Here is the link to the latest Spring 2012 online newsletter
More and more, artificial, human-generated, undesirable and unhealthy sound unduly burdens the soundscape—the indispensable, integral acoustic component of our environment.
To bring about awareness of this problem, prevent and abate noise as much as possible, the Right to Quiet Society for Soundscape Awareness and Protection was established in 1982.
If you wish to read and learn more about us, our work, and find information on the effects of noise, how to deal with noise problems, and how to protect yourself from noise, you are cordially invited to explore our web site. To share what you've learned about us, go to our U-Print page to get our leaflet document on PDF, which you may print and distribute.If you find our work interesting, have any comments or suggestions to make, please Contact us.
Should you wish to join our society as a member, please click Join Us and follow the instructions there.
If you would like to donate to the Right to Quiet Society by credit-card through CanadaHelps.org, please, click here. En Francais ici.
If you did not like what you saw here, without telling us, you might consider leaving quietly.
Thanks for visiting.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Internoise 2012 will be held this year in the heart of New York City, 19-22 August, at the Marriott Marquis hotel. The abstract deadline is now only 4 weeks away - 15 February!
Please see: website to learn more about the session topics, find guidance for writing abstracts and papers, and to submit your abstract. Papers are due 15 May 2012.
Internoise 2012 will feature, along with the technical program:
a sold out exposition of over 60 vendors displaying noise and vibration control materials, analysis software, and measurement systems and instrumentation
A series of 14 short courses on noise and vibration preceding and following the conference
Plenary sessions on City Noise Codes, the Effects of Noise on Children, and Airport Noise.
ACOUSTICS WEEK IN CANADA Banff, Alberta, 10 - 12 Oct. 2012
The annual conference of the Canadian Acoustical Association will include three days of plenary lectures and technical sessions on all areas of acoustics. For more information visit the conference website
COMMENTARY
Shore 104 FM imposes its amplified "music" on West End residents
The Vancouver radio station Shore 104.3 FM played loud, amplified "music" on two stages on Sunset Beach this summer, perhaps as a "prelude" to the equally noisy (and smoky) fireworks competition, disturbing and annoying numerous West End residents within earshot. Shore FM responded to complaints, expressing respect for residents, but their actions speak much louder than their words. Read more: Shore FM's defence, our commentary, here.Noisy boats cruising Vancouver harbour, Burrard Inlet and English Bay each summer!
Vancouvercruises.com Charters Ltd., operates the M.V. Queen of Diamonds and plays infernally loud "music" on board that blasts residents and people on the beaches even miles away during the summer. It is alleged that this particular company was not in compliance with legal requirements regarding proper licensing and had been fined for that. In spite of it all, this business continues to operate as a "floating night club", possibly worse.We ask where the corresponding authorities are to enforce the applicable rules and regulations, and where that company's dignity and corporate conscience went; if it existed?
Campaign against horn-honking for convenience and amusement
Dear fellow advocates for a quieter environment,
After a year of research, I've begun an effort to address horn honking used to "confirm" that a vehicle is locked, unlocked, armed,or disarmed, part of the remote keyless system (RKS). There have always been quieter (and silent) methods to accomplish the same thing. But despite the auto industry's attempts to build quieter cars with quieter interiors, most new cars feature the horn honk with RKS confirmation. And now honking is being used in other "convenience" technologies, such as a "panic alarm" and "car finder" for people who can't remember where they parked their cars in a parking lot. Horn honking is also used as a confirmation sound with remote keyless ignition (RKI) systems.
I've found that people who aren't familiar with the noise created by this technology are sometimes amused and even annoyed that anyone can find it disturbing. But to those of us who live in areas with any kind of parking turnover, the effects are dramatic. And RKS and RKI honking are not limited to urban areas; you will find this noise in every setting where people park cars.Part of my effort has been to start this online petition
Please consider taking a few minutes to read the petition. It is more effective when people leave informed comments, but you can still "sign" the petition without a comment, or "sign" and opt not to have your name displayed.
Please note that if you opt to leave a comment, your name, city, and state will appear online. If you receive e-mails from Change.org after signing the petition, you can reply to the e-mail and follow instructions to "unsubscribe" and you won't receive further e-mails. If you know someone who you think would be interested in this effort, please forward the link.
Reject irrelevant, irritating audio-entertainment while on hold on the telephone
If you don't like to listen to imposed "music", advertising or other undesired audio-programme while put on hold on the line, don't hesitate to let the other side know that you dislike having their choice of programme imposed on you. It is completely irrelevant and has nothing to do with the purpose of calling. It's an imposition and, indeed, an insult. If they don't want to do without it, then provide us the option to "press one for silence. "
ICBEN—International commission on Biological Effects of Noise. The abstracts of the contributions are available from ICBEN2008, the 9th International Congress on Noise as a Public Health Problem, 21–25 July, 2008, Foxwood, connecticut, USA.
Vancouver International Airport (YVR) Noise Monitoring—A new website was launched by the Vancouver Airport Authority that will allow the public to view flights over the Metro Vancouver area as they occur. WebTrak for YVR supposedly shows in real time where planes are flying and simultaneously displays the resulting noise level at several monitoring stations on the ground. there are 20 such stations in Metro Vancouver. For security reasons there is a 10-minute delay in the transmission of the flight data. The web-address can be found here
PETITIONS
If you wish to support efforts to curb noise in Tanzania, please sign this on-line petition: "STOP NOISE POLLUTION IN TANZANIA" hosted on the web by a free online petition service
When a single person registers a noise complaint, it is often dismissed or ignored because of an antiquated provision in our provincial law. In regards to noise legislation, we need to change the Local Government Act of British Columbia to say "an individual" instead of "individuals" and we also need to change the word "persons" to "any person". To support this effort, please sign the petition on the following website
In support of the German Pipedown group "Lautsprecher Aus" (Amplifiers Off) you can sign their on-line petition against unwanted, unnecessary sound-sprinklers here
"If we had a category for endangered conditions as we do for endangered species, then quiet would certainly top the list. Quiet has already largely disappeared from many urban areas. There is ever more encroachment of human-generated noise on the soundscape, the "habitat" of quiet, that quiet gets pushed to the brink of extinction."
Excerpt of a letter to the editor of Alive magazine, September 2010, by Hans Schmid.
Calling noise a nuisance is like calling smog an inconvenience. Noise must be considered a hazard to the health of people everywhere."
— Dr. William H. Stewart, former Surgeon General of the United States
