The project entitled “UNderwater Acoustic Calibration standards for frequencies beLOW 1 kHz” (“UNAC-LOW”), currently active within the European Metrology Programme for Innovation and Research (EMPIR), is presented by describing its objectives and current activities. The project aims at developing the metrological capacity of the European Union (EU) for the calibration of hydrophones and autonomous recording systems for the frequency range between 20 Hz and 1 kHz, for which traceability is presently not fully available. In this way, EU metrological capacities for absolute measurement of underwater sound will be improved, with a direct effect on the implementation of regulation and EU Directives that require underwater acoustic measurements to be traceable. After having completed the initial project tasks regarding the review of existing methods and the design of the experimental setups, comparison measurements between the project partners are currently under way and their results will be validated and presented upon project end after first quarter of 2019. To ensure long-term operation of the calibration capabilities by each partner, a coherent EU metrology strategy for underwater acoustics will be developed as one of the main project outcomes. Current activities include the implementation of the calibration setups developed in earlier stages of the project for both hydrophones and autonomous recorders. The methods that shall be used for hydrophones are the pressure method in a closed chamber and the standing wave tube method. For autonomous recorders, in addition to the above methods, calibrations will be performed using free-field methods in different open-water test sites possessing suitable characteristics for low frequency measurements.

The introduction of Low Emission Zones, urban areas subject to road traffic restrictions in order to ensure compliance with the air pollutants limit values set by the European Directive on ambient air quality (2008/50/EC), is a common and well-established action in the administrative government of cities. The impacts on air quality improvement are widely analysed, whereas the effects and benefits concerning the noise have not been addressed in a comprehensive manner. As a consequence, the definition, the criteria for the analysis and the management methods of a Noise Low Emission Zone are not clearly expressed and shared yet. The LIFE MONZA project (Methodologies fOr Noise low emission Zones introduction And management - LIFE15 ENV/IT/000586) addresses these issues. The first objective of the project, co-funded by the European Commission, is to introduce an easy-replicable method for the identification and the management of the Noise Low Emission Zone, an urban area subject to traffic restrictions, whose impacts and benefits regarding noise issues will be analyzed and tested in the pilot area of the city of Monza, located in Northern Italy. Background conditions, structure, objectives of the project and actions’ progress will be discussed in this article.

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Acoustics 08 Paris 5217The acoustic environment inside a canteen is an important feature to guarantee speech intelligibility and speech privacy, as well as to reduce the exposure levels. Unfortunately this aspect is not always properly taken into account as others, like cleanliness. This paper describes the case-study of the canteen at the National Agency for Environmental Protection (APAT), having a capacity of 220 seats. The acoustic environment has been characterized by measuring the main acoustic descriptors for speech intelligibility (Reverberation Time, STI, C80 and D50) and evaluating the noise exposure levels for the users. The comparison of the results with the recommended values showed a bad situation, especially in the speech frequency range, which requires acoustic corrections to improve the quality of the acoustic environment. To identify these corrections a numerical model of room acoustics, implemented on a commercial software, has been used to evaluate the effects produced by different corrections. The proposed correction improves the acoustic performances up to a good level, without modifying the structural parts and existing walls. Moreover, the solution allows to maintain the hall's usability without obstructing users mobility, screening natural lighting and reducing number of seats.

The Italian legislation regarding acoustic pollution is slowly going to be completed with the issue of all decrees in application of the framework law of 26th October no. 447/95. One of these decrees refers to the noise pollution produced by harbor infrastructures. There is little national and international information regarding this argument, above all because such infrastructures are highly complex, characterized by many acoustically different variables, represented by the single activities that are present in the infrastructure during the daily work. For this study seven Italian harbors were chosen, six marine and one lacustrine. For the choice of the harbors several criteria were used based on importance, territorial characteristic (e.g., characteristic of the harbor area, distance from inhabited areas), and presence of other activities (commercial, tourist and industrial). The first step of the work was the location of adequate cartography of the different noise sources present in the harbors and of the mainly exposed receivers. In a second time some measurements of noise were executed outside the harbor, in correspondence to the perimeter and at different distances along a determined directrix, and near the receivers mainly exposed. The results are presented in the present document.