“Noise is not just annoying. It’s a matter of public health”
It is with the greatest sadness that we report the passing of Dr. Arline Bronzaft, long time environmental psychologist at City University of New York, and the person who can rightly be called the founding mother of research into the public health effects of noise.
We all agree that noise is highly ‘annoying’. But using the word ‘annoyance’ to describe its effects always signaled to people that it did not rise to the same level of concern as other forms of pollution.
Dr. Bronzaft’s pioneering 1975 study clearly demonstrated that excessive noise was detrimental to student performance. This now seems obvious: you cannot learn (or think clearly) in a noisy environment!
The Effect of Elevated Train Noise On Reading Ability
Her work led directly to the famous 1997 Cornell Study, establishing even stronger links for children exposed to aircraft noise.
For decades after, she continued to research noise and advocate on to the importance of quiet for everyone.
Here is a podcast interview she did last year with the American Psychological Association which we think you’ll appreciate. Feisty to the end, she correctly points out that, while noise regulation by the EPA was essentially squashed in the Reagan administration, there was nothing preventing any subsequent administration from taking up the cause.
Over the years we’ve had the honor of speaking the Dr. Bronzaft several times. Her energy and passion were important factors in our deciding to create STNI and to continue advocating for better sound insulation and quieter airport communities.