Implementation of EU Noise Policy in the Member States

28 Aug 2004

All 25 Member States of the European Union have to ratify and implement the EUs Assessment & Management of Environmental Noise Directive 2002/49/EC. The first implementation deadline for Member States was 18th July 2004. What has happened in the Member States regarding implementation in legislation, and regarding mapping and action-planning activities? And what of pan-European methodological activities such as strategic mapping guidelines and calculation methods? This article gives the status at the time of writing (end of August).

Implementation in National Legislation

While the 15 member states in the European Union as of 2002 have to ratify and implement the directive according to a number of deadlines (see table), the 10 new member states also have to comply with this, and other directives over a specified period.

This involves the adaptation of existing legislation and the introduction of new at state, region and local levels and in several different authorities (environment, transport, industry, health, etc.). The first major deadline has passed and most Member States have not fully complied with the July 2004 deadline for transposition of the directive into national legislation, appointment of responsible bodies for strategic noise mapping and for action planning, identification of agglomerations covered by the directive, and for the identification of interim methods. However, key national experts of several large Member States such as France, Germany and the UK have declared that they expect to complete the task by the end of 2004. One example of how it is actually implemented can be found in Denmark where the authorities have proposed an extension of the possibilities offered by the directive beyond its scope to cover a larger number of smaller urban areas in separate administrative entities, so that most of the country will actually be covered.

Member States must also define the noise calculation methods to be used for the first noise maps. Some, like France and Denmark, plan to use national methods adapted to the requirements of the directive. Others, in particular those without existing national methods, are planning or have chosen the interim methods, adapted in accordance with the European Commission recommendation 2003/613/EC. This document includes general changes and specific changes to all four interim computation methods for strategic noise mapping.

Mapping

According to a report commissioned by the European Commissions AEN Working Group, most Member States already have some experience in noise mapping. The work needed to create directive-compliant maps has started across Member States, new and old, partly through national projects such as that in the UK, which in 2002, began work on mapping of road-traffic noise across England through a government led and funded project. Other projects include local and national pilot studies, as well as projects to test and qualify mapping tools such as calculation software. Some countries are, particularly for urban mapping, investigating the combination of noise measurements with calculations in order to assist in the verification of local input data, in particular where input data is deemed scanty or inaccurate. Maps are expected to be finished ahead of the EU deadline, allowing time to completely fulfil the requirements in the directive.

Action planning

Historically, in Europe, action plans are not as widespread or detailed as noise maps. It is the authors impression that there is less activity regarding action planning than for noise mapping, and that this is due to three primary reasons:

• The later deadline for this activity
• The need for the noise maps to identify the benefits of different actions, alone or in combination, in order to efficiently make noise policy
• Responsible authorities for noise mapping and action planning are not yet assigned and approved in most Member States (see above regarding compliance with deadlines)

However, some authorities are already producing consultative drafts or have new or existing noise policies that form the basis for their legislation. The following gives some examples:

• In the UK, the Greater London Authority has just published its ambient noise strategy after review and feedback from interested parties, including the general public via a consultation questionnaire. Out of 97 proposals for technological, financial and administrative actions, three key issues have been identified:
  - Securing good, noise-reducing surfaces for transport for Londons roads
  - Securing a night-time aircraft ban across London
  - Reducing noise through better planning and design of new housing
• Last year, in Spain, the Municipality of Madrid published its General Rules for Urban Environmental Protection that include a large section on noise policy.

Strategic Mapping Guidelines

In December 2003, the European Commission Working Group Assessment of Exposure to Noise (WG-AEN) produced a Position Paper entitled the Good Practice Guide for Strategic Noise Mapping and the Production of Associated Data on Noise Exposure. This useful document describes general issues and specific technical challenges raised by the directive covering both strategic noise maps and mapping, and the creation of action plans. It provides 16 so-called Toolkits of solutions relating to specific challenges (for example, the determination of traffic flow data). These Toolkits describe procedures (tools) that have been evaluated in relation to cost, accuracy and complexity and presented using a simple pictogram code. Invitations for comments, feedback and suggestions for improvement are included in the document and a new, improved version is expected at the start of 2005. However, even this Version 1 can be recommended.

Pan-European Calculation Methods

One important project is the Harmonoise project to develop a new, common, pan-European noise-mapping calculation method. The first edition of this is planned for the end of 2004 and will cover road and rail noise. The first noise maps due in 2007 are to be made according to interim methods. The Directive gives the European Commission the right to implement a common pan-European calculation method for the 2012 round of mapping.

By the end of 2004, Harmonoise will develop an engineering method for use in strategic noise mapping, smaller scale environmental noise assessment and action planning, and in detailed studies, depending on the detail of the data input into the model. This should be able to calculate large models with accuracies of within 1 dB(A) standard deviation up to 100 m, within 2 dB(A) up to 2000 m on flat terrain, and within 5 dB(A) behind hills and urban situations. Acceptance of Harmonoise by the end users is a core objective requiring it to:

• Have a suitable level of complexity for the task in hand
• Avoid the need for data that is very difficult or very expensive to obtain
• Show the noise-reduction potential of all measures considered in action plans
• Be algorithm-friendly
• Be suitable for developing computationally efficient techniques

Another, follow-up method is Imagine. This adds industrial and aircraft noise to the Harmonoise propagation method, enabling it to be a true, all-purpose, strategic mapping and action-planning method for all of Europe. Guidelines on use of the Harmonoise methods in practice and on the use of measurements in noise mapping are also to be developed before the project finishes in 2 years time.

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