NoiseWatch
65 Front St. W. Suite 0116 Box 35
Toronto, Ontario
M5J 1E6January 29, 1998
Dear Sir/Madam:
I read the horror stories about noise on your internet web page. Well, I think our story may top all of the rest.
We live in the Niagara region. To the east, to the north, and to the south of our property are rows and rows of grapes. Looks and sounds peaceful enough.
Fast forward to the middle of August. The grapes are starting to ripen in the summer’s heat and sunshine. Still sounds peaceful. That is when the farmers make their next move. They bring out their "bird bangers".
What is a "bird banger"? Bird bangers are the only machines I know of that are designed to make noise. They are propane powered cannons that are mounted on tripods, usually two cannons per tripod. They can be programmed to produce explosions at various intervals. The explosions are grouped into series of 3 or 4 consecutive ‘bangs’ and because the cannons are mounted on swivel bases the explosions are multi-directional. The purpose of the bangers is to scare away the birds from the vineyard. However, they also make life intolerable for human beings.
Let me list the problems we experience every fall:
- The bangers start in early August and operate until the first or second week of November, a total period of about three months
- The number of explosion ranges from 150 to 250 per hour
- The bangers operate 7 days per week (including Saturdays and Sundays)
- They operate during all the daylight hours, usually 14 to 15 hours per day (usually from 6:00 AM until 8:30 or 9:00 PM)
- On occasion (usually 4 or 5 times a season) they run through the entire night
- The noise level is severe, we estimate from 75 to 90+ decibels.
- On most days the longest period of silence we have is 2 minutes
The noise levels are so severe that we need to wear ear protection while working in our business. We even wear ear plugs in our house which is located next to our business. There is no escape. On most days we have to leave our property for a couple of hours just to escape the noise.
Imagine your next door neighbour shooting a shotgun 250 times every hour for 14 hours per day , doing this for almost three months , and just for fun every once in a while continuing right on through the night. I think you would be wearing ear plugs too.
Ontario wine producers have made great progress in improving their wines to world class level but certainly many grape producers have little concern and care for the well-being of their neighbours. Noise is a real ingredient of Ontario wines.
Mr. Jaye, Niagara