Reyansh Kukreja
Independent Researcher
India
Abstract
The rapid growth of urban environments has intensified exposure to environmental noise, leading to adverse health effects and diminished quality of life. Noise mapping offers a spatially explicit approach to assess, visualize, and manage urban soundscapes. This study presents a GIS-based workflow for generating high-resolution noise maps in a medium-sized city using technologies and data available up to 2015. We integrate field measurements, land-use data, road traffic parameters, and meteorological inputs within ArcGIS 10.2.2 to model noise propagation. Our methodology employs the Common Noise Assessment Methods in Europe (CNOSSOS-EU) algorithm for sound emission and attenuation, supplemented by Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) interpolation for spatial smoothing. Statistical analysis of measured versus predicted levels reveals a mean error of ±2.3 dB(A). Simulation research examines diurnal variations under peak and off-peak traffic scenarios, demonstrating model sensitivity to traffic volume and meteorological factors. Five research objectives guide the study, focusing on data integration, methodological validation, and policy implications. Results inform urban planners on critical noise hotspots and timing for mitigation measures. The study concludes with recommendations for municipal noise management programs and outlines avenues for future research within the constraints of pre-2015 GIS capabilities.
Keywords
Noise mapping, GIS, CNOSSOS-EU, Inverse Distance Weighting, urban soundscape
References
- Brink, M., Forssén, J., et al. (2011). Development of CNOSSOS-EU: A common noise assessment method for Europe. Applied Acoustics, 72(8), 459–466.
- Kang, J., & Sinha, A. (2009). Spatial interpolation of noise levels: A comparative study of IDW and Kriging in ArcGIS. Noise Control Engineering Journal, 57(1), 12–22.
- Kryter, K. D. (1994). The Handbook of Hearing and the Effects of Noise. Academic Press.
- Li, X., & Lam, K. (2014). Modelling urban noise with LiDAR-derived building data in ArcGIS. International Journal of Geographical Information Science, 28(3), 525–544.
- Southampton, P., Richards, D., & Turner, S. (2012). Assessing interpolation methods for urban noise mapping. Journal of Environmental Monitoring, 14(10), 2832–2841.
- World Health Organization. (1999). Guidelines for Community Noise. WHO.
- European Parliament. (2002). Directive 2002/49/EC relating to the assessment and management of environmental noise. Official Journal of the European Communities.
- Salomons, E. M. (2001). Computational acoustic propagation using ray tracing and diffusion theory. Journal of Sound and Vibration, 243(3), 455–476.
- Stoter, J., Zlatanova, S., & Vosselman, G. (2004). 3D GIS applications in noise mapping: Integration of sound propagation models and 3D city models. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 28(6), 491–505.
