NOISE POLLUTION FROM CLUBS AND BARS IN UYO, AKWA IBOM STATE

Purpose: This study aimed at assessing levels of noise pollution consequent on activities carried out in Clubs and bars within Uyo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. Clubs and bars constituted the case studies of this research, given their loud and sustained sound in the evenings and nights, especially within residential zones. Design/Methodology/Approach: As the study adopted an experimental design that involved the use of a Sound Level Meter to measure the sound emitted in decibels from the selected Bars and Clubs, it assessed the incorporation (or otherwise) of acoustic control systems in the clubs and bars, evaluate the impacts of these noises on the neighbourhoods and why proper sound control measures are not adopted in these bars and clubs Findings: Within the study area, 41 clubs and bars were discovered. The sound decibels (dBA) in the sampled 38 clubs and bars were all higher than the recommended 60 dB during the Days and 40 dB in the Nights for residential areas and the 75 dB during the Days and 50 dB in the Nights in commercial areas as contained in Section 34 of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (Establishment) Act 2007, Part 1 - Permissible Noise Levels, 2(2). Further, only one of the 38 sampled clubs and bars had acoustic control systems incorporated in the building. The Student’s T-test gave a two-tailed p-value of 0.000 which is lower than the alpha value of 0.05, which indicates that the sample mean of 96.332 (± 8.9793) statistically differed from the hypothesized mean (60). Lastly, effects of the noise from clubs and bars included sleeplessness, headache, excessive secretion of adrenalin hormone into blood stream, anxiety, stress reaction, fright, temporary impairment of hearing and auditory fatigue. Research Limitations/Implications: Limitations of this study comprise the assessment of noise levels from bars and clubs and the impacts on close residents in Uyo Local Government Area (L.G.A) only. Implications of this research include the determination of compliance levels of the clubs and bars in Uyo L.G.A. to the Permissible Noise Levels provided by the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency and the awareness of the Noise Control Acts provisions by the Clubs and Bars operators, users and the people living around the clubs and bars. Originality/Value: This research is novel. The result will be useful to those in the academics, the general public, Bar and club owners and Government. It will awaken the consciousness of stakeholders in the entertainment sector of the need to ensure a non-intrusive operation of Bars and Clubs, especially within residential neighbourhoods.