Specific environment |
Critical health effect(s) |
Leq [dBA] |
Time base [hours] |
Lmax, fast [dBA] |
|
Outdoor living area |
Serious annoyance, daytime and evening |
55 |
16 |
- |
|
Moderate annoyance, daytime and evening |
50 |
16 |
- |
|
|
Dwelling, indoors |
Speech comprehension and moderate annoyance, daytime and evening |
35 |
16 |
45 |
|
Inside bedrooms |
Sleep disturbance, night-time |
30 |
8 |
45 |
|
Outside bedrooms |
Sleep disturbance, window open (outdoor values) |
45 |
8 |
60 |
|
School class rooms and pre-schools, indoors |
Speech intelligibility, |
35 |
during class |
- |
|
Pre-school |
Sleep disturbance |
30 |
sleeping-time |
45 |
|
School, playground outdoor |
Annoyance (external source) |
55 |
during play |
- |
|
Hospital, ward rooms, indoors |
Sleep disturbance, night-time |
30 |
8 |
40 |
|
Sleep disturbance, daytime and evenings |
30 |
16 |
- |
|
|
Hospitals, treatment rooms, indoors |
Interference with rest and recovery |
#1 |
|
|
|
Industrial, commercial |
Hearing impairment |
70 |
24 |
110 |
|
Ceremonies, festivals and entertainment events |
Hearing impairment (patrons:<5 times/year) |
100 |
4 |
110 |
|
Public addresses, indoors and outdoors |
Hearing impairment |
85 |
1 |
110 |
|
Music through headphones/ |
Hearing impairment (free-field value) |
85 #4 |
1 |
110 |
|
Impulse sounds from toys, fireworks and firearms |
Hearing impairment (adults) |
- |
- |
140 #2 |
|
Hearing impairment (children) |
- |
- |
120 #2 |
|
|
Outdoors in parkland and conservation areas |
Disruption of tranquillity |
#3 |
|
|
#1: as low as possible
#2: peak sound pressure (not Lmax, fast), measured 100 mm from the ear
#3: existing quiet outdoor areas should be preserved and the ratio of intruding noise to natural background sound should be kept low
#4: under headphones, adapted to free-field values
