ENVIROMENTAL ASPECTS OF NOISE ASSESSMENT AND REGULATION IN THE DESIGN OF PORT COMPLEXES IN RUSSIA

A comparative analysis of various biological objects sensitivity to acoustic effects is being conducted. For many animal species, the frequency range at which sounds are heard is very different from that for humans and may not even intersect with it. The total frequency range at which various animals can hear covers at least eight orders of magnitude (from hundredths of Hz to hundreds of kHz), while for humans this interval is limited to only four orders of magnitude. Thus, the existing anthropocentric standards for permissible noise levels are unsuitable for regulating their impacts on natural ecosystems and it is necessary to develop standards for sound pressure levels in the entire specified frequency range that are acceptable for the most sensitive recipients. For terrestrial and riparian ecosystems and protected areas, natural test subjects are birds, for which noise levels of 35-40 dBA do not cause pathological changes in behavior and physiological processes. This level can tentatively be considered as maximum permissible for man-made noise and for the noise of ports in particular. More reliable results will be given by regulating the permissible sound pressure levels in the entire frequency range based on reactions of the most sensitive recipients in each octave.