AYOOLA Abayomi Razzaq

This paper reports a scientific-assessment of the exposure-levels of aircraft noise-hazards suffered by persons living/working within the neighbourhoods of four Airports [Ibadan, Benin-City, Warri and Owerri] in Nigeria. Physical measurements of selected aircraft and environmental noise parameters [Ambient Noise Level (ANL), Sound Pressure Level (SPL), Aircraft Takeoff Noise-level (ATNL) and Aircraft Landing Noise-level (ALNL)]; were carried-out using the integrated CR811C Noise meter, during one hundred and twenty (120) periodic noise sampling-surveys; performed [from January to December 2017] at thirty (30) randomly-selected study-locations, within the vicinity of each of these four(4) airports in accordance with the Method/Standard-procedures specified by the International Standards Organisation's (ISO) relevant standards-ISO 3891, ISO 1996-1 and ISO 1996-2. The results showed that: while SPL ranged from 103-115 () dB A , ANL ranged from 52.3-64.1 () dB A , the ATNL ranged from 69.6-87.7 () dB A , and ALNL ranged from 66.2-82.7 () dB A. Actually, these results are alarming, since they significantly exceed the WHO Standard Recommended Maximum Noise-levels of: 35 () dB A [Indoor], 55 () dB A [Outdoor] to prevent Speech-intelligibility, Noise-annoyance & Sleep-disturbance; and 90 () dB A [being the Permissible Noise level/limit for 8hour daytime safe human exposure]. These and the results of the Statistical analysis (Wilcoxon Sign Rank Test) carried-out, clearly prove the existence of a generally ignored, but yet dangerous problem of continuous human-exposure to excessively high-levels of Aircraft noise-hazards to which residents of Airports' neighborhoods are subjected.