Assessment of Noise Pollution from Petrol Generators in Nigeria: An Analysis of Distance, Capacity and Age Variables

Abstract

Irregular and epileptic power supply in Nigerian, parts of Africa and some other parts of the globe has made electricity generators the primary source of power for domestic and commercial purposes in such places. These generators produce noise pollution in the environment. Noise pollution is hazardous to human hearing and health and it adversely affect plant growth and development. This study investigated the noise generated from five different capacity gasoline generators of varying ages at varying distances, representing the range of petrol generator for both domestic and commercial uses in Nigeria. Five petrol generators of varying capacities 2, 3, 6, 10 and 14 kilo Volt Ampere (kVA), and age 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 years respectively were used for the experiment. The sound level from the generators were measured at varying distances of 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 m respectively using a digital sound level meter. Two-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to test the difference between generators of different ages at the varying distances (α = 0.05). The sound intensity decreased as distance from the generators increased. The lowest sound was recorded for the generators of age 1, and increased as the age of the generators increased. For the capacity of generators tested, weighted (A) sound level produced by 1 year old generators at distances 0-20 m from the generator ranged from 60.9-83 dB (A) for 2 kVA generator; 60.2-84.1 dB (A) for 3 kVA generator; 64.7-86 dB (A) for 6 kVA generator; 66.52-88.02 dB (A) for 10 kVA generator; 70-91.8 dB (A) for 14 kVA generator respectively. The study showed that sound levels from generators increased as they aged. The sound levels from all the generators indicate noise pollution, as they are, on average, above the World Health Organization's specified limits of 30 and 70 decibels for indoor and outdoor environments, respectively. Consequently, the sound generated by various petrol generators is a significant source of noise pollution.