ACOUSTIC ECOLOGY tends to be overlooked by modern planners, designers, and architects.
Modern HVAC (heating ventilation & air conditioning) systems while super efficient, cost effective, and ‘green’ nevertheless can be a source for unusual and persistent sound; for instance, infrasound (below the range of hearing) silently affects physical matter. Infrasound can also create the conditions for ‘standing waves’ of audible sound that can be a nuisance, or worse, harmful to human health.
Current LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards do not include the psychoacoustics of built space. Psychoacoustics is the science of how sound affects the listener.
SOUND LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE is a sonic tonic—unpleasant and persistent noise is refashioned rather than eliminated—if you can’t fix it, feature it!
