A quarter cities in China sleep in noise

A photo shows the noise detected at the downtown of Southwest China's Chongqing,May 4, 2010. [Photo/IC]

Leading environmental authorities in China have released a new report suggesting a quarter of all of China's cities are living with excess levels of noise.

"It means a quarter cities go to sleep in noise," said an official of the environmental ministry, "And the lack of clear definitions about who should be responsible within the government is making it harder to solve the problem."

Environmental, cultural, traffic, industry and commerce departments, as well as urban inspectors and local police all have the power to control noise. But when confronted with a specific problem, it remains unclear which department has jursidiction.

"As such, the top priority is to distinguish who has the responsibility," says an environment official from the southern province of Hainan.

A university lecturer in Hainan surnamed Duan has complained that people's laughter, as well as noise during nights from outdoor barbecue restaurants, continually affect her sleep. She's even installed sound-proof glass, which she says has done little to help.

Another resident surnamed Wang in Hainan's capital, Haikou, says he's called the Mayor's hotline to complain about a construction project that has bothered his sleep, but says he was told the project was urgent, and couldn't be stopped.

Stats from the central authorities shows 354,000 complains were received about noise nationwide in 2015, making up 35.3% of all environmental complains through the year.

Construction noise was the biggest complaint, with just over half, 50.1%, of all complaints connected to construction. Noise from industrial companies made up 16.9%. 21% of the complaints related to human-generated noise, while the remaining 12% related to vehicle traffic.

In 2015, 59.3% of all noise complains received occurred in eastern China, 11.7% in the west, 22.2% in the central region and 6.8% in the northeast.

The World Health Organiztion estimates noise has become another environmental factor affecting human health, which it warns could result in increased mental health issues and coronary disease.