Residents of Taipei and Kaohsiung can now find out online how the noise level around their homes compares with other areas of the city, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) yesterday said.
The noise tracking is done using Lima, a software package that color-codes and graphs the noise distribution in metropolitan areas, the administration's department of air quality protection and noise control specialist, Chou Li-chung (
"It is becoming popular internationally to track noise levels using computer simulations," Chou said.
"In 2002 the EU mandated the monitoring of noise levels to improve the living quality in metropolitan areas," he said, adding that London, Paris and Madrid have already posted their noise distribution graphs online.
So far, the EPA has completed its noise graphing in 25km2 of Taipei City and 122km2 of southern Kaohsiung City, Chou said, adding that Taipei was found to be quieter than Kaohsiung.
"Around major highways the noise level is between 70 decibels to 85 decibels for both cities. However, around residential or office buildings, Taipei's noise level is 46 to 60 decibels, whereas Kaohsiung's is 50 to 65 decibels," he said.
The administration is working on completing the graphs for both cities as "the graphs can help improve a city's living quality in two ways," Chou said.
"While they help the EPA and Ministry of Transportation and Communications establish suitable speed limits and determine places to install soundproofing devices, they also offer helpful information to home buyers," Chou said.
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