Impact Analysis of Noise Pollution on Human-Health: A Case Study of Southern Region of Nigeria

Abstract

Noise pollution, though not a new problem, has increased in recent times in reflection of human activities. Noise is an unpleasant sound capable of causing psychological and physiological problems for human health and society. This study aimed to assess the impact of noise pollution on the health of residents in the capital cities of Calabar, Port Harcourt, Uyo and Yenagoa. Data was obtained through a structured questionnaire designed to get firsthand information from respondents on variables such as socioeconomic characteristics, noise effect, neighbourhood noise awareness and sources. Across all the cities, multiple choices of noise were picked by the respondents, mostly vehicular traffic and generating plants. Mental stress (16.6%) was reported as the common effect of noise pollution, followed by distraction and lack of concentration to work (13.4%), while the least effect was a risk of accident (2.1%), followed by speech interference (1.8%). Thus, it is recommended that cities with high noise generation activities should adopt noise pollution regulation policies and also have potential mitigation measures in place, which should include noise-absorbing structures.