News
Health impact of noise in the Paris agglomeration
Bruitparif - 18/11/2011
Road, rail and air traffic: there are many noise sources, especially in highly urbanised areas such as Ile-de-France. The population is subjected permanently to noise and, due to the extent of the urban fabric, it is difficult to avoid it. Beyond hearing effects, many studies have shown that environmental noise exposures are related to non-auditory effects such as sleep disturbance, annoyance and cardiovascular diseases.
In order to quantify the health outcomes of noise on the population of the Paris agglomeration, the Regional Health Observatory in Ile-de-France and Bruitparif have relied on the method to quantify DALYs (disability-adjusted life-years) described by WHO*. It assesses the burden of disease through the quantitative indicator DALYs.
By using the data available at the town level (for both noise exposure and health outcomes) and by applying the WHO method, the teams have obtained a first minimum estimation of the health impact of environmental noise related to transportation. In total, around 66,000 healthy life years are lost every year in the Paris agglomeration. The main health outcome of environmental noise exposure is sleep disturbance, which represents on its own nearly two thirds of the years lost (DALYs). Annoyance is the second health outcome with more than 25,000 healthy years lost.
Road noise is the main source of burden of disease. Indeed, with 58,000 DALYs, road noise represents on its own 87% of the estimated healthy life years lost in the Paris agglomeration. However, assessments related to air noise (which only represents a little more than 4% of the DALYs) should be taken cautiously, as the use of the Lden indicator is not sufficient to translate on its own the population’s exposure to noise sources showing an event aspect such as air traffic. The number of Ile-de-France inhabitants potentially impacted by air traffic nuisances had been assessed by Bruitparif for the SURVOL study at more than 1.7 million people. This figure is much more significant than the one regarding the levels exceeding the Lden regulatory value of 55 dB(A) (around 350,000 Ile-de-France inhabitants according to the aggregation of the strategic noise maps).
It is to be noted that these estimations of healthy life years lost due to noise rely on the use of exposure data from the first strategic noise maps produced to implement the 2002/49/EC END. According to regulations, these data must be updated in 2012. It will be the opportunity to standardise the estimation methods and to improve quantitatively and qualitatively the entry data of the noise prediction models. Thus, a new DALY assessment will be produced based on more representative exposure data, after the works to update the strategic noise maps, as well as on the latest progress regarding the WHO assessment method.
* Burden of disease from environmental noise - Quantification of healthy life years lost in Europe, WHO 2011
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By using the data available at the town level (for both noise exposure and health outcomes) and by applying the WHO method, the teams have obtained a first minimum estimation of the health impact of environmental noise related to transportation. In total, around 66,000 healthy life years are lost every year in the Paris agglomeration. The main health outcome of environmental noise exposure is sleep disturbance, which represents on its own nearly two thirds of the years lost (DALYs). Annoyance is the second health outcome with more than 25,000 healthy years lost.
Road noise is the main source of burden of disease. Indeed, with 58,000 DALYs, road noise represents on its own 87% of the estimated healthy life years lost in the Paris agglomeration. However, assessments related to air noise (which only represents a little more than 4% of the DALYs) should be taken cautiously, as the use of the Lden indicator is not sufficient to translate on its own the population’s exposure to noise sources showing an event aspect such as air traffic. The number of Ile-de-France inhabitants potentially impacted by air traffic nuisances had been assessed by Bruitparif for the SURVOL study at more than 1.7 million people. This figure is much more significant than the one regarding the levels exceeding the Lden regulatory value of 55 dB(A) (around 350,000 Ile-de-France inhabitants according to the aggregation of the strategic noise maps).
It is to be noted that these estimations of healthy life years lost due to noise rely on the use of exposure data from the first strategic noise maps produced to implement the 2002/49/EC END. According to regulations, these data must be updated in 2012. It will be the opportunity to standardise the estimation methods and to improve quantitatively and qualitatively the entry data of the noise prediction models. Thus, a new DALY assessment will be produced based on more representative exposure data, after the works to update the strategic noise maps, as well as on the latest progress regarding the WHO assessment method.
* Burden of disease from environmental noise - Quantification of healthy life years lost in Europe, WHO 2011
Read more
Regulations - 13/12/2011
The European Commission presented last December 9th a proposal...
