Let's curb excessive noise making-Yirimea

Spread Thurs. April 17/08

Story Rebecca Quaicoe Duho
THE Deputy Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, Alhaji Ahmed Awudu Yirimea, has noted that excessive noise in the urban setting is gradually becoming a way of life and culture of lawlessness that needs to be curbed.
Accordingly, he said, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had developed ambient noise level guidelines in conformity with World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.
The guidelines, among other things, indicate that industries must work within the EPA’s permissible noise level, while religious activities must be conducted in such a way that the noise level is controlled within the premises of the religious groups.
The minister was speaking at the launch of the Third National Noise Awareness Day in Accra yesterday.
The day, which was marked on the theme, “Noise reduction: Our collective responsibility”, was organised by the EPA and the ministry and brought together stakeholders such as representatives of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), health officials and personnel from the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA).
The minister appealed to district assemblies and the police to help reduce noise during festive seasons and also called on community leaders and traditional authorities to step up efforts at sensitising people to the negative effects of noise, saying that the youth and the aged were the most vulnerable.
Alhaji Yirimea also called on all to consider noise reduction as a poverty alleviation strategy, saying that “if we succeed in this campaign, we shall witness considerable improvement in our environment and save ourselves from noise pollution and its attendant health problems”.
A retired ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist, Dr James Danso-Adams, in a presentation on the harmful effects of noise, said excessive noise could lead to irreparable deafness in one’s ear.
According to him, noise-induced hearing impairment could lead to life-long deafness.
Dr Danso-Adams, who is currently working at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, said although the country did not have statistics on noise-induced deafness, the situation was serious among people who worked in the mines and in heavy- duty industries.
He said people who worked in the mines and as tarmac operators at the airport and who were exposed to excessive noise constantly for between five and eight hours a day could become deaf.
He also said exposure to excessive noise could lead to high blood pressure, indigestion, ulcers, heartburn, gastro-intestinal malfunctions and heart abnormalities.
Dr Danso-Adams, therefore, recommended that the general public be educated on the dangers associated with noise to help reduce the amount of noise that people made.
The Chief Environment Officer of the AMA, Mr Divine Sarppor, indicated that his outfit had initiated 31 court actions against people who made excessive noise in the metropolis.
He said the AMA had bye-laws regarding noise making and called on people to adhere to them.
The Executive Director of the EPA, Mr Jonathan Allotey, in a welcoming address, called on people to take legal action against neighbours who made excessive noise, adding that it was the collective responsibility of all to ensure that noise was reduced to its barest minimum.