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High-quality visible vegetation, such as that seen through a window at home or at work, can provide relief from noise annoyance (feelings of displeasure with unwanted noise) with a similar effect to reducing noise by an estimated 10 decibels, according to a literature review of research on perception of traffic noise and vegetation views. This perceived reduction is in addition to any physical sound level reduction that is provided by vegetation screening.

Van Renterghem, Timothy. “Towards explaining the positive effect of vegetation on the perception of environmental noise.” Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 40 (2019): 133-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.03.007.

Topics

Noise mitigation, Mental wellness

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