Joint press release on the Day of Noise

"At least one in five people suffers from noise," reported the Tagesschau on March 5, 2020 with reference to a new study by the EU Environment Agency. The study goes on to say that millions of people suffer from noise from cars, airplanes and industrial plants. And it will not get any quieter in Europe in the future either. The biggest source of noise, both during the day and at night, is road traffic. "Four million people suffer from aircraft noise. Especially in our region," emphasize the BIL representatives.

Noise is not only about the health consequences, but also about the quality of life, the adverse effects on the learning situation of schoolchildren, as the 2015 NORAH study in the vicinity of Frankfurt Airport showed, or the time spent outdoors, which many people find unpleasant.

The main source of pollution identified by the EU Environment Agency varies from region to region and from city to city. In Offenbach, road traffic and air traffic are of particular importance. In the center of Offenbach, railroad noise is an additional factor.

The City of Offenbach and other municipalities in the Rhine-Main region, environmental organizations and citizens' initiatives are committed to improving the noise pollution situation. The keywords here are: Traffic turnaround and speed reductions, noise protection measures, improvements in public transport, expansion of cycle path networks and their improvement.

Air traffic has fallen by 80 to 90 percent in recent weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic. "No one would wish for such occasions to reduce noise, especially as thousands of employees in the associated industries are worried about their jobs or have already lost their jobs," says city councillor Paul-Gerhard Weiß.

However, Weiß suggests that the current situation could be used to test or implement active noise protection measures through gentle flight procedures, which were supposedly not feasible until now due to the high volume of traffic. In this way, it could also become permanently quieter over Offenbach in the period after the coronavirus crisis. Nobody currently knows what will happen in the post-corona period. If the growth in air traffic continues at the same rate as before, it will be necessary to restrict aircraft movements until noise pollution is actually reduced. Putting off quieter generations of aircraft is unreasonable, as it will take decades to replace the aircraft fleets. In this case, the so-called noise cap set by the state of Hesse and the aviation industry is still facing a test. An extension of the night flight restrictions will then also be part of the catalog of active noise protection required.

BIL points out that even before the collapse in air traffic in March, the volume could still have been handled without the Northwest runway, which opened in October 2011. An additional runway that covered Offenbach with a blanket of noise.

In order to reduce noise in Offenbach, the commitment of the City of Offenbach, political parties, environmental groups, citizens' initiatives and citizens is still required in the interests of health and quality of life.