The University of California Berkeley recently tweeted out a study done by their researchers that in sum, stated that noise pollution is inherently racist.
Stating that a phenomenon known as “noise pollution is more prevalent in segregated, or majority black cities,” this is the first study done in which racial and ethnic disparities are being correlated with that of noise exposure.
Researchers from UC Berkeley examined 13 years of data accumulated from extensive analysis of race and noise frequencies in numerous regions across the country. The study found that highly impoverished communities, those with low education, and most notably communities of color experienced higher noise levels.
According to the study, there appears to be a solid interrelationship between race and noise levels. The study focused its attention specifically on five racial and ethnic demographics in the U.S.: Asians, blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Non-hispanic Whites. The examination observed that noise-pollution has a tendency to be higher as the rate of white occupants in the vicinity decreases.
Evidently, as the percentage of Asian, black, or Hispanic residents increase, noise levels during the day and night in their respective communities increase as well.
One of the contributing authors of the study, Berkeley Professor Rachel Morello-Frosch, stated “This is yet another study that shows that communities of color bear a disproportionate burden of pollution… I think that the innovative piece about this work is that we also show that social inequality, or segregation, makes things worse for everybody.”
The study concluded that neighborhoods inhabited by at least 75 percent black residents experienced on average noise levels that were 4 decibels higher than communities without any black residents. Among all the racial/ethnic groups studied, the disparity concerning noise levels between black and white localities were greatest.
According to Joan Casey, a postdoctoral scholar at the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, “We’ve known that poor communities and communities of color are likely more exposed to toxic landfills and air pollution, but until now we really have not heard much about noise pollution.” Casey added that “The consistent disparities in noise pollution across domains in our study surprised us.”
