REGINA — Residents of Regina near Seventh Avenue and Lewvan Drive are calling on the city to address noise pollution.
A gathering of residents was organized by Dave Siebert, who has lived in the area for more than 20 years. He said the noise in the area never used to be this bad.
“The influx and growth of our city is the result of what we see here today, which is the mess and the noise.”
Siebert said on the worst days, the noise can peak at 80 decibels — similar to a vacuum cleaner or toilet flushing.
“It makes it very unpleasant to be in our own yards,” said Siebert. “We can't have our windows open without the TV blasting.”
He also noted the long-term effects of noise pollution, including sleep issues and cognitive impairment.
Hoping the issue would be fixed, Siebert said he has been reaching out to the city for years.
“[The city] is unwilling to do anything. They pass it off to the Regina Police Service (RPS). Every time we call in a complaint, they're nowhere to be found.”
In June, city council passed a noise attenuation policy update report. The motion lowered the noise threshold from 65 decibels to 60 decibels for current and future neighbourhoods. Developers are now required to ensure noise levels are within the policy or implement attenuation measures.
However, the policy does not address established neighbourhoods.
Despite the city outlining 24 kilometres of locations requiring noise attenuation, funding the estimated $100 million investment “would be a significant barrier to the city and all property owners,” the report stated.
Ward 8 Coun. Shanon Zachidniak said she understands this is a significant issue and disagrees with the city’s approach.
“It ignores areas that have existing issues with no capital project planned, and there's no answer for those folks, so I don't think that it's a great decision.”
Zachidniak said the city plans to expand lanes along Lewvan Drive and Dewdney Avenue in the coming years.
“So, if the noise decibel goes up by five [from increased traffic], then they would actually build a fence.”
If noise levels do not increase, she said, funding would likely need to be found in the capital budget.
Siebert is hoping action can be taken sooner rather than later.
“If it's out of sight, it's out of mind, and that's what we're hoping for.”
