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Noise nuisance is often thought of as a modern phenomenon, but it might come as a surprise to learn that the earliest known laws to control noise were passed in ancient Rome. So bothered were the Romans by night-time traffic noise that they passed laws banning the use of chariots at night! The fall of the Roman Empire signalled an end to environmental noise control law making for many centuries, but there is still evidence to be seen in England that shows the Victorians' dislike of noise.
The advent of the internal combustion engine introduced large numbers of highly mobile noise sources and in 1929 the British government passed its first law controlling the noise emitted by motor cars. Curiously, none of the above efforts has succeded in halting the growth in environmental noise around the world. If you know of any early attempts to control noise by law, please email us. |
