned of a spate of sound level meter thefts over the summer.

Firework gathering
Cirrus is gathering data on firework noise.

Big fine
York City Council’s out of hours noise team prosecuted a resident for playing loud rap music.

Asbo awarded
Cheltenham Borough Council was granted a full Asbo for a noisy resident.

Action plans outlined at Epuk
Defra noise specialist Stephen Turner told delegates at its annual conference held in Birmingham last month of progress on action planning and the new planning rules.

Quiet areas yet to take off
Defra admitted that to date there were no quiet areas identified under the European Noise Directive in England.

WHO update
WHO/Europe has confirmed it is updating the 1999 WHO Guidelines for Community Noise.

WSP appointment
Graham Hornby has joined WSP from Aecom, Australia where he was acoustics and specialisms leader.

Charges fail to cut plane noise
The CAA says that environmental charges on planes may fail to encourage airlines to use quieter and cleaner aircraft.

Winners and losers in airspace revamp
The National Air Traffic Control Service (NATS) is consulting on a revamp of aircraft routes near London. The aim is to concentrate planes onto particular routes to keep noise impacts together.

Airlines ranked according to annoyance
Heathrow Airport has ranked airlines by noise as part of its Fly Quiet programme.

Freedoms trial
Heathrow’s operational freedom trial reports have been released by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Heathrow Airport and will be used as input into the imminent interim report into capacity due from the Airports Commission.

Airport responses
The Airports Commission has published responses to its consultation on new airport capacity.

Police tool up to measure noise
More details are emerging of the shape of the new anti social behaviour regime. A Bill is currently working its way through Parliament.

More entertainment licence deregulation
Consultation is underway on further deregulation to entertainment in England as part of the continued drive against red tape.

Scottish police move against noise
Scottish police have held a targeted campaign against anti social noise makers.

Party house crackdown
Brighton Council is once again planning to tackle the issue of party houses – residential premises let out for weekends to partygoers causing complaints.

Noisy neighbours raided at Redditch
Two Redditch households causing misery to their neighbours by playing loud music have had audio equipment seized after they ignored formal reprimands.

Greenwich acts
The owner of a persistently noisy dog in Abbey Wood, Greenwich, has been fined £400, and a Woolwich man was fined £2,000 for playing music too loudly, after two successful noise prosecutions brought by the Royal Borough of Greenwich.

Wind appeal ‘recovered’
Communities secretary Eric Pickles has endorsed a planning inspector’s rejection of a wind farm with conclusions on noise endorsed.

Solar points to wind change
Anti wind campaigners say the rejection of a solar farm in Suffolk is a further sign that Government may be turning against wind farms.

Approval for wind farm windshield
Wind can confound wind turbine assessments so Rion has obtained Class 1 Type approval for a new windshield.

Cirrus monitors noise from Bugattis
The Bugatti Owners’ Club (BOC) is using Cirrus monitoring to back up its own noise rules on cars competing at its renowned hill climb at Prescott Hill near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

New kit
Campbell Associates has developed the Nor-140 ENV K1.

Mapping guidance
The EU has published the common framework needed to assess noise from road, rail and air traffic and from industry in the EU.

AM dominates wind conference
Amplitude modulation was one of the big topics at a recent international conference on wind turbine noise. Lisa Russell looks through the papers.

Internoise draws the crowds
Nearly 1,000 papers were presented at Internoise 2013 held in Australia. Lis Stedman samples some of the talks in the first of our two part review

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Back headlines (2011 onwards)
Looking for a particular story? the ctrl F function (find) can be really useful

October 2013 issue 76

Planning guidance hits beta

New planning guidance on noise in England has been released in ‘beta’ form. When finalised next month, PPG24 will officially be retired forever.

Waste yard prompts council payments

Cumbria and Barrow councils have had to pay penalties to homeowners bothered by noise and odour from a waste facility.

Chimes code out

The revised ice cream van chimes code has been released.

NAW 2014 is on

Epuk’s 2014 Noise Action Week is on!

School ventilation
Architect Pollard Thomas Edwards says it has used an unusual ‘earth tube’ system for a new school in Hounslow.

HS2 tranquillity loss mapped
The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) has created an online map showing noise impacts of HS2. CPRE is particularly keen to minimise noise impacts on the most unspoilt parts of the countryside.

Heathrow winners and losers
An independent report has concluded that night flight trials carried out earlier this year brought noise respite to approximately 100,000 people living under the Heathrow flight paths – but with disbenefits for others.

Mapp moves
Gwyn Mapp, previously of Extrium and Bureau Veritas, has formed his own consultancy company.

Crossrail win
Network Rail acoustics consultant Roger Dentoni has received the “Delivery Award” for “outstanding work on delivering the noise and vibration requirements of the Crossrail project”.

‘Too close’
A film has been released showing the impact of a wind farm on a US community. l http://vimeopro.com/user8792371/windwise

Gatwick louder, little change elsewhere
Noise exposure was up at some London airports, 2012 indicators suggest.

Aarhus threatens wind power?
A European Court judgement prompted claims that the UK onshore wind turbine planning regime is illegal.

Turbine noise in real time
Noise from a wind farm can now be monitored remotely via the internet.

Den Brook retreat
Den Brook wind farm developer RES has withdrawn its application to amend a condition aimed at controlling amplitude modulation.

NHS health concerns
An NHS health board says wind farms may have health impacts. NHS Shetland has commented:

Racetrack closes: noise blamed
The Mallory Park racing circuit in Leicestershire has gone into receivership. The firm had been fighting a noise abatement notice and in August was fined £2,500 with £23,000 costs for breaching a noise abatement notice.

Wycombe barrier progresses
A feasibility study into the new M40 noise barriers which combine traffic noise mitigation with solar panels has been completed.

Busking guide
Cornwall Council has produced a good practice guide for buskers in Truro.

Noise complaints
An analysis by ReviewPro of online guest reviews for 5,683 hotels in 20 key tourist destinations reveals that noise is the number one most common complaint by consumers in all but one city.

Heathrow expansion warning
The London Assembly says expansion of airport capacity should not take place at Heathrow because of noise concerns.

Revamped Trojan
Cirrus Research has re-launched its Trojan noise nuisance recorder with new innovations included as standard.

Measures assessed
Researchers have found that there are insufficient formal assessment methods for noise reductions measures such as noise barriers.

Planning. Less is more?
Draft planning guidance about noise issues in England is now online. Lisa Russell takes a look at the words (but not at the numbers – there aren’t any).

Wanted: advocate for noise
Policy announcements continue apace – who is going to stand up for noise since the weakening of Epuk, Lis Stedman asks?

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August/September 2013 issue 75

Quiet areas remain voluntary
Defra has unveiled the shape of the second round of noise action plans. The second round involves councils identifying quiet areas but action will be voluntary and not cause an additional burden (and feature)

Further appeal at noisy car site fails
A vehicle auction site in south Wales has failed to reverse a damages award following long running problems at its site.

Own website for Scottish EPUK
The Scottish breakaway arm of Environmental Protection UK has launched its own website.

Noise forgotten
Defra has published a report valuing local environment quality. People were prepared to pay most to cut litter and fly tipping and a moderate amount for quiet areas. Noise nuisance was excluded from the study.

Fracking safeguards mooted
Planning guidance aimed at the fracking industry warns that noise can be an issue and should be covered by conditions.

Government confirms Etsu
New planning guidance for renewable energy has confirmed that Etsu guidance must be used for wind turbines. It adds that separation distances should not be used in local plans.

Change of use
The Government is consulting on yet more relaxation to change of use requirements.

Chimes are needed, Defra told
Plans to deregulate the code of practice on ice cream chimes have been published. Despite the Government’s belief that ‘red tape’ is unpopular, all wanted the code to be retained.

Heat pump noise ‘far from settled’
The issue of noise from heat pumps is ‘far from settled’ says a report prepared for Decc.

Scottish standards handbooks updated
Scottish Government has updated technical handbooks on building standards for noise.

Nuclear noise
Sharps Redmore is carrying out environmental noise surveys around the proposed Sizewell C Nuclear power station site.

Levy agreed
Newcastle upon Tyne City Council has agreed to bring in a late night levy aimed to help finance increase police and council funding for enforcement and anti social behaviour activities.

Agency separate
The Environment Agency and Natural England should be retained as separate public bodies with separate purposes and functions.

AM arguments rumble on
Arguments continue over the proposed Den Brook wind farm and its proposed amplitude modulation (thumping) planning condition. Proposals for an amendment have been knocked back.

AM: judge for yourself
Consultant Mike Stigwood has added an ‘idiot’s guide’ to spotting amplitude modulation on his listening room experience website.

Further endorsement for turbine guide
Devolved regions have followed English Government support for the Institute of Acoustics good practice guide on wind turbine assessment.

Railway noise
The European Commission is consulting how railway noise can be reduced.

Infrasound dismissed
Recorded levels of infrasound do not appear to have changed since a new windfarm in Australia was built.

Runways here, there and everywhere
Airports have been setting out their cases for why they want an extra runway. Lisa Russell looks at the noise implications.

Vanguardia cited
Vanguardia has been recognised by the Design Council for work carried out on the London 2012 Olympics.

Scottish refusal
Scottish Government has refused planning consent for the Druim Ba proposed wind farm in the Blairmore Estate, near Drumnadrochit.

Peace at last
English adults made 2.85 billion visits to the outdoors last year with many seeking peace and tranquillity.

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July 2013 issue 74

Elvington knocked back again

There has been another court battle in the seemingly endless war between Elvington Airfield and York City Council.

Give councils anti social behaviour powers
Councils could tackle anti-social behaviour by tenants in privately-rented accommodation if given greater powers to force landlords to crackdown on tenants causing problems, says the Local Government Association (LGA),

Commission underestimates rural impacts
Gatwick residents have claimed that the recent Airports Commission’s discussion paper on noise (Noise Bulletin April p1) underestimates impacts in rural areas.

Connell pause
The Noise Abatement Society has announced a ‘pause’ in the John Connell awards. Instead of awards this year the charity will prepare a “best bits” document showcasing the best of the awards, which have run for 12 years.

Public nuisance clarified?
A premises licensing appeal has added some weight to the view that a single person’s noise complaint can constitute a public nuisance.

Dog prompts £4k fine
A Royal Borough of Greenwich council tenant whose loud music and barking dog blighted neighbours’ lives has been prosecuted for noise nuisance.

Pub fine
A Woolwich pub landlord was fined £900 for disturbing neighbours with loud gospel and afrobeat music.

NI round 2 plan
Northern Ireland has consulted on its round two noise mapping action plan covering industrial sources.

Cumulative impact argued
A council has conceded for a second time in the face of a Judicial Review of its decision to award planning permission to wind turbines.

Noise condition at heart of judicial review
Gedling Council has been defending itself at a Judicial Review. It had made mistakes with noise conditions for a wind farm and a group challenged the council’s decision to grant planning permission.

Listening in
A further wind farm has been added to MAS Environmental’s collection of recorded wind farm noises.

Noisy neighbour
Chelmsford City Council has successfully prosecuted a resident for three separate breaches of a noise abatement notice.

Optimus approval
Cirrus Research has recently obtained type approval for the Class 1 versions of the Optimus Red and Optimus Green instruments.

Temple win
Temple, together with RSK, has been awarded a £1.5m contract to provide environmental services to HS2 Ltd.

Agency separate
The Environment Agency and Natural England should be retained as separate public bodies with separate purposes and functions.

New Section 182 guidance published
The Home Office has published updated Guidance under Section 182 of th

Alan Saunders change
Clarke Saunders Associates is the new name of the acoustic consultancy practice headquartered in Winchester previously known by the name of its founder Alan Saunders.

Week of action wins through
Noise Action Week faced a challenging national start this year, with the major restructuring of Epuk that has left it as a semi-voluntary organisation with a diminished presence and effectively no budget.

Mapping helps health analysis
Forthcoming changes to noise mapping plus proposals for some new directions in research could give invaluable information about how noise exposure affects health. Lisa Russell reports.

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June 2013 issue 73

Wind turbine noise guide published
The Institute of Acoustics (IOA) has published its Good Practice Guide on wind turbine noise assessment.(special feature can be freely viewed here as it is so important!)

Midi turbine finally silenced
In what is thought to be the first action of its kind, nuisance action has led to a medium sized turbine being shut down.

New planning guidance for windfarms
The Government claims it will no longer ignore the environment when planning new onshore wind farms.

York late levy
York is considering whether to adopt a late night levy of nightclubs in the city.

Ennah finalised
The Ennah (European Network on Noise and Health) report (on noise and health) has been finalised.

High speed rail mitigation
A draft environmental statement setting out the likely impacts of the first phase of the High Speed Two (HS2) rail project between London, the West Midlands, Manchester and Leeds has been published for consultation.

Scotland told that Etsu is okay for turbines
Etsu provides a reasonable degree of protection against wind turbine noise, a report claims.

Wind probe
Campbell Associates has added the next generation environmental noise measurement system to its extensive hire fleet.

Patent win
Brigade Electronics has won a legal battle over its patented low-annoyance reversing alarm.

Acoustic Awards 2013
The ANC has launched a set of awards to promote and recognise excellence among UK acoustic consultants and raise the profile of the acoustics industry.

Heathrow ramps up noise plan
Heathrow has announced new initiatives on noise – and says it does not want mixed mode in the short term. Mixed mode offers capacity increases but removes programmed respite for overflown communities.

MPs propose airplane compensation probe
MPs on the House of Commons Transport Committee have suggested increased noise safeguards to compensate noise sufferers facing increased numbers of planes. They suggest a rapid review of noise compensation.

Anderson switch
Neil Anderson - founder of Anderson Acoustics – has left the company to work for himself again, trading as 7th Wave Acoustics l Neil Anderson email neil@7wa.co.uk

Greene to ANV
ANV Measurement Systems, European distributor for Rion sound and vibration measurement systems, have appointed Charles Greene as UK sales manager.

Villa to Anderson
Sasha Villa joins Anderson to head up the new London Bridge office of the Brighton-based company. He joins from Temple Group.

AM condition to be overturned?
A planning condition endorsed by the UK High Court could be overturned.

RES fails to overturn condition in Dumfries
Wind farm developer RES has failed in its bid to overturn a noise condition imposed on its Glenchamber wind farm.

Another application
Banks Renewables is also seeking to remove an amplitude modulation condition attached to its Moor House wind farm development near Darlington.

Hyde Park simulation for Vanguardia
Vanguardia Consulting was asked to run simulations on a number of sound systems for use in Hyde Park to test coverage and controllability.

NI rules consult
Northern Ireland is consulting on an Environmental Better Regulation Bill. l www.doeni.gov.uk/better_ regulation_bill_consultation_may_2013.pdf

Wind probe
ClimateXCHange- a network of Scottish academic institutions – is commissioning research on wind farm noise.

Big fine ....
An Emsworth resident has been fined a total of £3,576.37 in Portsmouth Magistrates Court for eight breaches of a noise abatement notice served by Havant Borough Council.

....Small fine
Pendle Council has prosecuted a noisy neighbour but secured only a £110 fine despite a long history of problems.

EU directives questioned
The UK Government is consulting on whether EU regulation on the environment is working – including mapping.

Some safeguards in regulation shakeup
Secondary legislation is being laid to enable a raft of planning changes that some fear will lead to increased neighbour noise nuisance.

Micro testing
Atmos Consulting’s growing noise team continues to expand its services by offering noise performance testing of micro wind turbines to meet the requirements of the Microgeneration Certification Scheme.

Heat pump vouchers
In a bid to boost use of domestic renewables, vouchers are being offered.

Expansion views
Initial findings of the London Borough of Hounslow’s consultation on the expansion of Heathrow have found residents overwhelmingly against an expanded airport, but also against its closure.

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May 2013 issue 72

Infrasound: fuss and nonsense
A world renowned British consultant has told a US state senate committee hearing that claims that wind turbines caused infrasound were “hoo-hah, fuss and nonsense”. The outburst was immediately excused by the wind industry.

Planning revamp prompts wider separation
A major revamp of Scottish planning policy includes the possibility of wind farm separation distances and turbine-free areas.

Website switch
Defra has joined other government departments and switched its website to the standardised www.gov.uk portal.

Soundscape entries needed
The European Soundscape Award 2013 is open for applications.

Expansion but less noise
Expansion of aviation over the next forty years will not increase noise, aviation lobby group Sustainable Aviation claims.

Noise in diabetes health link
Danish researchers believe that noise can lead to a higher risk of diabetes.

Nightflights plea
The London Assembly has concluded its investigation into Heathrow night flights (Noise Bulletin April p5) and wants them stopped.

Long term noise leads to sleep deficit
Long term night time rail noise has been linked to various health effects.

Open window nuisance: £10/day
Derbyshire Dales District Council has been criticised by the Local Authority Ombudsman for failing to take action over a noise complaint.

Turbine turmoil
A local council in Massachusetts has costed the removal of two turbines blamed for causing too much noise.

Nuisance contained in sentencing guidelines
The Sentencing Council is consulting on guidelines on penalties for environmental offences, including noise and abatement notices.

Heat pump regime revamp is delayed
The Micropower Council reacted with disappointment as the Government announced a delay until April 2014 of the domestic Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI), a policy originally due to be implemented three years earlier.

More centres to run IOA Diploma
Two centres – Colchester Institute and London South Bank University – will resume running the Institute of Acoustics' Diploma in Acoustics and Noise Control from the start of the 2013/14 academic year after gaps of two and 17 years respectively.

Studies debunk wind turbine syndrome?
Two studies have been released that claim to debunk wind turbine syndrome. The syndrome is claimed to be caused by low frequency noise affecting health.

Before and after study
The Australian EPA is undertaking a before and after study of the noise impacts arising from a wind farm.

Infrasound possible
An academic review of research cautions against saying that wind turbines cannot produce infrasound.

Setback for setback distances?
Milton Keynes tried to introduce a separation zone for wind turbines – and was taken to the High Court. Lis Stedman finds that there is some confusion as to who ‘won’

HHSRS minefield for noise
Few councils seem to be making use of the admittedly complex legislation that enables noise issues to be tackled as a hazard to health. Lisa Russell reports read the feature here.

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April 2013 issue 71

Framework retains contour
The final aviation policy framework has been published – it has failed to listen to calls to change noise assessment methods.

Noise Action Week saved: May 20th-24th
Fix the dates in your diary – 20–24th May – the 2013 Noise Action Week is on!

Scotland to split from Epuk
The Scottish branch of Environmental Protection UK is to split from Epuk.

Diary sheets questioned in Parliament
A debate in the House of Commons has highlighted frustration over the use of nuisance diary sheets.

Quiet house at Ideal Home show
Quietmark – a Noise Abatement Society scheme – is behind a large quiet house aiming to showcase quiet technologies at the Ideal Home Show.

Hayes heaved out
Michael Fallon has replaced John Hayes as energy minister.

Noise levels as traffic counter
Spanish researchers believe they can use to street noise levels as a measure of traffic density. The system is claimed to be able to distinguish between the flow of cars, vans, HGVs or motorbikes/scooters.

Football for charity: more teams sought
Noise monitor supplier Campbell Associates is organising another charity five-a-side football tournament. Last year the event raised over £850 for Sport Relief.

Etsu concerns made public
An academic is describing Etsu as bad science and tabled his concerns directly with Decc for fear that the forthcoming IoA good practice guide on wind turbine noise will not reflect his concerns.

Weak personality blamed for disturbance
A study by psychologists, engineers and built environment experts at The University of Nottingham has found no link between the measured level of noise from small and micro wind turbines and reports of ill health.

Measuring individual car noise
Scandinavian research group Sintef, using Norsonic equipment, is carrying out a large research exercise to measure the noise from individual vehicles in a busy traffic stream.

Johnson joins
Paul Johnson has joined Vanguardia’s Knutsford office in Cheshire to help to grow the business in the north of England.

Government summarises framework replies
The Government has summarised responses to its consultation on the Aviation Framework.

Housing affects airport noise disturbance
Researchers interviewed a total of 4,861 people living near seven European airports, including London-Heathrow, in a bid to see what factors led to disturbance.

Big noise survey
A “Big Noise Survey” is being organised as part of a project which aims to raise the profile of the need for good acoustics in schools, and highlight the effect on teachers’ health.

NPPF concerns
The CPRE has reviewed the workings of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) one year on from its introduction in March 2012.

Night time noise debated
The London Assembly has heard from aviation and noise experts about issues to do with night flights.

Four-runway Heathrow contours mooted
The entire borough of Wandsworth could be subjected to aircraft noise if Heathrow is allowed to develop into a four runway hub, claims Wandsworth Council and the 2M group of councils opposed to Heathrow expansion.

Extra school costs
The London Borough of Hounslow says it is having to bear some of the cost of aircraft noise.

Overheating worsened
Aircraft noise will worsen classroom overheating as global warming takes hold, London Metropolitan University researchers say.

Cumulative impact assessed
Cities, suburbs and towns are increasingly adopting cumulative impact zones as one of their tools for keeping licensed premises in check. Lisa Russell reports.

Quest for health effects goes on
Noise and health once again hits the headlines, finds Lis Stedman

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March 2013 issue 70

Planes prompt impact scrutiny

A raft of aviation announcements in recent weeks have included Heathrow studies which cost night time noise disturbance. Thresholds are taken down to 45dBA reflecting lower WHO night time noise disturbance guidelines.

Welsh publish round two noise maps

Welsh noise maps have been improved and are now posted with Google maps-style interactivity.

May launch for wind turbine noise guide

The Institute of Acoustics Good practice guide on wind turbine noise assessment is to be launched at an IoA one day conference on turbine noise in Bristol on 21st May.

MK wind challenge
As Noise Bulletin went to press, Milton Keynes Council was in the High Court defending a challenge to its wind turbine policy.

Arup wins again
Arup has once again scooped up noise contracts for HS2.

RES to amend AM condition
Wind firm RES is asking the local planning authority if it can amend a controversial condition put on the Den Brook wind farm approval.

Turbines not guilty on infrasound?
An Australian study claims that wind turbines do not cause infrasound.

Cardiff scrutiny says complaints serve as early warning
Cardiff Council has carried out a scrutiny into anti social behaviour and found that noise can act as an early warning for e

Spectacular pentangular
B&K has used a pentangular array (left) to take acoustic measurements of large wind turbines.

Planning key to quieter homes
The Noise Abatement Society and Rockwool have released a noise manifesto calling for urgent planning reform to include noise in building design. The initiative follows a noise ‘summit’ held towards the end of last year (Noise Bulletin December 2012 p4).

Mixed mode
Heathrow Airport told the recent London Assembly transport committee that it would not be pressing for introduction of mixed mode.

Noise violence
A number of cases have been reported where noise complaints have led to violence.

European weakening
Protesters have lamented a European decision that fails to clamp down on noise from new vehicles.

Health cash rise
Councils have been given more money than expected to pay for public health when responsibilities are handed over to them from April.

S.82 costs order overturned
Consumer noise complaint specialist Noisedirect has succeeded in overturning a costs order against a noise complainant.

Nuisance win
Noisedirect and barrister Simon Butler have been involved in another nuisance action, scoring an out of court settlement for damages from noise, smells and dust from a landfill site near Wigan.

App helps with acoustic tasks
Acoustassist has developed what is believed to be one of the world’s first ever multi-platform digital acoustics handbooks. It aims to provide acoustic reference and calculations “on-the-go”.

Noise camera
Campbell Associates has announced that the Nor848 Acoustic Camera from the Norwegian developer is now produced in three dish sizes to suit various applications.

Turbine distance
A Scottish homeowner blighted by noise from a medium sized wind turbine has launched a petition for increased notification distances for turbine planning applications.

Android app
The Noise Nuisance App is now available on Android.

50dBA sleep threshold
A study of over 7,000 Finnish public sector workers suggests that a threshold of 50dB Lnight for sleep disturbance for those with anxiety. For the general population it was 55dB.

NI sees complaints rise
There has been a 5.25% increase in noise complaints in Northern Ireland, government statistics show.

CIEH wades into guidance debate
Noise features in CIEH’s criticism of the Government’s planning practice guidance shake up.

Untangling noise and air pollution impacts
Researchers have tried to tease-out the confounding effect of noise and air pollution on health.

Pendle pair
Two noisy Pendle residents have been taken to court by Pendle Council for continuing to cause a noise nuisance, breaching a noise abatement notice twice.

Noise causes stress
Taiwanese researchers believe they have found a link between noise and human stress.

Plane noise
The international aviation body ICAO is developing an new aircraft noise certification standard.

Aviation health effects reviewed
Tucked into a new government consultation on night flights are two interesting CAA Environmental Research and Consultancy Department (ERCD) aircraft noise reports for the DfT, one of which pushes down the dBA threshold for night noise disturbance to new, low levels that reflect WHO guidance.

Heathrow Airport is to trial a new noise insulation scheme.
A Quieter Homes Initiative has been developed by Heathrow Airport following a consultation about the existing noise insulation schemes on offer and research into schemes offered by other major airports around the world.

Hosanna! Shrubs to the rescue?
Mary Stevens reports on an EU partnership project investigating novel solutions for quieter and greener cities

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Jan/Feb 2013 issue 69

Speed limit criteria include noise
New speed limit setting guidance includes advice on noise effects. Changes in traffic speed is claimed to have a marginal impact on noise.

Noise armoury strengthened in ASB bill
The Draft Anti Social Behaviour Bill has been published. Asbos will be replaced by measures that could make it easier to tackle noise nuisance and annoyance (Noise Bulletin July 2012 p8).

UKNA home survey
The UK Noise Association is conducting an online survey to find out more about sound insulation in dwellings.

Keon to Atmos
Emma Keon has joined Atmos Consulting’s acoustics and noise team as a senior consultant based in Edinburgh.

Noise guidance is needed
Advice on local environment issues should be retained, Lord Taylor’s review of planning guidance concludes.

New boss for IoA
The Institute of Acoustics (IoA) has a new chief executive. Allan Chesney replaces Kevin Macan-Lind who left abruptly last year (Noise Bulletin October 2012 p2).

Efficient is quiet
Transport pressure group T&E claims that fuel efficient cars are also quieter.

Plane change
Birmingham Airport is consulting on proposed changes to new flight paths needed for the opening of its runway extension in early 2014.

Judicial review reform
Over the Christmas break, Government consulted on making it more difficult to mount judicial reviews.

Low frequency noise is present
Assertions that wind turbines do not cause low frequency noise are being reassessed following publication of a ‘consensus’ report from Wisconsin, USA.

Amenity tested in High Court
Five wind turbines have been turned down following a High Court appeal by South Northamptonshire council. The turbines had originally been granted permission at an appeal but there were noise and visual amenity concerns.

HS2 opts for quiet construction
Noise has been thought about in proposals to build the HS2 high speed railway between London and Birmingham.

Appeal agrees noisy tonal turbine must be removed
A small turbine near Harrogate must be removed, an appeal states.

How to calculate health costs
European expert institutions – with the exception of the UK – have produced guidance on how to calculate health impacts of noise.

Moped tampering
TRL has investigated noise and air quality impacts caused by illegal modification of mopeds.

Anderson goes underground
Anderson Acoustics has been commissioned to carry out noise and vibration measurements on Crossrail’s western tunnels.

CadnaA updates to v4.3
CadnaA noise prediction software from Datakustik has been updated to version 4.3.

Methods compared
The favoured EU method for estimation population exposure to noise may give an overestimate.

Noise fine
A 23-year old Tilbury resident has been ordered to pay fines and costs totalling £275 after admitting breaching a noise abatement notice.

Wind guidance feedback
The IoA’s consultation on good practice guidance for wind turbine noise assessment drew almost 30 detailed responses. Lisa Russell looks through what they said

Getting rid of abatement zones
The Government is getting rid of red tape, little-used noise abatement zones were high on the list, finds Lis Stedman

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December 2012 issue 68

York yo-yo’s with Elvington
The City of York Council’s environmental protection team has been back in court yet again prosecuting a noisy racing circuit – and the long running saga is still not over.

North Devon windfarm confirmed as noisy
A huge north Devon windfarm has proved to be too noisy.

Separation spat
RWE Renewables has confirmed it is to challenge Milton Keynes’ plans for a 1m separation zone around new wind turbines.

Complaints soar in London
A number of indicators have emerged this month suggesting increased noise annoyance at Heathrow.

Noise contours rise
Heathrow and other London airports recently released their noise contours for 2011 – two show a marked worsening.

Night noise relief zones trialled at Heathrow
Aviation and anti-aviation interests have come together in a bid to trial night noise changes at Heathrow Airport and see whether noise relief zones could ease disturbance. A form of runway alteration is proposed – the same relief system which is currently vulnerable because of pressure to adopt mixed mode (both runway) operation (see above).

Operational freedoms
The Chancellor’s 2012 Autumn Statement is being accused of prejudging the outcome of the operational freedoms trial.

London councils 2M group reformed
A grouping of west London councils has been reformed in a bid to argue against further expansion at Heathrow Airport.

Open rotors annoy
A US report reviews next-generation ‘open rotor’ aircraft noise.

Sign up
Cities and organisations are urged to sign up to a declaration calling on the EU to increase the ambition for noise limits for new vehicles.

Autumn statement: more cuts
The Chancellor’s autumn statement contained a pledge to spend £5.5bn on infrastructure spending, change assessment rules, encourage inter-council cooperation and make more red tape cuts.

Significant infrastructure threshold lowered
The Government is consulting on extending the streamlined planning process for big infrastructure downwards to commercial and business development.

Permitted development consultation out
Detail is being added to the widely-trailed policy of relaxing planning regulations.

Planning integration
Government is consulting on new ‘one stop shop’ proposals for major infrastructure proposals in England.

New for old
Casella CEL is offering up to 30% off the price of new equipment to customers who exchange their old sound level meters and dosimeters.

Jail for noise
A man who breached his anti-social behaviour injunction on an Islington estate has been jailed for 16 weeks and may lose his council home.

Buildings are too noisy
New research commissioned by Rockwool among UK property professionals (a group of 206 architects, planners, estate agents and property developers) has found that they support action to reduce noise pollution in UK homes and offices, with almost two thirds (64%) saying the UK needs quieter buildings.

Vanguardia: Grand Prix
Vanguardia has been involved in racing car measurements at a recent Formula One Grand Prix.

Vibration worsens rail noise
Swedish researchers have analysed why railway noise can become annoying. Vibration can lead to worsened annoyance from set levels of noise.

Leicester fine
A nuisance neighbour who ignored notices to stop playing loud music at her home seven times has been ordered to pay more than £3,500 in costs and fines by magistrates.

Life assessment
An analysis has been published on the EU Life programme which supports environmental and nature conservation projects throughout the EU.

New software
Brüel & Kjær’s Predictor-LimA Type 7810 software for environmental noise calculation has entered its ninth version.

Motorcycle approval
International regulations have been agreed on how to certify new motorcycle noise.

£64k fine for Nottingham club
A city centre club in Nottingham has been fined £64,000 for ignoring warnings about noise levels.

Derby seizures
Derby City Council has carried out three seizures of equipment following complaints of excess noise.

No wind review
Climate change secretary Greg Barker says there are no plans to review noise regulations for wind turbines.

Awards for excellence 2012
Canny ideas that are helping local authorities be more effective in today’s tough times were among initiatives singled out in this year’s John Connell Awards. Lisa Russell reports.

Fears over the grim RIPA
What exactly are local authorities supposed to do when they are required to deal with statutory nuisance but are faced with legal uncertainty on collecting evidence, asks Lis Stedman

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November 2012 issue 67

HPA looks for noise role
The Health Protection Agency has proposed how it is to tackle its noise responsibilities. It wants to built up its noise capabilities and may even get involved in planning advice.

Defra starts ‘world’s largest noise map’
Noise mapping specialist Extrium is providing technical advice and support to Defra in the delivery of the second round of mapping for the Environmental Noise Directive (END).

Bill prompts fears
The proposed Growth and Infrastructure Bill which has had its second reading in Parliament may water down planning protection on noise.

£9k nuisance payout
A claim of nuisance against a vehicle garage has succeeded.

Building standards reviewed
Building standards – including those covering noise – are to be reviewed by panel as part of the Coalition pledge to cut red tape.

Planning plea
The London Assembly has called on the Mayor to oppose government plans to significantly extend permitted development rights and reject changes to planning rules.

Planning guidance in fast track review
Government is carrying out a rushed review of planning guidance.

Commission reviews future of EIA
The European Commission has outlined new proposals to streamline legislation on environmental impact assessments.

Appeals consultation
Government is consulting on the planning appeals process in England.

Nottingham fine
A nightclub in Nottingham has been hit with a £64,000 fine for ignoring noise warnings.

RIPA difficulties get worse
CIEH has warned that new regulations coming into force this month will make it even harder for councils to monitor nuisance neighbours.

Brighton tries HMO licensing to cut nuisance
Student noise is one of the reasons for Brighton and Hove council designating a Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) zone.

Pocket parks
The London Mayor is to part-fund some 100 “pocket parks” and to plant thousands more new trees in London by March 2015.

Young person award
Nominations are being sought for the Institute of Acoustics 2013 Young Persons’ Award for Innovation in acoustical engineering.

Minister on wind
A government energy minister has broken ranks to criticise onshore wind turbines.

Turbines affects mental health
Researchers believe that noise from wind turbines could impact on mental health.

Batworthy turbines allowed at appeal
A windfarm at Batworthy Cross in Devon has been consented but not without an argument about noise.

EEB makes suggestions for EU noise review
The European Environment Bureau has made a series of recommendations for the forthcoming revision of the European Noise Directive.

Regulation hit
Regulation, including environmental health, has taken the biggest hit in Welsh local authority cuts.

Worth to Cirrus
Cirrus Research has appointed Kevin Worth as business development manager.

Noise behind killing
Noise has been blamed for a killing in St Helens.

Turbines & health
An ear specialist has written a paper explaining why wind turbines can cause low frequency noise and why they can be hazardous to health.

Plane noise back on the agenda
The Department for Transport’s consultation on aviation has given a rare opportunity for anyone with an interest in aircraft noise to try to influence future policy. Lisa Russell reports

BS4142: the review continues
The all important and much used BS4142 is under review. Are we any nearer to a conclusion, asks Lis Stedman

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October 2012 issue 66

15m school turbine removed
A 15m wind turbine has been removed because of noise nuisance.

Scottish turbine case heads towards court
A householder is pursuing a private nuisance action against the operator of a 15m Proven wind turbine.

HSE recovers costs for enforcement
The Health and Safety Executive is introducing a fee for intervention (FFI) cost recovery scheme for breaches of health and safety laws, including occupational noise.

Epuk exists
An annual general meeting held last month by Epuk revealed that the organisation continues to struggle with its new semi-voluntary set up.

Turbine backtrack
A wind turbine in Devon has had its planning permission rescinded due to the lack of an environmental impact assessment.

Fullabrook is too loud
Noise measurements at the high profile and disputed Fullabrook wind farm near Barnstaple suggest turbines are too loud.

Porsche accused of over-influence on EU
Campaigners have accused the European Parliament Environment Committee of relying on wording from Porsche in proposed wordings for noise policy documents.

Northern Ireland first with round two maps
Northern Ireland is the first in the UK to produce and publish its round two noise maps.

Pub fine
The licensee of a pub in South Ockendon, Essex, has been fined £2,000 for breaching a noise abatement notice.

Sudden departure
The Institute of Acoustics and its chief executive, Kevin Macan-Lind have parted company. The surprise departure comes six years after he became boss (Noise Bulletin April 2006).

Plymouth busy
Plymouth is seeing increased numbers of noise complaints.

Etsu feedback trickles in
Feedback is starting to roll in from the Institute of Acoustics’ extended consultation for a good practice guide for Etsu wind turbine assessment (Noise Bulletin Aug/Sept p6).

B&K updates hand held analyser
Brüel & Kjær has launched a fourth generation of hardware for its sound level meters and hand-held analysers – Types 2250 and 2270 G4.

Part E tests
A report has looked at four examples of refurbs to see how Part E sound insulation regulations have worked. It was commissioned in 2003 but only just released.

Speed consult
DfT is consulting on speed limit setting criteria.
US disturbance A noise model of a US urban area has put a figure on noise annoyance and sleep disturbance.

Dog pack a ‘human right’?
Council chiefs in Moray were disappointed that a judge ruled that they could not silence a pack of dogs. They blame the lack of noise standards for the failure of a four year battle against the pack.

Listen to turbine thumping for yourself
Consultant Mike Stigwood has opened up his wind farm amplitude modulation ‘listening room’ project to the wider public.

Japanese monitor low frequency noise
A new measurement system for wind turbine noise is being developed in Japan, as researchers from Chiba Institute of Technology explained to Low Frequency Noise 2012 conference (see page six).

Common assessment method finalised
Common noise assessment procedures have been published by Europe. The aim is to standardise quantification of noise exposure across borders.

Dispute cost
Saga Legal Services has carried out a survey and found 28% of the over 50s have been in legal disputes – most with their neighbours.

Subsidy regime revamped
A raft of renewable consultations have been launched covering wind turbines and heat pumps, domestic and non-domestic.

ASB prompts Newham landlord tax
All private landlords in Newham will be expected to pay up to £500 in a new licensing scheme justified by the perceived need to tackle anti social behaviour, including noise from rented properties.

Etsu uncertainties could double background
Two academics believe that wind turbine assessment underestimates uncertainty.

Splott spat
Four residents shared a fine of over £1,000 for repeatedly playing music too loud in Splott, Cardiff.

Quackdown on noise
Also in Cardiff, officers have fined the owner of ducks for allowing too much noise.

Who awarded
The WHO/Europe publication Burden of disease from environmental noise has been highly commended at an annual British Medical Association (BMA) Medical Book Awards ceremony.

Low frequency noise
Latest research into low frequency noise includes projects looking at ways of helping people cope when the source cannot be found. Lisa Russell reports

All about noise
Mike Goldsmith’s new book on noise is like a history lesson, but interesting, finds Lis Stedman

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Aug/Sept 2012 issue 65

£2.49 app simplifies reporting
A new smartphone app simplifies noise nuisance reporting and could lead to more robust reporting of noise nuisance problems.

£500,000 grants help Welsh tranquillity
Welsh Government has announced funding of £494,016 to support 14 local authority-led projects that will improve noise and the local environment.

Layby nuisance claim dismissed
An appeal by a householder complaining of nuisance from a layby in a road has been rejected in the High Court.

Evans rejoins RPS
Phil Evans has rejoined consultant RPS as senior director to lead the acoustics team, following a period as a director at Southdowns and as consulting group manager of the acoustics team at Bureau Veritas.

Vanguardia grows once again
Dr Nicky Shiers and Anne Unwin have joined Vanguardia as the firm further expands.

Council removes AM condition
Central Bedfordshire has been persuaded to remove a planning condition attached to a wind farm aimed at preventing amplitude modulation disturbance.

Anglesey ponders wind turbine SPG
In further evidence that local authorities are developing their own separate guidance for wind energy, Anglesey is consulting on special policy guidance that includes minimum separation distances for wind turbines.

Core strategy lists 3km gap
Wiltshire Council is amending its core strategy planning policy to restrict turbine height and separation distances but has been told to reconsult the public.

Canada wind probe
Health Canada has launched a probe into the health effects of wind turbines.

Mapping harmonisation
The European Joint Research Centre has finished the first phase of the development of common noise assessment methods (CNOSSOS-EU) in Europe.

Pub prosecution
City of York’s environmental protection unit has successfully prosecuted a pub company and owner of a public house in York for failing to comply with a noise abatement notice.

Noise key to aviation revamp
Government is reconsulting on aviation – while the focus is very much on increased runway capacity in south east England and whether there should be further expansion at Heathrow, noise figures highly.

Survey suggests half of population annoyed
Insulation firm Rockwool has published a survey suggesting more than half of UK residents are bothered by noise.

Noise neglected
A new set of sustainable development indicators are proposed for consultation.

Licensing guidance
Guidance is being proposed for changes to the licensing regime following implementation of the Live Music Act in October. The Act became law earlier this year

Rushlight Awards
The annual Rushlight Awards for environmental excellence loom once again and entries are invited.

High Court overturns permit
A metal recycling operation has succeeded in overturning a noise condition in the High Court. European Metal Recycling of Stoke on Trent challenged the Environment Agency questioning whether noise was enough to justify a suspension order for the whole process.

Three categories proposed for development
Consultant Chris Hurst of Three Spires Acoustics has proposed the use of three planning categories to deal with noise.

Olympic noise: three consultants get stuck in
Consultants have been out there trying to capture the excitement of the Olympics and related celebrations.

Wind report
Wind farm protesters have produced a report which includes an analysis of how current procedures produce higher than expected background noise measurements. Under Etsu methodology, that means developers can install noisier turbines.

Jail for knife man
A man who used a knife to threaten a Westminster EHO following up a noise complaint has been jailed.

Tyneside outsource
Environmental health functions at North Tyneside council are being outsourced to consultant Capita Symonds as part of council cost cutting.

Etsu gains good practice guide
Some may see ‘Etsu’ and ‘good practice’ as a contradiction in terms. Will IoA’s planned good practice guide on wind turbine assessment reduce the sniping, asks Jack Pease

Comfy sofa key to thump impact?
Could realistic listening room conditions lead to greater understanding of the impacts of wind turbine amplitude modulation?

Soundscape in a seaside city
Mary Stevens, noise policy expert, formerly with Epuk, and a local resident, looks on with interest as Brighton plays hosts to soundscape experiments

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July 2012 issue 64

County loses Judicial Review
Northumberland County Council has been told that its handling of planning consents for wind turbines failed to properly consider noise impacts.

Europe consults on noise directive review
The European Commission has launched a consultation of its review report of the European noise directive.

Airfield driving centre breaches notice
Harrogate Borough Council has successfully prosecuted a firm using an airfield to offer driving experiences to the public.

Consultant maps ‘Bow Bells’
Consultant 24 Acoustics was commissioned by the Times Atlas of London to map out the sound of Bow Bells and compare it with the historical ‘earshot’ area 150 years ago.

Lower cost noise monitors from Casella
A new low cost noise nuisance recorder from Casella CEL is designed to simplify monitoring complaints about noisy neighbours.

New NI rules
Mapping and action planning guidance has been posted by for consultation by the Northern Ireland Department of the Environment.

Tranquillity review
The Civil Aviation Authority has released a report on tranquillity.

Council adopts 1km+ distance
Milton Keynes Council has adopted as policy separation distances for wind turbines.

Moray moratorium
Moray Council says it is the first local authority in Scotland to seek a moratorium on windfarm applications.

Car limits noisier
European transport and environment pressure group T&E warns that proposed vehicle noise rules could lead to noisier vehicles for the next 15 years.

Noise affects wildlife
A report commissioned by Defra on the impact of noise on wildlife has concluded that there is scarce research and that more research is needed. Bristol researchers came to this conclusion through a desktop review of 85 other people’s studies.

Section 82 notices decline
The newly launched Noisenuisance.org (see box, below) says there has been a long term decline in the use of s82 (non-local authority) nuisance actions under the Environmental Protection Act.

Noise nuisance website launched
Two noise consultants are heading up an initiative aimed at explaining noise nuisance to the public.

Noise expenditure rises in 2010
Capital expenditure on noise protection rose in 2010, the latest year for which figures are available.

Airport payout
600 homeowners affected by Manchester Airport’s second runway will share £1,500 compensation as part of a negotiated deal.

Change of use
DCLG is consulting on allowing deregulating planning change-of-use legislation to make it easier to convert existing commercial buildings into

NPPF response
The Government’s interpretation of responses to the NPPF consultation has been released.

Co-Op help for M40 barriers
A long-established M40 action group on noise has won grants that may lead to solar noise barriers being placed alongside the M40.

Smartphone app for Heathrow noise
Heathrow protest group Hacan has teamed up with University College London (UCL) to launch a smartphone app to capture aircraft noise.

Reliable turbine nuisance assessments needed
The need for reliable assessments of the noise impact of small wind turbines is likely to become ever more important, said Temple Group technical director Dani Fiumicelli at last month’s CIEH nuisance conference (Noise Bulletin June p8).

New President for IOA
Professor Bridget Shield has become the president of the Institute of Acoustics succeeding Trevor Cox.

IAC sold
Industrial Acoustics Inc (IAC) has been sold by current equity firm MML Capital Partners to another equity firm AEA Investors (not to be confused with AEA consultants).

Speeds up
Sampling of vehicle speeds has shown that between 2010 and 2011, the percentage of cars and motorcycles exceeding the 30 mph speed limit increased to 47 and 50% respectively. On motorways, 49% of cars exceeded the 70 mph speed limit in 2011, unchanged from 2010.

Planning in a vacuum?
The Institute of Acoustics meeting on the National Planning Policy Framework asked ‘What happens to noise policy decision-making in a vacuum?’. Lisa Russell reports.

Anti social behaviour makeover
We take a deeper look at Government White Paper plans for anti social behaviour. Lis Stedman reports

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June 2012 issue 63

Noise powers for the police?
19 sundry anti social behaviour tools, including Asbos, will be replaced by six under plans contained in a new Government White Paper. Many of the new powers can be used to tackle noise nuisance – with suggestions that the police will get increased power over noise.

Funding for quiet areas (but only in Wales)
Welsh local authorities will share £500,000 of grant funding for developing quiet areas.

Alton Towers rerun?
Court procedural hearings have cleared the way for a re-run of the high profile noise nuisance case against Alton Towers theme park.

Chimes plan annoys
The Noise Abatement Society does not welcome plans to deregulate ice cream chime noise. The deregulation is part of Government efforts to cut red tape (Noise Bulletin April p4).

Private nuisance action fails
Residents have had to shell out £50,000 in costs following failure of an Environmental Protection Act Section 82 nuisance action in Reading Magistrates’ Court following excess noise from a new playground.

Heathrow freedoms studied as trial extended
The CAA has reported on impacts of operational freedoms at Heathrow Airport which allowed BAA to alternate flights on its two runways. Meanwhile the trial has been extended in length and scope.

Regulations important
MPs have said that regulations to protect the environment are important. Their new report comes as Government culls environmental regulations as part of its drive to cut red tape (Noise Bulletin April p2).

Campbell extends
Due to the continued success of its UKAS and traceable calibration business, Campbell Associates has extended its offices at Dunmow in Essex, with the addition of a new calibration laboratory. Three pieces of kit can now be calibrated simultaneously.

Etsu. Unlawful and not fair
There has been further criticism, of Etsu from wind turbine expert Dick Bowdler.

Enough is enough? Lincs and Wales revolts
Politicians in Lincolnshire and Wales have both put down a marker against unfettered expansion of wind turbines.

Lincs loses patience with turbines
Lincolnshire county councillors want a halt to the “unrestrained invasion of wind turbines across Lincolnshire”.

Noise important
Visual impact and community benefit are less important than noise and local jobs when people are considering whether to support or oppose an onshore wind farm in their local area, according to a new poll.

Easy measurements
Measurement firm Brüel & Kjær has launched its Measurement Partner Suite – free, post-processing software for sound level meters and hand-hand analysers.

School reprieve?
The Institute of Acoustics has welcomed the news that acoustics is among eight out of 24 regulations that are to be retained in the Government’s new School Premises Regulations due to be announced in September.

More payments due to Essex bungle
Essex County Council and Epping Forest Council have been forced to make further payments due to a bungled waste site permit.

Summer service
A night time call-out service run by Hartlepool Council to clampdown on noise nuisance has begun operating for the summer.

Bells annoy
Swiss researchers have studied the science of awakenings due to bell noise.

Action day again
Despite little central help, councils and other organisations managed to put on a good show for Noise Action Week, finds Lis Stedman

Experts mull nuisance progress
Practical guidance on dealing with a range of noise nuisance issues was on offer at a recent CIEH conference. Lisa Russell reports

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May 2012 issue 62

Complaint prompts libel row
A bitter noise complaint has spilled over into the High Court.

EIA at centre of High Court ruling
Moving the site of a proposed rubbish plant did not require a new noise impact survey, the High Court has said.

Action week: still a force to be reckoned with
Local authorities and housing providers are showing a strong interest in Noise Action Week, even though only electronic resources are available to support it this time around.

Etsu and AM condition scrutiny
A methodology intended to patch up gaps in Etsu wind turbine assessment – dubbed the IoA Bulletin Agreement – may worsen noise.

RES to vary Den Brook condition?
Wind farm developer RES is consulting on a variation of a tight condition on amplitude modulation (AM) at the proposed Den Brook wind farm in Devon.

Airfield rap for Hambleton
Failure to tackle a noisy airfield has landed Hambleton Council, with an Ombudsman censure.

Olympics push for night time deliveries
Out of hours deliveries will be encouraged during the Olympic period in a bid to reduce road congestion at peak times.

Video sets out benefits of vehicle noise cuts
Three European environmental pressure groups have come together to produce a video on the proposed tightening of vehicle noise standards.

Scotland adopts devolution
Epuk Scotland is going its own way thanks to funding from Scottish Government which will allow Epuk Scotland (EPS) to employ two part-time members of staff.

Epuk membership: 50% subs cut agreed
Epuk member organisations will by now have received membership details for the 2012/13 financial year.

Brickbats awarded for noise failures
Noisedirect, which operates a noise advice service for the public, has revealed the winners of its Blue Mu awards for doing little or nothing to prevent noise nuisance or improve the noise environment. Blue Mu is based on the Japanese Kanjii symbol for nothing, the awards are “to noise what the Razzies are to the Oscars”.

How the Americans tackle noise
The UK Government wants localism and cut central guidance. The US abolished federal noise enforcement 30 years ago – leading to a myriad of local noise byelaws. Is this the future for Britain?

Vegetation: can it cut noise?
Researchers from around the world, including the UK, have been studying how trees and other vegetation can screen or alter the noise we hear. Lisa Russell looks at some of the findings.

Eviction first
Halton Housing Trust has used Campbell Associates’ Norsonic 140NNR kits for its first eviction based on noise nuisance. Evidence was gathered by the equipment to provide evidence of breaches of a noise abatement notice put on Sally Johnson’s flat in Clapgate, Widnes.

Asbo obtained
Thurrock Council has obtained a five year ASBO for a persistent noise maker.

HS2 awards
Further environmental contracts, which include noise assessment, have been awarded by HS2, the group promoting the proposed high speed railway line to the north of England.

Agency calibration
The Environment Agency is seeking tenderers for a c£80,000 contract to calibrate its noise instruments.

Insulation maps
Turkish researchers have translated European noise maps into noise insulation maps.

International day
International Noise Action day was marked in the UK with MP Bob Russell tabling an Early Day Motion in Parliament supporting increased efforts on nuisance noise.

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April 2012 issue 61

PPG24 out, tranquillity in
The National Planning Policy Framework is in – with tranquillity explicitly recognised despite just 47 pages of policy.

Guidance: in or out?
So it looks as though planning guidance, such as Planning Policy Guidance PPG24 on noise, is now superseded. Or is it?

Laminate flooring spat lands £140,000 costs
Residents of a posh flat have lost their court bid against noise from an upstairs neighbour caused by a laminate floor. Costs amounted to £140,000.

Epuk down but Noise Action Week thrives
Noise Action Week is going ahead this year despite the demise in its current form of parent organisation

Mildenhall fallout
A High Court appeal that appeared to suggest granting of planning permission changed the character of the area could lead to difficulties for local authorities.

Fixed complaint threshold challenged
A huge High Court case – focussing on odour but resolved based on many noise nuisance precedents – has thrown out an earlier appeal judgement which suggested fixed numbers of complaints as a means of judging nuisance.

Process noise leads to fine
Dudley MBC has been told by the Ombudsman to pay £7,000 compensation to residents near a foundry due to noise and smells. The council’s unwillingness to prosecute a permitted process because of potential loss of jobs was at the heart of the dispute.

London Assembly revisits Heathrow
London Assembly members, fearing further expansion at Heathrow, have revisited the issue of noise at the airport. A new report includes calls for:

Red tape conclusions drawn
Environmental regulation appears to have emerged relatively unscathed from cuts in “red tape”.

Council adopts 2km separation zone
North Yorkshire County Council has adopted as policy the need for a 2km separation distance between large wind turbines and houses.

Injunction to stop noisy car cruisers
An injunction has been granted to tackle nuisance from 200 car cruisers at a retail park near Nottingham.

Chimes change
As part of the drive to cut ‘red tape, Defra is consulting on the code of practice on ice cream van chimes.

Wales does it quietly
Lis Stedman takes a closer look at Welsh plans to designate quiet areas. There are far fewer candidate quiet areas than mooted a few years ago

Noises off (for eight years)
One man’s eight-year struggle to get respite from noisy neighbours offers lessons for local authorities and housing associations, reports Lisa Russell

Nuisance decline?
The number of nuisance complaints has dropped massively, CIEH statistics suggest. For 2010/11, the latest data available,

NI neighbourhood regulations now in
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act (Northern Ireland) has come into force. Guidance has been issued on how to deal with nuisances such as noisy alarms and licensees’ premises.

Landlords’ ASB tool launched
The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) has launched a new tool designed to help social landlords highlight the impact of anti social behaviour (ASB) on the wider community.

Bromilow switch
Ian Bromilow joins Vanguardia as principal consultant. Bromilow has worked for Atkins, Sandy Brown and BDP and most recently was freelance.

IOA to sponsor ‘Noise Oscar’ again
The IOA is again sponsoring a Noise Abatement Society John Connell Award.

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March 2012 issue 60

Wind slashes 16% off value?
The farmhouse at the centre of the high profile Deeping St Nicholas wind farm nuisance case has been sold at a 16% loss.

Durham council rapped for allowing nuisance
Durham County Council has been found to be incompetent and neglectful by granting planning permission for cattle buildings next to housing.

Complaints ignored
Many noise complaints are not investigated by councils, Noisedirect believes.

Royal Parks win licence review
Westminster has ‘lost’ its battle to protect residents from excess noise from Hyde Park.

Web helps Matron investigations
Environmental health officers can now use the web to remotely monitor investigation progress with Bruel & Kjaer’s Matron Live neighbour noise monitoring system.

Noise deprioritised
Noise is no longer a priority for London, it appears.

Westminster ‘busiest’
Westminster City Council believes it is the UK’s busiest noise team.

HS2 appointment
HS2 Ltd has appointed Arup, supported by URS, to carry out environmental overview services.

Wales consults on quiet areas
Wales has set out quiet areas in line with European Noise Directive plans.

Noise must figure in air quality planning
Welsh Government is warning local authorities that they must consider noise when carrying out air quality planning.

Heathrow complaints up
Noise complaints have shot up at Heathrow since the airport commenced its mixed mode trial.

Noise indicator
Noise will be a ‘placeholder’ (ie reserve) indicator in the proposed performance indicators for the new public health set up.

Public health advice
CIEH has produced suggestions on how environmental health professionals can engage with the new public health service.

Noise Action Week
As Noise Bulletin went to press, the Noise Action Week website and associated Twitter account suggests the event will go ahead this year in May.

Noise death
An 18 year old Great Yarmouth girl who stabbed her neighbour to death because of motorcycle noise has escaped a murder charge but has been found guilty of manslaughter.

Status quo justifies noise
A controversial judgement on speedway noise has been overturned on appeal. It sets a precedent that planning permission can legitimise what could be considered a noise nuisance.

Elmbridge app?
Elmbridge is looking to further develop its online Noise Toolkit by producing an app that would see the key functions of the Toolkit developed for smart phones and tablets.

Consultants merge
Royal Haskoning and DHV intend to merge to create a top 10 independently owned global engineering consultancy, (and within the top 40 overall).

EIAs clarified
The European Commission has brought together all existing EU legislation governing environmental impact assessments to simplify the process.

CA gets UKAS
Campbell Associates has been UKAS accredited for its calibration service for measurement microphones.

What worth is quiet?
As Wales sets out its quiet areas Lis Stedman looks at a report valuing the importance of quiet areas

Noise and health revisited
Two new reports published by Defra highlight the unseen harm that high noise levels can do both to people’s pockets and to their health. Lisa Russell reports

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January/February 2012 issue 59

Salford will ignore complaints
Salford has spelled out which noise nuisances it will investigate – and those it won’t, even if it risks breaching its statutory duty on nuisance.

Fullabrook monitoring agreed
The controversial North Devon Fullabrook wind farm is being fully commissioned. The council has negotiated increased monitoring to check there is no excess noise at nearby properties.

Licensing help?
Elmbridge, which has won recognition for its work on publicising noise nuisance, is seeking to produce a code of practice for licensed premises. It is looking for partners and may tie the initiative into Noise Action Week.

Westminster serves improvement notice
Westminster has served an improvement notice on a landlord when it became clear the premises were too hot and too noisy to open windows forming a category one HHSRS hazard.

AM Condition refused in Biggleswade wind appeal judgement
A planning inspector has refused to use a planning condition to cover amplitude modulation for the Langford wind farm, near Biggleswade, which he has approved in a recent planning appeal judgement.

Taylor takes it
Defra has appointed consultant Rupert Taylor to study the impact of historic policy interventions on noise. The research aims to support the objectives of the Noise Policy Statement for England (Noise Bulletin December 2011 p4).

AM condition runs late
Work on framing an acceptable planning condition for wind turbine amplitude modulation is running late.

Two states get tougher
Australia’s New South Wales Government – and the Danish – have introduced new noise rules for wind turbines which include a low frequency component.

Wind team
The IoA has released details of its wind farm noise assessment working group.

Contours don’t match complaints
A policy document from the Civil Aviation Authority accepts that shrinking noise contours have not led to reduced noise complaints.

Noise more annoying, suggests Rickaby
Mike Rickaby of the London Borough of Hillingdon believes that aircraft noise may be more annoying than conventional metrics suggest.

Wandsworth and Lambeth clash at Clapham
Wandsworth is expressing concern at neighbouring Lambeth’s proposals to increase noise on Clapham Common in south London.

Kettering gets tough
Kettering has served a noise abatement notice on a couple who made too much noise.

Vehicle limits toughened
The European Commission has proposed stricter noise emission limits for cars, vans, lorries and buses.

NoiseSentinel chosen for Crossrail project
Brüel & Kjær’s real-time noise monitoring subscription service, NoiseSentinel, is set to ensure the compliance of the Crossrail construction works.

Further improvement to Casella kit
Casella has made further improvements to its CEL-630 series of sound level meters, which it describes as one of the smallest devices of its kind currently available in the market place.

£190,000 fine
South London firm Metal & Waste Recycling Ltd has been fined £150,000 with £40,000 costs in Woolwich Crown Court.

CIEH poll reveals cuts
The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health recently asked its members how cuts were affecting out of hours services.

Out of hours being cut
Following on from CIEH’s survey Lis Stedman talks to some councils about their hours noise services, and how they are faring in the face of cuts

Firework noise affects human rights?
The European Court has dismissed a case involving noise from fireworks in Malta. A resident complained his Article 8 human rights to peaceful enjoyment of his property were being breached by fireworks displays.

Noise prompts tunnels for HS2
Concerns about noise has prompted increased tunnelling for the HS2 rail link. The Government has confirmed

Truck firm fine
Delivery and engine noise has cost a firm £15,000 in court.

Brighton pilots soundscape art
A pilot project has shown that introducing a pleasant soundscape outside a cluster of nightclubs may help reduce noisy behaviour among the revellers.

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