DISTURBANCE
Background
The environmental theme disturbance involves attaining and
maintaining a good residential and living environment. The
quality of this local environment is mainly determined by
local and/or regional environmental impact caused by
disturbance. Disturbance involves the environmental aspects
noise, odour, external safety and local air pollution. These
environmental aspects all have in common that their effects
have a direct impact on the wellbeing of human beings.
In order to asses the effects of disturbance nuisance a census
is organised on a yearly basis. For a more objective
assessment of disturbance nuisance a research project is
initiated by the Dutch ministry of Environment. Objective of
this project is to establish an Environmental Decision Support
System (EDSS) that determines the impact of noise and odour on man
and environment. Furthermore, it has to be able to monitor the
effects of disturbance policy on the environmental quality.
Because not only the assessment of the impact of disturbance
is important but also the location this impact occurs Geographical Information
System (GIS) is used as datamanagement and analysis tool.
This page presents the first results of the project
disturbance. In the project only the
environmental aspects noise and odour are subjects of research.
The other aspects of disturbance (external safety and local air
pollution) are subject of research currently carried out in other
laboratories within the RIVM.
Procedure
In brief the followed procedure can be described as
identification of the sources of noise and odour
and assessment of the extension of their environmental impact.
A more detailed description of the followed procedure
for the mapping of noise and odour nuisance is given on the next page.
Results
The maps that display the location and extension of the nuisance
of the individual sources, the cumulation of the aspects noise
and odour and the cumulation of both noise and odour are
presented. Also the results of a number of provisional analysis are shown.
Provisional analyses
With the maps that show the location and extension of disturbance by noise and odour a
number of analysis
can be made. These analyses have a provisional character because not all sources of
noise and odour
disturbance are included yet. Also the methodology used to assess the extension of noise
and odour levels
have to get a more quantitative character. Never the less the results of the provisional
analyses shown give
good insight in the analyses the EDDS has to be capable of.
Concluding remarks
The methodology presented on these pages and the results of
the project disturbance have a provisional
character. In this stage of the project only the sources of noise and odour are
identified and their environmental extension is assessed.
In the next stage of the project the number of sources has to be
increased. Also the methodology to calculate the environmental
extension has to be improved so that a quantitative assessment
of the environmental impact of noise and odour can be given. This more
quantitative description of noise and odour levels in
combination with response functions (for man and fauna) has to make
the translation of environmental impact to annoyance for both environmental aspects
possible.
For more information please contact:
- Arno Bouwman
- Laboratory for Soil and Groundwater, Section Information Systems
- National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection
-
hans.nijland@rivm.nl
- Tel +31 30 2743626
- Fax +31 30 2744427
-home-page
Page revised1 June 1997