Noise Mapping and Impact of Land Use Land Cover on Urban Soundscape

Abstract

Noise pollution is the occurrence of undesired or disruptive sound within the environment, which hampers regular activities and has a detrimental impact on quality of life. This study presents a comprehensive monitoring and geospatial analysis of urban noise pollution in Nagpur city for working and non-working days. The noise assessment includes uniformly distributed noise generating sources (highway, railway, major and minor roads) and receptors (residential, silence, commercial and industrial) considering land use land cover pattern of the city. Noise mapping was performed on GIS platform based on the various indices for identification of hotspots during day and night time. The findings indicate higher annoyance levels during day time of working day, particularly in residential and silence zones as well as along the highways and railways. The study underscores the need for the establishment of noise limits for mixed land-use patterns and strategic noise mapping with mitigation measures for viable city planning and management.