Photo credit: Tom Jackson
by Daniel Fink, MD, Chair, The Quiet Coalition
The Louisiana Illuminator published an article by reporter Lue Palmer about noise pollution from gravel trucks along a road in a formerly quiet neighborhood in St. Helena Parish, Louisiana. The Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit news organization covering legislative and administrative activities in the state capital, especially those affecting poor and marginalized communities.
As Palmer writes, a gravel pit and landfill are located on Hano Road north of Baton Rouge, just across the parish line in Tangihapoa Parish. Hano Road is a shortcut between Louisiana state highways 65 and 40, allowing trucks easy access to Interstate 55. Because of this, noisy trucks use Hano Road almost continuously from 1 a.m. until 5 p.m. every day of the week, including Sundays. Research has shown that uninterrupted sleep is important to health. Residents of the community have complained to state authorities, but have not received a response.
In frustration, they reached out to Jamie Banks, founder and president of Quiet Communities, Inc. Banks is quoted in the article, discussing both the adverse health effects of transportation noise and also Quiet Communities’ lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency. University of California Davis School of Medicine Professor Peter James is also quoted in the article.
Jamie and Trish Glass, Quiet Communities’ executive director, played a key role in raising awareness of the dangers of noise in this community. They are returning to St. Helena Parish soon to survey residents, take noise measurements and possibly collect water samples. I’m not sure what more can be done to help the residents of Hano Road, but we’re glad that Jamie, Trish and Quiet Communities are trying to help.
