Noise, ferries patterns and residents’ perception: the port of Las Palmas case

Source abstract

Managing acoustic externalities at the port-city interface requires integrating source emissions with community perception. This study develops a framework to characterise ferry noise during hotelling, combining high-resolution monitoring with social analysis. Methodologically, AIS-synchronized measurements characterised vessel emissions, while a stratified survey evaluated resident annoyance. Results reveal L den levels of ∼67.5 dBA, exceeding industrial limits due to tonal and low-frequency penalties. These findings demonstrate that strategic maps and point measurements serve complementary purposes: the former for urban planning and the latter for designing market-based mitigation incentives to supports the ’polluter pays’ principle. Furthermore, despite low self-reported noise disturbance, hierarchical regression analysis identified residents’ health risk perception and pro-environmental behaviour as key predictors of annoyance. Specifically, the model established health risk perception as the primary factor driving heightened sensitivity. Within normalised urban noise context, concern for physical well-being acts as the principal catalyst for perceived annoyance, surpassing both ideological and contextual factors.