RESIDENTS recently complained to media regarding two sources of loud noises in the area. One being the square dancing music on Jubao Branch Road in Liantang, Luohu District, and the other being construction noises in Shangmeilin area in Futian District.

A reporter with Shenzhen Special Zone Daily checked the reported locations and interviewed staff with related departments in order to better understand the situation.

According to one resident, identified as Xiaomi, the situation has been much improved as of late. “I can hear sounds around 11 p.m. from the construction site but I am not woken up by the sounds at night. They should have halted operations by then,” said Xiaomi.

The reporter with the Daily also visited several other construction sites in Shangmeilin around 11 p.m. Monday and found that the construction sites, specifically the ones at Meilin Primary School and the intersection of Guangsha Road and Kaifeng Road, were not in operation at that time.

The Shenzhen Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau said Tuesday they have already arranged investigations and urged related units to follow the already implemented work schedule guidelines.

Square dancing, however, was still seen at Jubao Branch Road in Liantang. Tests showed that the sound decibel of the music was above the regular allowance.

Officers at Liantang Police Station said that they will follow the case and handle the issue.

Hu Huantao with the pollution management office of the municipal ecology and environment bureau said that the city’s regulation on environmental noise pollution prevention and control doesn’t specifically stipulate the maximum decibel allowed for square dancing music. Nor are there any regulations regarding specific punishments for any irregularities.

Regarding the other issue, construction sites do seem to stop operations when related departments go in for a check, according to Hu.

Zhou Zhiquan, an expert with the Shenzhen Municipal Science and Technology Innovation Commission, suggested that sometimes, due to weak penalties, construction companies would rather accept the punishments for breaking certain rules than carefully follow them.

Hu said a work plan has just been submitted for the prevention and control of construction noise pollution. The plan is expected to be rolled out by the end of April.

Concerning the square dancing music’s loudness, the municipal environmental protection authority said that they will revise related regulations and set up a maximum decibel for the dancing music in order to better manage noise pollution.

(Wang Jingli)