Advancing the concepts of soundscapes and soundscape planning

The role and application of the concept of the soundscape, vis-à-vis that of environmental noise management, needs elaboration. In noise control, sound is a waste product, managed to reduce the immision of sounds that cause human discomfort. The soundscape approach, by contrast, considers the acoustic environment as a resource, focussing on sounds people want, or prefer. Quiet is not a core requirement for acoustic preference in the outdoor acoustic environment. Core requirements include that soundscape and landscape are congruent, and that wanted sounds in a place are dominant over, or not masked by, unwanted sounds. Soundscape design, planning and management, based on this principle, augment environmental noise management approaches, expanding the scope of application of the tools of acoustic specialists.