Sound pollution laws coming

The Environment Ministry has sent the new draft regulations with regard to noise pollution to the Legal Draftsmen’s Department and hope to produce it to courts on December 10.

Central Environmental Authority (CEA) Chairman Udaya Gammanpila said that after the regulations on Community Noise Level Standards are approved by Parliament, the CEA would handle technical issues while inspection would be done by the Police Department.

“We hope that the implementation would begin from next year. The final authority in deciding on technical equipment, limits and standards would be the CEA,” he said. A total ban on loudspeakers or any other amplifiers producing noise between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. was in effect after the Supreme Court issued an interim order until the Environment Ministry finalized the regulations regarding noise pollution.