Just a very appreciative Shout-Out from Quieter O'ahu to the kind folks at Aloha Estate Jewelry (http://www.alohaestatejewelry.com) for their very kind donation. 100% of their donation will go directly to defraying operational costs such as licenses, hosting fees, mailings, handouts, etc.
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Comment:
Dear Quieter Oahu, I applaud your work on Quieter Oahu. Also I would like to bring to your attention inaudible noise which can be much more dangerous to health. Unfortunately most people are not aware. On 2009 our legislators revised the noise law and require noise enforcer utilize both dB(A) and dB(C) filters to measure noise. Both measurements shall not be over 50dB during the nighttime. The law makers understood the nature of the noise: inaudible, low-frequency, vibrating subjects, travelling through thick walls, causing adverse health effects. This kind of noise is similar to the noise generated by wind turbines which drives people to abandon their homes. A few weeks ago a Honolulu noise control official performed a noise measurement in my home located in the Ala Moana area and found 54 dB(A) and 64 dB(C), 14dB above safe level. However the officer said there is nothing he can do to bring the noise down to the safe level. I would appreciate if you help to investigate into the matter and bring this awareness to the general public. Truly yours, Quieter O'ahu Response: Aloha, We are aware of the dangers to health of inaudible noise, although many are not, and appreciate your taking the time to drop us your email as a reminder. We are happy to publish your email in full on our Noise Blog, and will also provide a reference to our website where we discuss different ways of measuring noise, including the dB(c) measurements, and their meaning. Please let us know if we can help in any other way. Mahalo, Quieter O'ahu Our Quieter O'ahu web page discussing how noise is measured can be found here. Please explore our website for other relevant information on the nature of noise and its effects on health. https://www.quieteroahu.com/measuring-noise.html About Steve Lohse: Steve Lohse is an environmental scientist with a background in political science, biology, and business. He is a 20-year resident of Chinatown, a co-founder in 2006 of the Chinatown Gateway Plaza Tenant Association (CGPTA), and an advocate for grassroots social-economic-environmental sustainability. He is overly fond of saying, “Think Whole” and “Respect Cause and Effect.” We are pleased to print his letter to Civil Beat in full. Comment
Besides the motorcycles, mopeds, and loud muffled cars, one very irritating noise are the emergency vehicles. It seems they have boosted their sirens to extremely loud levels. On the street I have to cover my ears as the level of noise from these vehicles is outrages. I understand that they have to get sound out because most people have their windows rolled up, A/C on, and radios up loud, but there has to be a better way. Here in the Hobron Corridor we can hear the vehicles before they even cross the bridge from Ala Moana Park area. Can't something be done about this? Quieter O'ahu Response: Thank you for your email. You are not alone. This is a hot topic for the Waikiki Neighborhood Board and you may want to attend their monthly meetings and share your own thoughts with like-minded people in attendance. Too, check out our Noise Blog for past postings we have made about this subject. I think you will find them informational and useful. For your info, here is the schedule for the Waikiki Neighborhood Board meetings: -Waikiki Neighborhood Board No. 9 -Meets 2d Tuesday of each month -Meets at Waikiki Community Center, 310 Paoakalani Avenue at 7:00pm We have added you to our email distribution list. Mahalo, Quieter O'ahu Comment:
[There seeming are many] relatively new flight patterns over Oahu - all small aircraft and helos now fly over our house separated by minutes. [We live in Manoa.] [How do I file a complaint about this and is there a group I can join] to fight and get pattern changed? Quieter O'ahu Response: Thank you for you email. We hear often from impassioned residents as yourself about the growing assault on our quality of life by low flying aircraft, and tour helicopters in particular. We've added you to distribution for our aperiodic emails on noise and related issues. But to your specific issue, let me point you to our website at this address: https://www.quieteroahu.com/reporting-noise-violations.html At that link you will find a link to the current O'ahu Noise Reference Manual. While inadequate in terms of explaining how to take action on aircraft issues, it at least provides contact information and explains the current process. Too, at the bottom of our linked page, you'll find info on a relatively new organization, Airnoise.io who has begun a program of identifying sources of aircraft noise and reporting them to the FAA. Problem: they do not at this time cover O'ahu. We recommend that you might want to engage with Airnoise.io and encourage them to extend their current program to cover O'ahu due to the many problems residents are experiencing with aircraft noise in our congested and already noisy environment. One more voice could be the tipping point. Thank you again for your email. Without referencing your personal information we will post to our Noise Blog for the benefit of other visitors to our site. Mahalo, Quieter O'ahu Comment:
A Telling Comment To A Vintage Post - "How Do Loud Motorcycle Mufflers Pass Safety Inspection ???10/31/2019 Quieter O'ahu Commentary:
Waaaaaay back in October, 2016 one of our site visitors submitted the question How do loud motorcycle mufflers pass safety inspection ???. Well, it seems we're getting our message across as we just today received a new comment on that post, and here it is: From: LOUDER OAHU "If it bothers you so much that a motorcycle is loud. Well then simple answer is leave! Thanks again for visiting hope to see you soon" So there you have it, O'ahu. From a probable motorcycle rider. If you don't like their noise, leave O'ahu. You see, you have no rights. The only rights are their rights. So motorcycle noise disrupts your tranquility. Too bad. LEAVE! So motorcycle noise disrupts your quality of life. Too bad. LEAVE! So it affects your health, as we know from a United Nations study that it does. Too bad. LEAVE! Everyone should share this with their council-person, neighborhood board, and legislator and double-down on our demand for greater enforcement by HPD of existing noise ordinances and statues, and illegally modified motorcycle exhausts noise in particular. Quieter O'ahu Comment:
I attempted to report helicopter noise using the address you listed. It indicates that they do not deal with the Honolulu airport. I have written numerous letters regarding the explosion of helicopters in our area. If you have any ideas as to where I should concentrate my efforts, I would appreciate your input. Mahalo Quieter O'ahu Response: Aloha, Yes. Regrettably they are not yet providing coverage of Hawaii air traffic. Being said, they have indicated that should sufficient interest be shown they will attempt to extend coverage to our area so we continue to provide the link. You can find a copy of the most recent (2017) version of the O'ahu Noise Reference Manual at this link: https://www.quieteroahu.com/reporting-noise-violations.html At page 6 are phone numbers for Federal and State reporting of aircraft issues. At the Federal level they only accept complaints related to flight safety, such as low-flying helicopters and small aircraft. The state and airport operations numbers accept reports of general issues. The "explosion" of helicopters, primarily those transporting tourists, is a complaint we hear often. It is also a subject being addressed by many of our Neighborhood Boards so please consider expressing your concerns at your Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board meetings. Another option is to email your Board's subdistrict representative for your area. Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board Members and their subdistricts can be found at this link: https://www.honolulu.gov/cms-nco-menu/site-nco-featured/191-site-nco-cat/682-test.html#NB01 Hawaii Kai Boundary maps showing each subdistrict for Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board can be found at this link: https://www.honolulu.gov/rep/site/nco/maps/01_Hawaii_Kai.jpg Hope this helps. We have added you to distribution for our aperiodic emails on noise and related issues. Mahalo, Quieter O'ahu
Vehicle Backup Alarm System Noise - Subscriber Wants To Join With Others to Effect Change!!7/12/2019 Quieter O'ahu Commentary:
One of our subscribers has taken-on the issue of mitigating noisy, obtrusive, and offensive vehicle back-up alarm systems. Certainly a worthwhile goal. He is looking for other subscribers who may be interested in joining together in lobbying for change - perhaps by eliminating these alarms all-together in favor of a different technology, or mitigating the noise by changing to a tone/pattern less disruptive to quality of life. If you're interested in this, please use our contact form to let us know. we'll provide exchange of contact information so that two, three, or more can get together to research and make a difference. Mahalo, Quieter O'ahu |
