Assessment of Community Noise at Residential Areas in the Vicinity of Penang International Airport.

Community noise is an environmental problem to a community due to development process, transportation noises and even community activities. In the vicinity of Penang International Airport, another aspect of community noise source in the shape of aircraft is exposed to the society. Different areas in a community may have different limit of noise exposure depending on their characteristics. This study will contribute to assessment of selected residential area in developing a more sustainable city in the aspect of noise pollution. There are four sampling locations comprising of residential area. All these locations are located within 3.0km radius from the center of the Penang International Airport runway. The LAeq values obtained are analyzed descriptively and statistically. Comparison with the Planning and Guidelines for Noise and Limits Control produced by Department of Environmental Malaysia (DOE) were made. The road vehicles and aircrafts are distinguished as the most significant sources of noise for the community close to the airport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]