According to one recent study, noise is derived from the Latin word "nausea," implying 'unwanted sound' or 'sound that is loud, unpleasant or unexpected'. Such noise generally originates from human activities, especially the urbanisation and development of transport and industry.
 

Worldwide, though the urban population is much more affected by such pollution, however, small town/villages alongside roads or industries are also victims of this problem. Noise is becoming an increasingly omnipresent yet unnoticed form of pollution in all countries.

In urban areas of developed countries, road traffic, jet planes, garbage trucks, construction equipment, manufacturing processes and lawn mowers are some of the major sources of these unwanted sounds that are routinely broadcasted into the air. Though noise pollution is a slow and subtle killer, as yet very little effort has been made to ameliorate the problem. It is, along with other types of pollution, a hazard to quality of life, particularly in urban areas around the world.
 

According to studies on the matter, even relatively low levels of noise affects human health adversely. It may cause hypertension, disrupt sleep and/or hinder cognitive development in children. The effects of excessive noise could be so severe that either there is a permanent loss of memory or a psychiatric disorder. It may cause deafness, nervous breakdown, mental disorder, heart troubles and high blood pressure, headaches, dizziness, inefficiency and insomnia.

Noise pollution is not a unique problem for developing countries, nor is it a new phenomenon. According to one historian, noise has been a problem for thousands of years.
 

Perhaps the first interest in noise came not from the public, but from the gods. According to the Epic of Gilgamesh, the earliest version of the Biblical flood story, "The world bellowed like a wild bull, and the great god was aroused by the clamour. Enhil heard the clamour and he said to the gods in council, 'The uproar of mankind is intolerable and sleep is no longer possible by reason of the Babel.' So the gods agreed to exterminate mankind." On a more factual note, in China, until third century B.C., instead of hanging men for dangerous crimes, noise was used for their torturing.
 

Today, the worrisome effects of noise are dangerous enough that the noise problem is considered next to crime by certain countries. Several initiatives have been taken by various countries to check the noise level. For example, the United States (US) has taken initiative to create sites where human-caused noise pollution will not be tolerated.
 

Similarly, the European Union (EU) requires that 'noise maps' of big cities (with more than 250,000 inhabitants) are drawn up from 2002 onwards. To safeguard against ill-effects of noise, the laws in the Netherlands do not permit building of houses in areas where 24-hour average noise levels exceed 50dB (decibels, a standard unit of measurement).
 

And in Great Britain, the Noise Act empowers local authorities to confiscate noisy equipment and fine people who create excess noise at night.

In Ethiopia, most people do not consider it a pollutant, and take it as a part of routine life. Of late, it has been recognised as a pollutant in urban areas in particular because the level and sources of noise have increased noticeably.
 

Noise pollution has particularly come to affect urban dwellers at all times. From noise caused by traffic to music that is too loud, urban dwellers are subjected to continuous aggression which can affect their wellbeing, physical and mental health and even damage their hearing.

Nevertheless, the movement against noise pollution is weak in Ethiopia. On top of this, the legal, policy and administrative measures that are, as mentioned previously, in place in most other countries are either non-existent or too weak to have any significant bearing on the problem in this country. This is despite the fact that the Federal Constitution specifically states that "all persons have the right to a clean and healthy environment" in Article 44(I).

Of particular concern these days in terms of noise pollution in Ethiopia are not the usual suspects like other countries. That is, unlike in other countries, road traffic, jet planes, garbage trucks, construction equipment, manufacturing processes, lawn mowers, etc are not the major sources of noise pollution in Ethiopia's urban centres. Arguably, the most important noise pollutants in this country are noises created by reckless, indiscriminate and widespread use of loud speakers by commercial and religious institutions.
 

In addition, nowadays, it has become a common and 'standard' method of product promotion to mount a huge sound system onto vehicles and tour around major streets blasting ear-splitting music - be it soap bars, a pop or gospel album, a call for repentance or an announcement of some religious conference.

This is on top of the amazing amount of noise pollution caused by music/video stores that are found at every nook and cranny of urban centres all over the country.
 

All this calls for immediate action by all: government and non-government, as well as the general public. Apart from technological and technical aspects of ameliorating the problem, various steps to modify or regulate the behaviour of the polluters may be undertaken.
 

A comprehensive legal framework could be enforced to regulate users of vehicles, sound equipment, etc. though it requires huge resources and good governance. Public education appears to be a good option because it is a social problem. Sheer ignorance about the adverse effects of noise pollution appear to be a key factor in laying inadequate stress on controlling or reducing its levels.
 

To make Ethiopia a world-class destination for tourism, industry, and a place for healthy living, the development and implementation of a comprehensive noise control programme is a dire need of the hour.
 

Apart from resource and administrative limitations that may hamper the full implementation of such a comprehensive noise control programme in the country, there appears to be some misunderstanding and confusion about democratic and religious freedom enshrined in the constitution vis-à-vis the need not to infringe upon the rights of others while exercising ones rights and freedoms.
 

Article 27 of the Ethiopian constitution states that everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and that "this right shall include the freedom to hold or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and the freedom, either individually or in community with others, and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching".
 

However, this does not in any way warrant anyone to use this cover of religious freedom to make excessive noise while 'manifesting' his/her religious beliefs or worshipping to the extent of disturbing others. Such excessive noise might be considered by the adherents of the particular region to be a pleasant sound or even something nice to 'non-believer' as well. Nevertheless, the fact still remains that, not everyone enjoys being woken up in the middle of the night by excessive sound produced by a nearby religious institution (just as excessive music that comes out of a neighbouring nightclub does not sound like 'music to all ears).

This fact becomes even clearer when that sound comes from a religious institution to which one does not belong - it becomes disturbing and irritating noise instead of prayer or beautiful incantation. Just like a night club that keeps its neighbours awake by blasting music late in the night is a nuisance and a blatant infringement of their rights, so is a church or mosque that disturbs those residing nearby: both cases are noise pollutants and infringement on the constitutional rights of others.
 

The national constitution states in not unclear terms that religious freedom might be limited in some circumstances. In fact, it states that "freedom to express or manifest one's religion or belief may be subject to limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, peace, health, education, public morality or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others."
 

Thus, the issue is not whether noise pollution is a problem in the urban areas of the country. Nor is it whether is should be controlled. Rather, it is how to solve it.
 

In such instances, it is instructive to look at how other countries have handled or are handling the problem. The experience of other countries shows that the first step in this regard is creating general awareness towards the hazardous effects of noise pollution. Suitable chapters may be added in textbooks which teach civic sense to the children and youth at the initial/early level of education and so on.
 

The second step towards tackling the problem is to put in place the appropriate legal and administrative framework. The ambient noise standards could be set in order to limit the noise level at the boundary of a public place, where loudspeaker or public address system or any other noise source is being used. (For example, an Indian legal text states: "The States shall make provision for seizure and confiscation of loudspeakers, amplifiers and such other equipments as are found to be creating noise beyond the permissible limits".)
 

In conclusion, it is appropriate to quote one J. H. Girdner, a New York physician eager to provoke an anti-noise campaign in 1898, who wrote, "In these days of innumerable clocks and watches, the ringing of church bells in large cities is simply barbarous."