Intense focus on legal framework to address noise nuisance

Feb 05, 2014 News

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By Dwijendra Rooplall
The Social Sector Committee of the National Assembly, which comprises nine persons divided among the political parties, has met and will be holding ongoing discussions with different policy stakeholders to address the prevention and legal framework of noise nuisance.
The meeting that was held in the National Assembly was slated to have submissions from the Permanent

Secretary of the Ministry of Legal Affairs, the city engineer of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC), the Chief Fire Officer of the Guyana Fire Service and the Chief Works Officer of the Ministry of Public Works and Communication, however, only Fire Chief Marlon Gentle  and City Engineer Colvern Venture, representing their respective associates, were present at the forum to discuss the prevention of noise nuisance in society and the interpretation of the Music and Dancing Licensing Act Chapter 23:03.
With only the presence of the two officials, the discussions and questions posed by the members of the Social Sector Committee were for the most part left unanswered or shifted to the entities that were not present at the forum, such as the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA). However the Committee recognized that this was the beginning of the dialogue and expressed optimism that once the policy entities that were mentioned are involved, then meaningful results could be ascertained with respect to the prevention of noise nuisance.
The Chairperson of the meeting, People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament Indra Chandarpal said that as a result of various complaints received from the public, they have put on the agenda for discussion the whole question of noise nuisance.
She said that there was a related discourse before but further communication is imperative with the necessary stakeholders.
“We want to revisit the old laws that we have to make some proposals and make some changes. We feel that it is necessary at this point in our country’s history because we are mindful of the fact that all the regions in Guyana have this problem, and more and more people are crying out because they are unable to have peace and quiet in their home, and we see this as a violation of their own rights to live in their home in peace and comfort and free from noise nuisance. And we also believe that the whole question of noise nuisance today is a health hazard and therefore we want to begin the discourse and thought the best place to start is within our Social Sector Committee that is made up of all the parties in Parliament,” said Chandarpal.

The Chairperson expressed everything that is done in the committee is based on discourse and consensus. No votes are required.
Fire Chief Marlon Gentle speaking on his responsibility in terms of the Music and Dancing Act explained that the Chief Fire Officer issues a certificate for a building and that certificate will highlight how fire-safe that particular building is determined to be.
“As the Act will say, the Chief Fire Officer will issue a certificate as to the general fire safety conditions of the premises whether he is satisfied that all fire precautions have been met and secondly that there is enough means of escape for persons to safely use this premises and exit in the case of an emergency, and that is legally where the role of the fire service comes into play.”
However, upon hearing this, the chairperson expressed that the procedure that the Fire Chief expounded upon is not happening in reality. She said that she knows situations where parties and very loud playing of music happens anywhere. She said that while it is desirable to follow the rules in this case it’s not being observed.
The M&CC City Engineer mentioned section 14 of the Music and Dancing Licensing Act and articulated the procedure in which the engineers would inspect certain premises to see whether or not they are fit for entertainment. He said that the building inspectors would inspect regularly in the case of a Bar-b-Que and Lime and do a yearly inspection for established buildings and check the “structural soundness” of the said building. Checks are also done to see whether internal arrangements are in place, such as toilets, to see if the building can be used for the intended activity. He said that persons will have to apply to the city engineer to show a plan for the M&CC to determine whether a party could be entertained.
The Fire Chief expressed that beyond the parties, the industrial and manufacturing activity has a part to play in noise nuisance. “Zoning laws should be there to protect the process,” Venture said.
Gentle said that there is a need to revisit all of the laws and look at more scientific method of dealing with noise. He endorsed that focus needs to be placed on zoning and legislation.
Speaking on the decibels (a reference to the level of loudness emanating from varying equipment) the chairperson spoke of the “famous case of Station Street Kitty” where persons complain of the noise levels coming from the many established bars located within that Street. Chandarpal wanted to know if decibel ratings could be used to limit noise pollution as opposed to using the courts for redress.
Gentle, in responding, expressed that there should be a decibel level in each area as per zoning, “I think there is some scientific way done by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Bureau of Standards in terms of what should be the noise pollution levels in the different areas, whether it be residential, industrial… There is enough information to guide us on what it should be in a very scientific way.”
Chandarpal, in acknowledging that not all the stakeholders were present at the forum, said that “we recognize

that this is the beginning of the conversation and I think eventually we will have the EPA. The police have spoken to us already, so we expected other bodies would have been present here. So as the conversation continues, we will be having more and more clarity on the way forward, and know that ultimately we will get there.”
A Partnership of National Unity parliamentarian Volda Lawrence grilled the Fire Chief and the M&CC engineers over the fees charged by these entities which are enshrined in the law for licence and certification, even though throughout the conversation both parties for the most part passed the buck with respect to responsibility of noise pollution, while outlining the limitations of their remit.
Lawrence wanted to know whether the M&CC engineer has to act on the zoning structure that has been earmarked by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA), as well as what is the limit for applications from persons to hold events that would be characterized by a certain level of noise.
Lawrence said that the related M&CC department has been issuing permits to all these places at the same time. “Sometimes there are three functions going on and everybody in the area will cry out, I think you need to look at that, sometimes there are two things happening in West La Penitence and then something happening over in East Ruimveldt, and so you are getting that collage of noise coming at you and that’s an issue, so something is happening in your department which you are indicating to us you are not aware of, and I am telling you as a resident of that area that that is just one example of what is happening, not only in my area, but is happening in other areas, and people are concerned about it because it’s disturbing them.”
She said the M&CC should look at the criteria since its office has the purview for the granting of certificates for mainstream dance and music activity. She said that licences should be given on a first come first serve basis and they cannot have two and three activities within such a small area.
Alliance For Change Member of Parliament of Valerie Lowe suggested that when the other entities are present to make submissions those who were at the meeting should be there throughout.
“We heard it’s not me, its them, and so if we could get them all together under the same roof then I think we would be able to get some level answers on some of the issues we are trying to overcome.”
The Chairperson in closing the meeting reiterated that “this is just the beginning of the dialogue and we are hoping that by the time we are through with all of this we can come up with legislation to make some changes.”

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