In times gone by, our capital, Georgetown, was the picture of serenity. This brief excursion into nostalgia does not by any means reference Georgetown’s establishment some 200 years ago, but more recent times. Fifty years ago, the city was built up. There were thriving businesses, several schools and, of course, residences. Tree-lined streets and avenues were paved and the drains and trenches were clean. There was a mass transportation system in the country that included buses and trains. Some families owned cars (many others owned bicycles), but there were also garage services where residents could hire a car and driver for long or short trips.
That picture has all but disappeared. George-town today is gnarly, but this is being embraced by officialdom as “progress”. Extended to bursting at the seams, the city’s sanitation efforts never seem to last beyond the immediate, and prominent among its awful afflictions is the noise. This has become a constant to the point where some citizens no longer seem to notice or perhaps the cacophony has already taken a toll on their auditory organs.
A departure from urban planning early on meant that all sorts of businesses were suddenly sharing space with residences, and in uncomfortable proximity. Disadvantaged citizens realised that they could wake up one day to find that a bar, rum shop, hotel, auto repair garage, or church, to name a few, had moved in next door raising the decibels in the neighbourhood to maddening levels. Complaints about noise engendered enmity (and still does). There is little or no recourse to be had from the authorities. Vehicles (including motorcycles) with blaring horns, revving engines, unmuffled exhausts and the ubiquitous music systems installed in them also pollute the atmosphere and are among the worst offenders here.
The United Nations Environmental Program-me (UNEP) has long declared noise pollution a hazard to public health. It noted that “unwanted, prolonged and high-level sounds … impair human health and well-being”. The resulting sleep disturbance, the UNEP said, leads to illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes, hearing impairment and poor mental health. In the long term, noise pollution can also affect the central nervous system and brain, increasing the likelihood of stroke, dementia, and cognitive decline.
Further, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), an estimated 360 million people, including 32 million children, have disabling hearing loss. In the European Union alone, noise pollution causes some 12,000 premature deaths annually. Noise pollution is also a real danger to animals; not just our pets that run off or hide, sometimes injuring themselves in the process, to escape the sounds of fireworks, but many other species including birds, insects and amphibians. In May, the results of a longitudinal study in the UK (spanning over 20 years) revealed even more cause for concern. It found that prenatal and early life exposure to noise and air pollution gave rise to depression, anxiety, and psychotic experiences in children and young adults. It also affirmed findings of a smaller study in the US, which showed that apart from their health, noise severely affected children’s learning. While no studies were or could be conducted during the lockdowns forced by the Covid-19 pandemic, anecdotally it was found that the resulting quiet raised creativity levels among both adults and children.
In some countries, just after the lockdown eased, towns had closed off entire streets to allow for social distancing particularly in dining out, in order to help businesses recover economically. That situation morphed into a summer practice that continues today in several areas, providing a traffic free, mostly noise-free bubble over a three-month period. Barcelona, Spain is way ahead of that curve having introduced ‘superblocks’, which are permanently closed to vehicular traffic, as an experiment since 1993. In these small neighbourhoods, residents are able to walk and cycle freely and there are green spaces which help to lower both noise and air pollution. Barcelona is in the process of creating more such areas, aiming at having 503 by 2030. Other cities, including Buenos Aires, Vienna, Los Angeles and Bogota are also moving to set up superblocks.
Scientists believe that ideally superblocks should be established around schools in order to provide a conducive learning environment, while also protecting children’s health. At the very least, and this might be applicable to this country, school surroundings should be declared quiet zones. This means no use of horns, revving of engines or playing loud music during school hours. Violators should be given tickets for their first infraction and arrested, charged and taken to court to face a hefty fine if they repeat the offence. At this point Georgetown is a lost cause, wild and impossible to tame and immune to the superblock concept. However, its children still need protection. This is one way. Is there a will?
