Listening to cities during the COVID-19 lockdown: How do human activities and urbanization impact soundscapes in Colombia?

• Published in: Biological conservation Vol. 255; p. 108996
• Main Authors: Ulloa, Juan Sebastian, Hernández-Palma, Angélica, Acevedo-Charry, Orlando, Gómez-Valencia, Bibiana, Cruz-Rodríguez, Cristian, Herrera-Varón, Yenifer, Roa, Margarita, Rodríguez-Buriticá, Susana, Ochoa-Quintero, Jose Manuel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01-03-2021
• Subjects: Biological sounds; Community science; Human perception; Noise masking; Noise pollution; Short Communication; Urban acoustics; Community science; Noise pollution; Urban acoustics; Biological sounds; Noise masking; Human perception
• ISSN: 0006-3207; 1873-2917; 0006-3207
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2021.108996

Noise is one of the fastest growing and most ubiquitous type of environmental pollution, with prevalence in cities. The COVID-19 confinement in 2020 in Colombia led to a reduction in human activities and their associated noise. We used this unique opportunity to measure the impacts of noise on urban soundscapes, and explore the effects of urbanization intensity independently of human activity. We launched a community science initiative inviting participants to collect audio recordings from their windows using smartphones. Recordings were taken during severe mobility restrictions (April), and during a period of lightened restrictions (May–June). From the data collected, we measured changes in sound pressure levels (SPL), acoustic structure (soundscape spectro-temporal characteristics), and human perception between the two periods. A 12% increase in human activities had a detectable acoustic footprint, with a significant increase of SPL (2.15 dB, 128% increase), a shift towards dominance of low-frequency broadband signals, and a perceived dominance of human-made over wildlife sounds. Measured changes in SPL and acoustic structure were directly proportional to urbanization; however, perception of these changes was not. This gap may be associated with a masking effect generated by noise or a disconnect of humans from nature in large cities. The mobility restrictions created a chance to better understand the impacts of urbanization and human activities on the soundscape, while raising public awareness regarding noise pollution effects on people and wildlife. Information analyzed here might serve in urban planning in developing countries where urban expansion is occurring in a rapid, unplanned fashion.
•We led a citizen science acoustic sampling across Colombia during COVID-19 lockdown.•We measured the impact of human activities in the soundscape of cities.•The acoustic impact of human activities was proportional to urbanization.•The perceived change in soundscape components was not related to urbanization.•Masking from anthropic noise may affect people's soundscape perception.