NAPLES, Fla. — As more people move to Southwest Florida, that means more cars, more planes — and more noise. Now a new group has formed with the sole purpose of reducing the racket and increasing the quality of life.
Mary Tatigian, a registered nurse in Naples, was fed up with the constant hum and cars and planes she heard at her Golden Gate Estates home.
In March, Tatigian created QuietCollier.org, a group whose mission is to work with local officials to reduce noise pollution. The Centers for Disease Control and the Environmental Protection Agency both classify noise pollution as a health hazard.
Plus, Tatigian said, it’s just plain annoying.
“Our peace and quiet has been stolen, and we want it back,” Tatigian said. “We want to work with local government officials in returning the quiet to our neighborhoods. We’re inundated. We can hear air traffic and vehicle traffic in our home.
"There’s no peace. You’re supposed to be able to come to home relax and restore.”
Naples Airport officials admit there’s a problem, but it’s one they’re addressing. The airport currently is in the middle of a $1.7 million noise abatement study, which it began last year because of community complaints.
Quiet Collier has asked Collier County officials about putting up noise barriers on roads. The group also wants police to enforce an existing state law that limits how loud vehicles can be.
To reduce noise pollution in the skies, planes can raise their altitudes, or flight patterns could be adjusted. The Naples Airport asks pilots not to take off or land between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. However, Federal Aviation Administration regulations require that the flight curfew be voluntary, meaning the airport cannot fine violators.
The Naples Airport Authority says it has no control over how many planes come and go and how high they flight. Those decisions are handled by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The best airport officials can do is make recommendations to the FAA based on their noise study, which is scheduled to be completed late next year.
