Alan gets agreement on noise pollution at the docks
5th October 2007
Alan Whitehead has secured an agreement to substantially reduce the noise coming from part of the docks close to a residential area.
Dr Whitehead had been contacted by a number of residents in and around Saxon Road, Freemantle, regarding a recent dramatic increase in noise coming from the port. The noise of banging and crashing as crates were loaded and unloaded was going on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and was acting as a constant disturbance for the residents who lived closest to that section of the docks.
Following an urgent meeting with ABP and Pentalver, Dr Whitehead has now secured an agreement that containers on the edge of the site closest to residents will only be moved during the day, and should only be used for long term storage (further minimising the amount of movement that goes on). Under the new agreement, 24 hour working will only take place in the central and southern part of the site, which is well away from residential areas.
Dr Whitehead welcomed the agreement:
“I believe that this agreement should go a long way towards cutting the noise pollution coming from Pentalver’s section of the docks. But I will to monitor the progress of this intended action to make sure it really happens and would ask all residents living near that section of the docks to contact me if the noise does not decrease.”
What do you think about this story? Email Alan
More information
Reproduced with permission of Google Maps
- Above is a map showing how close Saxon Road and its surrounding streets are to the docks.
- The increase in noise came about because ABP (the site owners) recently switched location of stacking sites for empty containers that need to be stored in the port. Pentalver Transport, the main contracting haulage company in the docks, moved stacking operations from a site near Berth 101, and into what was previously the Post Office site, which is immediately adjacent to residential areas in Freemantle. The increase in noise pollution was a product of crates being piled closer to a residential area, and more of those crates being empty, which amplifies the sound when they are piled on top of one another.
- In addition to moving crates away from the residential area, ABP and Pentalver are also planning to spend £10 million on strengthening and resurfacing the site, which should further reduce the noise when containers are placed on the ground.