Listening to Silence

A few days ago I had the opportunity to sit for awhile along Canyon Road, several kilometres above Enderby. For half an hour, all I listened to was silence. I heard the occasional rustle of a leaf in the breeze, and a few lone birds. Once or twice a car went by and punctuated the quiet, but most of the time, silence was all I heard.

When I lived at Gardom Lake, I was surrounded by silence. Now, living in the heart of a city, I wonder how we can create more outdoor opportunities for quiet. It should not be necessary to drive or cycle out of town to find a few moments of peaceful solitude in nature.

Since 1972, urban noise has been considered a pollutant by the World Health Organization because of its effects on human health. Apparently cities have become so much noisier that sirens have had to become louder by 40 decibels in order to be heard!

Are we as a society getting more used to noise? Many people seem to accept using hand dryers in washrooms, which can be as loud as 90 decibels (dB)! To put this in context, a whisper is about 30 dB, normal conversation is about 60 dB, and a motorcycle engine running is about 95 dB. Noise above 85 dB over a prolonged period of time may start to damage hearing. Loud noise above 120 dB can cause immediate harm to ears. (Source: https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hearing_loss/what_noises_cause_hearing_loss.html)

Hand dryers in washrooms can be as loud as 90 decibels!

Finding, and creating, quiet places is a health issue, as well as one of aesthetics and quality of life. I have heard people say, "Well, I just close the windows and doors and stay inside!" That does not feel right to me, being forced to retreat indoors to find stillness.

Surely we can design outdoor spaces in our cities where nature, and quiet, are both part of the experience?

Those who live in detached suburban houses may be able to create quiet retreats in their patios or back yards. But for the rest of us who live in denser forms of development such as apartments and townhouses, we look to public and semi-public spaces to help provide respite from the din of the city.

Unfortunately for Salmon Arm, both the Trans Canada Highway and the railway are sources of significant noise. The city is laid out with Mount Ida as a backdrop which echoes the sound back to us.

It is very hard to escape the roar of the highway in any of our parks. I walked around McGuire Lake recently and was hard-pressed to have a conversation with my friend, because of the jackhammer-like rumbles of semi-trucks, gearing down to either ascend or descend the hill.

Early spring at McGuire Lake. Such an attractive setting - park benches, a burbling creek with covered bridge, canopy trees and flower gardens. The only detraction from a peaceful experience at McGuire Lake is the noisy highway immediately behind.

Though a little further away from the highway than McGuire Lake, other city parks, such as Peter Jannink, Fletcher and Marine, still suffer from the constant thunder of vehicles streaming in the distance.

Finding innovative ways to create quiet outdoor spaces is a challenge in Salmon Arm - but one that is critical.

One obvious idea is to focus attention upon areas that are a distance from noise generating sources like the highway.

Nancy Clark garden at Okanagan College. The nearby gazebo is a peaceful place to contemplate nature. The highway can still be heard, but it is a muted distant presence.

Another view of the Nancy Clark garden 

This cool idea from Okanagan College recognizes the importance of quiet time in nature. Where might these chairs be taken in Salmon Arm to find the solitude referred to in the poster? 

A fountain or other water feature provides soothing sound, while masking more annoying ones such as highway noise. As the video below illustrates, the fountain at the wharf does a good job of covering other sounds - except for the lone chirping of a young osprey.

Here are a few ideas that might work for Salmon Arm to add quiet outdoor spaces to our city:

Take advantage of the sound-baffling function of buildings and walls. 

Buildings can act as a barrier to sound transmission. For example, the mass of the CSRD Building and Lakeside Manor block the sound of both the railway and the highway. Consequently, the walkway which goes along Shuswap Lake on the north side of these buildings is relatively quiet. A "pullout" with benches was created on this walkway; the benches are quiet havens from noise. Opportunities like this need to be taken advantage of whenever they are presented.

A quiet space where buildings have blocked highway and railway noise

We need to pay attention to the role that the "back" of a building can play. Any time a public or semi-public building faces away from a busy road, let's ask the question of the designer and architect - "are there ways this building can be used to create a public quiet area outside"?

These chairs in front of Askews can be relatively quiet, despite the local street sounds. The buildings across the street block highway noise, and the building behind can block some of the noise from the railway (although unfortunately it can bounce back from across the street).

These benches at Fletcher Park are protected from highway noise by the building behind them, and the restroom building (below).

The restrooms at Fletcher Park help reduce highway noise for users of these benches.

There are multiple opportunities in the downtown area to create small sitting areas using building walls to help muffle sound. Here are a few thoughts.

Physiotherapy offices recently moved into this building, revamping the parking lot and installing a ramp. There is protected space tucked against the building which could be converted into a pleasant outdoor sitting area free of highway noise, with container plantings of trees and shrubs adding to the atmosphere.

The north side of the SASCU building, while it faces the tracks, is protected from highway noise. The oversized parking lot could sacrifice a few stalls to create an outdoor space without causing a parking problem.

In many cases the most protected spaces between buildings are occupied by parking lots. As we look at ways to reduce our use of fossil fuels, and create a sustainable, pedestrian-oriented community, these parking lots could provide quiet outdoor spaces free from both highway and railway noise.

This parking lot, on the north side of the tracks, is nestled between two buildings and offers potential for a small quiet space in a corner, using a few stalls.

Use trees and shrubbery to reduce sound. 

Plants have the ability to baffle sound. One source I found indicated that a row of plants 25 feet deep, reaching to the ground and composed of mixed species of shrubs and trees (conifers and broad-leafed) can reduce sound levels by up to 10 decibels. Perhaps that is an idea for the slope below the highway, between it and McGuire Lake. A dense buffer of vegetation could muffle sound below it.

A thick border of plants along the south side of City Hall. The space beside them is devoted to grass. There is an opportunity for a sitting area here.

A small but thick planting along Harbourfront Drive. Many more plantings like this would help muffle noise in the urban environment.

Attractive landscaping at the Credit Union building. Some thicker shrubs or conifers would add to the ability of this area to create a quiet space.

This attractive sitting area along Lakeshore Drive seems to be underutilized. I wonder if having only one entrance is a barrier. Do people feel more comfortable going into an enclosed space if there is a second exit?

This fenceline between Fletcher Park and Okanagan Avenue presents an opportunity for a planting of dense shrubs. These could replace the grass, and would muffle highway noise for park users. 

I have written in other posts about the many benefits of planting trees. Dampening urban noise is another reason to do so! Plus, trees and shrubs give us nature sounds to focus upon such as rustling leaves, the swoosh of bird wings, and their songs and chirps.

Create water features. 

I have mentioned the fountain at the wharf. The one at McGuire Lake is attractive, but the highway is just too close and too noisy to be adequately muffled by the fountain.

The fountain at Ross Street Plaza helps mask highway noise - as well as creating an attractive focal point in the downtown.

A water feature at the new Shoreline development near the Prestige Hotel. The bubbling of this miniature fountain is enjoyed by passersby on the walkway.

I suspect there are many opportunities to use water on private properties. Garden centres sell a variety of small pumps and fountains of different sizes.

Of course, the best water feature is a natural one! Here is Turner Creek, heard along the Turner Creek trail between the Hilltop Hotel and Okanagan College.

I encourage readers to think of ways we can create more quiet spaces in our city, especially the urban core. As humans, we need silence in nature. It's part of our genetic make-up!