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FEATURE: Cairo residents at risk from noise pollution: studies

Cars stuck in a traffic jam in Cairo on Sept. 10. A permanent cacophony in Cairo, already suffering from a record-high air pollution, makes it one of the world's most unbearably noisy cities, studies show. PHOTO: AFP

From blaring car horns to wedding parties, rising noise pollution in the 24-hour metropolis of Cairo has reached alarming levels, leading to hearing problems, irritability and even death.

Living in the city center, where noise levels reach an average of 90 decibels (dB) and never drop below 70dB, is like spending all day inside a factory, a study by the Egyptian National Research Center (NRC) last year said.

"What's striking about Cairo is that noise levels on different streets at different times of day are well over limits set by the environmental protection agency [EPA]," the NRC's Mustafa Ali Shafiye said.

"In downtown, noise levels may attain 90dB at 7:30am, bearing in mind that the normally acceptable level set by the EPA is 35-55 dB," he said.

In December, the respected New Scientist magazine said that "noise kills in much the same way as chronic stress does."

It causes "an accumulation of stress hormones, inflammation and changes in body chemistry that eventually lead to problems such as impaired blood circulation and heart attacks," the magazine said.

Mohammed el-Shazly, an ear specialist at Cairo University, said: "The noise in Cairo is exceptional -- it cannot be compared to any other Arab city."

"What is special about Cairo is that industrial zones and residential areas are not separated. People like policemen who are permanently on the street can be severely affected," he said.

People start to lose their hearing gradually, he said, and once that happens the only cure is to get a hearing aid.

"Car horns, loud music, shouting, aging engines and the occasional party can lead to a series of health problems including hypertension, hearing loss, cardiovascular effects and general irritability" said Nagat Amer, an environmental health specialist at the NRC.

"Noise severely affects pregnant women who are permanently exposed to it. It causes retraction in blood vessels and they give birth to small babies," she said.

"The cost of this is enormous: We can count non-concentration at work, absenteeism, accidents, handicaps," she said. "Protecting ourselves from noise is much less expensive than what it may cost later."

The WHO, which considers noise pollution to be the world's third-worst after polluted air and water, has said that exposure for more than eight hours a day to sound in excess of 85db is potentially hazardous.

The ministries of health and environment are planning to establish a national network for monitoring noise levels in Egypt, but no date has yet been fixed for it to begin gathering data.

A 1994 law laying down legal ambient noise limits is largely ignored. Under this law, levels should not exceed 52db during the day, 37db at night and a very loud 90db in industrial areas such as factories.

With Cairo's population continually expanding and no official solution within earshot, tens of thousands of people are fleeing to quieter and less-polluted suburbs.

"I used to hear car horns, shops opening and closing, people shouting," said Dina Kozman, a housewife who left the city center three years ago for a residential compound. "Traffic makes noise and noise makes stress. It's a vicious circle."
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