Rio de Janeiro noise mapping during the COVID-19 pandemic period

Abstract

This paper presents a comparison between the acoustic scenario at the Rio de Janeiro city center, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Undergoing one of the most important pandemics of the recent history, the social isolation led to a new acoustic scenario for Rio de Janeiro. The study was realized at the city center, an area of historical, economic and cultural relevance. The comparison consisted of analyzing measured data and noise maps produced for the city center area. The maps were created according to measured and collected data of the respective time periods. The acoustic scenario prior to the pandemic time was reconstructed based on previous measurements and data collection, while the pandemic one was built with data survey during the highest social isolation index on July 2020. The comparative analysis showed a considerable noise reduction, between 10 and 15 dB, for areas where the traffic noise was not intense and where the human activities were predominant on the streets. However, there was no substantial noise decrease for the areas around the major avenues. This occurred due to the traffic intensity drop to 50% during the pandemic, which meant a noise reduction between 3 and 5 dB.

Sustainable development goals under threat? Multidimensional impact of COVID-19 on our planet and society outweigh short term global pollution reduction

“…Noise levels in three Boston, USA, urban protected areas were measured before, during, and after emerging from COVID-19 lockdown, which revealed lower noise levels occurred at two of the parks due to less traffic ( Terry et al, 2021 ). Similar declines in urban noise levels have been reported in various locations globally, for example, in Stockholm, Sweden ( Rumpler et al, 2020 ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ( Gevú et al, 2021 ), and Barcelona, Spain ( Bonet-Solà et al, 2021 ). COVID-19 also leads to months-long reduction in seismic noise, providing a valuable window for researchers to detect subtle signals from subsurface seismic sources and make benchmark limits of anthropogenic sounds ( Lecocq et al, 2020 ).…”

Multidimensional analyses of the noise impacts of COVID-19 lockdown

“…The London study showed that active areas were affected the most, followed by traffic-dominated areas and quiet areas. Similar trends were found in Madrid, although less pronounced (Asensio, Pavón, and de Arcas, 2020) or into the Brazilian study (Gevú, Carvalho, Fagerlande, Niemeyer, Cortês, and Torres, 2021), which complements its measurements with modeling approach. These slight discrepancies between the two studies may be due to a different classification between the site categories.…”

“…First, cities equipped with noise measurement networks, capturing continuous noise levels, have been quick to consistently point out the drop in the noise levels. An equivalent sound level reduction of about 4–7 dB(A) has been reported, on average, in Rio ( Gevú et al , 2021 ), Montreal ( Steele and Guastavino, 2021 ), Lyon ( Munoz et al , 2020 ), Madrid ( Asensio et al , 2020b ), Milan ( Zambon et al , 2021 ), Girona ( Alsina-Pagès et al , 2021 ), or Paris ( Bruitparif, 2020 ) based on 21 to more than 100 fixed sensors. Numerous short-term measurements were performed in London in Aletta et al (2020) through a series a 30-s binaural recordings pre-lockdown and during the lockdown (481 samples) at 11 locations, which highlighted a similar tendency.…”

Seeking the Nexus Between Building Acoustics and Urban Form: A Systematic Review

“…The findings call attentions on massive noise exposure near transportation-related communities. Gevú et al [ 29 ] compared noise level in pre- and during the COVID-19 pandemic and related comparative factors in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and compromised several noise maps based on the noise datasets and related variables. The study found a ten dBA reduction during the COVID-19 period, with the building height as a variable in noise level reduction.…”