Noise Pollution in San Francisco is A Health Risk, Study Shows
A new study shows that noise pollution on the streets of San Francisco is putting nearly one in six residents at risk for heart disease, high blood pressure and other stress-related illnesses.
"The San Francisco Department of Public Health has ranked "highly annoyed" areas of the city - neighborhoods it says have noise so loud and so constant it could cause psychological and physical harm.
"There are real health impacts," Tom Rivard, senior environmental health specialist for the Department of Public Health, said Tuesday.
The assessment by the city and UC Berkeley researchers was based on population, traffic congestion, topography and decibel readings. Sophisticated three-dimensional maps pinpoint the noisiest areas of San Francisco, building by building, hour by hour.
Traffic noise is loudest in the South of Market area but affects the most people in the densely populated Chinatown, Civic Center and Tenderloin neighborhoods."
This video captures the standard noise level of a San Francisco street:
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