The influence of vegetation and shape-related features in making parks more noise resistant Efstathios MARGARITIS 1 ; Karlo FILIPAN 2 ; Jian KANG 3 ; Dick Botteldooren 4 1,3 University of Sheffield, UK 2,4 Ghent University, Belgium ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to assess the effect of vegetation-related parameters and shape-related features on noise levels in park areas. For the current research, eight case study parks of various sizes were identified in Antwerp and noise levels were measured inside and around them. The measurements were conducted during multiple days using portable custom-made sound recording devices. The analysis was performed by correlating the input with the output parameters. Input data include green space and shape metrics, while output parameters consist of various noise indices (L 10 , L 50 , L 90 , L Aeq , L Ceq -L Aeq ) averaged for the entire parks. In a more focused scale the same analysis was attempted referring to measurement points inside the parks. Correlations in this case were identified only between green space features and L 90 . The entire analysis denotes that green space features can be an important factor in noise reduction within the parks, independently of the effects from the surrounding environment. Keywords: Dynamic noise mapping, Green areas, Noise control planning I-INCE Classification of Subjects Number: 68.7 1. INTRODUCTION The traditional noise mapping framework as described in the Environmental Noise Directive (END) (2002/49/EC) can provide useful information for traffic noise in a strategic level. In this context, the need to identify and preserve quiet areas in the urban environment led to the formulation of further criteria, which include both sound pressure levels, and the users’ experience (1). However, in a micro-scale approach traditional static noise mapping techniques cannot depict time variable fluctuations. In this case dynamic noise mapping can be more appropriate as a way of representing noise levels (2), especially in places such as parks, which are likely to be designated as “quiet areas” in the urban context. Previous studies have tried to assess noise level variability in parks in terms of soundscape quality based on the human experience (3) (4)However, few studies have tried to correlate noise levels with quantitative attributes related to parks’ characteristics , such as the tree cover and the area size (5), or based on audio-visual stimuli (6). As a result the aim of this paper is to investigate the noise level distribution in different parks of Antwerp and reach to a conclusion as regards whether: a) there is a correlation among green space parameters, park features and noise levels when considering the parks as whole entities and b) whether there is a correlation between green space parameters and noise levels as far as the measurement points in each park are concerned. 2. METHODS 2.1 Case study sites The data presented in this study was collected in eight urban parks in Antwerp, Belgium. Antwerp is the largest city in Flanders and the second largest city in Belgium. A big part of the city's economy is a major 1 e.margaritis@sheffield.ac.uk 2 karlo.filipan@intec.ugent.be 3 j.kang@sheffield.ac.uk 4 dick.botteldooren@intec.ugent.be INTER-NOISE 2016 5225