New Scientist article on Noise & health.

This article in the New Scientist should be required reading for lawmakers in NZ and more especially, for the Christchurch City Council.
Today , 13th January 2008 is the 12th day in a row ( so far) this year that huge amounts of noise have been forced into homes around the Ruapuna Racetrack.

Yesterday the noise started before 9.00 am and apart from about one hour at tea time, it continued until just after 10.30 pm.
The rights of residents in the area around Ruapuna to enjoy ANY quiet time at all on their own properties have been utterly trashed by the Christchurch City Council.
There is no point in posting, over and over again, a litany of Noise and infringement of basic human rights - the Noise Diary linked to on the side bar is a true representation of the levels of noise residents are forced to listen to.
The Videos ( also linked to in the sidebar) are true representations of the sound of the noise.
The only thing that has changed is the health and wellbeing of residents which is ( surprise surprise ) plummeting.

An Overview

In 1999 , without consideration for,or consultation with, any of the many hundreds of residents living within earshot of Ruapuna the Christchurch City Council gave the Powerbuilt Ruapuna Raceway permission to operate 365 days a year . At the same time it allowed them to more than double their noise levels.

At a time when other cities and countries are working to lessen noise pollution the Christchurch City Council abrogated their duty of care to ratepayers in this area and exposed them and their families to a regime of daily noise unequalled anywhere in this country and indeed in most countries around the world.

Even though the rules were changed in 1999 it took a while for the impact of this rule change to take effect , the activity and noise from the track increased gradually in the following years and it wasn't until about two and a half years ago that residents started to be driven to distraction by constant and appalling noise.

This "Noise Diary " one member of the community has been keeping shows just how much noise is being forced onto local ratepayers.Ruapuna Management and Council likes to try to minimise this problem by stating that they only hold " 20 -30 events a year " there, they neglect to mention the daily use of the track and weekends such as the 27th & 28th January when two small groups of people made enough noise to be heard in a 4 km radius. You can listen to examples of this noise here.
These clips are 30- 40 seconds long , try to imagine this noise being forced into your home all day, every day and sometimes until late at night.

Lets look at what the Christchurch City Council says about their Vision for our future City : Everyone’s quality of life improves as our region develops and : " Our natural resources (air, land and water) are protected and kept free of pollution "

Ratepayers in this area would like to ask the Christchurch City Council why this "vision" doesn't apply to them.

Ruapuna Noise Rules

Post 1999 Rules Set in place in the 1999 City Plan ( NO consultation at all with local residents )

(/ii) Ruapuna Raceway

Operational noise levels of 90dBA Lmax and 65dBA L10 (1 hour)
to apply between the hours of 0900 and 2200 hours on any day of the calendar year, except that:

.for up to 200 days in any calendar year, the permitted levels
shall be 95dBA Lmax and 80dBA L10 (1 hour), between the hours of
0900 and 2300;
.for up to 15 of those 200 days, these activities shall be
permitted up to 2400 hours;

On up to 5 of those 200 days, no L _max level shall be applied.


Now - look at what the World Health Organisation says about Noise Management .
You might also be interested in these Australian Noise Rules which DO take the rights of residents into consideration. This is a short version of their rules

Editorial - Christchurch Press

(Courtesy of Press Website )
Published 24th February 2006

The letters received by this paper and news stories display a rare upsurge of community anger. Templeton residents are at the limits of endurance over car noise from Ruapuna Raceway – every day of the year, until late at night, and loud. The strength of their case is shown by the failure of anyone to challenge it seriously. The council is pretty much not talking and Ruapuna's supporters rely on two unpersuasive points – that the raceway was there before many of the complainants and that it operates within its resource consents. Neither point recognises that people's wellbeing comes before the letter of the law and prior possession. People are entitled to reasonable tranquility – especially when at home – and the track's noise prevents the enjoyment of that right.
The ideal solution would be for motorsport to shift its activities further out, but that would be expensive. Needed is a practical compromise that has the support of all – if a possible deal involving Fulton Hogan's purchase of the Ruapuna site and the profit-taking track owners shifting to secluded pastures does not come through.
A tightening of permitted noise levels and times of operation would ease residents' discomfort and let the racing fraternity keep their facility. It would not wholly satisfy either side, because the sport would be restricted when it is gaining popularity and some noise nuisance would continue. But compromise would improve living conditions for Templetonians and keep Ruapuna operating. It could be quickly brought about and avoid contentious hearings.
Someone needs to facilitate the compromise – a task the area's local body representatives are suited to. Sensibly, they have begun to do this by calling a meeting of interested parties and the city council. As well, the council has begun to get facts on the table as the result of noise monitoring.
This is welcome but unfortunately a voluntary compromise will probably not be brokered. Residents want car noise completely extinguished and Ruapuna's users are keen to expand their activities, rather than limit them. It is hard to see the sides agreeing on a solution. That means more argument, delay, noise and imposed controls – and then continued dissatisfaction.
Eventually motorsport will have to shift its track to a more isolated venue, as has happened before in Christchurch and is common with race tracks world wide. Car noise and housing do not mix. Intrusive, continuous and loud noise is torture.

From The Christchurch Press Nov 21st 2006

Ruapuna din 'harms mental health'

Loud noises from Ruapuna raceway could be causing mental health problems for nearby residents, a new clinical opinion suggests.

A clinical adviser from the Canterbury District Health Board has sent a letter to Christchurch Mayor Garry Moore, which said noise from the raceway had caused "significant deterioration in mood, depressive symptoms and ... high levels of stress" to those affected by the noise.

Several residents living close to Ruapuna had been referred by general practitioners to specialists after suffering problems related to "constant and excessive noise", the letter said.

The letter described residents forced to wear earmuffs, getting extra insulation, putting on loud music or leaving their houses to avoid the noise.

One family referred to the clinical adviser said the problem had started only two years ago when Ruapuna was given the go-ahead to operate 364 days per year, three times more than the previous limit of 120 days.

The letter's author, who did not wish to be named, urged the council to review decisions and asked that further consideration be given to the "impact of these decisions on the mental health of the residents".

"There is an issue for the physical and mental health of the community that needs to be addressed," the letter said.

Residents close to Ruapuna yesterday told The Press the noise from the raceway was "brutal, intrusive, and unnecessary".

One member of the residents' group Quieter Please, who did not want to be named, said this weekend's New Zealand Motorsport Summer Series would be a nightmare.

"Residents are dreading this weekend. It is not just two days of racing, there is two days of practice and a speedway event on Saturday night.

"Staying inside certainly doesn't stop it," she said.

Christchurch City Councillor Bob Shearing said the raceway operators could not be restricted.

"The operators are meeting all the standards required of them."

Shearing felt the standards were acceptable and said nothing could be done to change the raceway unless someone "goes through the process of changing the standards".

Mike Steere . Christchurch Press . November 21st 2006

Spin & Myth

On the 22nd November 2006 the following quote was printed in a Press article on the health effects of noise on residents living around Ruapuna:

Canterbury Car Club member Paul Williams said the race-track was a useful and lucrative resource ............ Williams felt the availability of the track also helped in getting boy racers off the street.

This is a myth and it seems the only people who believe it ( or want to believe it ) are Ruapuna Management and Christchurch City Council.
The "boyracer' problem in Christchurch has never been as bad as it is now, residents in the City are being driven to distraction by their noise and antics as are residents in this area. , who often have up to 400 - 500 boy racers causing havoc late on weekend nights.

Another exerpt from The Christchurch Press ( October 2006 ) :
"Dr Simon Kingham's research into the driving habits of 200 young car enthusiasts shows that those who attend motorsport events are more likely to emulate their heroes on the streets of Christchurch than those who stay away from the events " ...... "Canterbury road policing manager, Inspector Derek Erasmus, said he was not surprised by the findings. "

"The residents in the Ruapuna area would agree with the research, with the consequential behaviour they witness after the events – local complaints always go up." .....

Here are photographs taken after the last two events held at Ruapuna which attracted large amounts of 'boyracers" :

The first photograph is of one of many accidents which occur during and after these events , a local woman narrowly missed being hit by this car as it passed another car on a corner after speeding out of Ruapuna . On the weekend of this accident Police had up to seven cars patrolling our roads to try to contain the loutish and dangerous behaviour of these "car enthusiasts ". Bottles were thrown from cars onto the roads and one resident had a bottle thrown AT him while he was clearing broken glass from his driveway.



The second photograph shows what happened after last weekend's Drift Racing when a car load of hoons stopped on their way back from Ruapuna and took the trouble to run over this letterbox.
We're not sure why Ruapuna Management think that they are curbing Christchurch's boyracer problem when all the evidence shows quite the opposite. Residents and Police can all testify to the fact that events aimed at boyracers bring nothing but trouble for this area.
Postscript(a) after nearly 4 years of sleepless nights every weekend, accompanied by property damage, arson, tagging, letterboxes being wrecked on a weekly basis and some residents too scared to leave their homes, the City Council has agreed with Police that this can't go on and has made our neighbourhood a night-time "no-go area" for boyracers on weekends and public holidays. A BIG thankyou to local Police for all their hard work and to Council Staff and Councillors for making this happen. Its amazing what a decent sleep can do !
Now Government needs to come to the party and curb this blight of "modified exhausts" so that all ratepayers can have some respite from cars that sound like spitfire airplanes.

Postscript (b) As if we need more evidence that providing events for Boy Racers DOESN'T improve their driving behaviour : Yesterday (29th July 2007 ) Ruapuna hosted an event aimed at Boy Racers, three local residents had cause to call Police asking for help and a Police presence when cars arriving at and leaving the event were observed doing wheelies on local roads, speeds in excess of 140 kmh & chewing up grass verges in front of homes while "fishtailing" along them.
The driver of one of these cars (a gold Mitsubishi Evo with a black bonnet & the number plate THRSHT ) seems to have not realised that local roads are NOT Ruapuna's practise area.

Another"Drift" Day , Yet Another Accident

Saturday 25th August : Locals have spent all morning on the phone trying to get a Police presence in the area because our roads today are BEDLAM. Two locals phoned Police after seeing cars racing side by side on their way to "drifting" at Ruapuna, one local saw 3 cars racing side by side at one stage . LOUD "modified " cars are speeding up and down local roads, some reaching speeds of 140 - 180 kmh.
Bottles are once again being thrown from cars and one car load of boyracers, so drunk they could barely stand upright, stopped to urinate on a local's garden .. mind you, at least they stopped .

Yesterday, practise day for this event, saw cars leaving Ruapuna and heading up local shingle roads to hoon, at one stage 3 cars were seen weaving and fishtailing at high speed.

A local man out walking could have been killed as the car,pictured above, lost control on a corner, close to where he was walking , slid 400 metres up the road and hit this lampost .( knocking out power to the area ) The boy racers inside this car walked away but not before boasting to Fire Crew that their car did "200 kmh" .
"Send them to Ruapuna" is the cry we often hear , well holding events aimed at Boy Racers really DOESN'T make OUR roads any safer at all and judging by the driving behaviour we're seeing today it won't make anybodys roads safer.

..and Friday, Saturday & Sunday

Do pictures speak louder than words ?
These videos demonstrate what locals have had to listen to in the past 3 days . The first clip is the sound of two people driving their cars around and around the track at Ruapuna, this continued all day, the second clip is a very small number of cars which continued all of Sunday until rain intervened. Saturday's noise was the same level as these clips. No doubt your computer sound levels may be set differently than others - this noise was NOT a low buzzing noise , it was LOUD and could easily be heard over 3 km away :


Sunday's Noise:

Comment from a long time local

For the first time in well over a month locals have had a few quiet days ( cars using the track actually using decent mufflers & wet weather ) , this post was originally about the impact a bit of peace and quiet has on people , but after finishing this post , a comment arrived from a local outlining his feelings on the issue and how the noise has affected his life.
We've left in the video and will let this resident's words speak (click on "Comments" below).
Once again, for those fans of noise - who so avidly read our blog and who seem to enjoy leaving abusive or inane comments (" F*** off then you whingers " - or " how long have you lived there you moaning ****** ),we have told you before, we listen to your noise nearly every day - this is OUR Blog , you blow your noise out through your exhaust pipe every day forcing others to listen to you - you can't force us to listen to you here.
This video depicts what a day free of noise from Ruapuna is like - this is what it USED to be like in this area a lot of the time.Contrast this with video below this post - filmed in same garden with same camera

One Car

Wonder why locals have recently started to call Ruapuna " The Neighbours from Hell " ?
Up until a couple of years ago NOT ONE neighbour had a problem with this track.
Now they listen to noise virtually very single day.
Noise much like this - which continued for approximately 6 hours on Wednesday 7th March. Amazingly this was recorded approximately 3/4 kilometre away.This noise forced it's way INTO homes 2km away .This noise was clearly heard 3 km away. This noise is being made by ONE person. It is being forced into HUNDREDS of homes.

To Watch Videos

We have uploaded more videos to youtube . To watch them click on the link at right ( Video evidence of Noise ) or click here . Once you are on our Youtube page you can access all our videos by clicking on " More from this user " and using the scroll bar to scroll down.

2 emails - 2 opinions

After a small leaflet drop in Templeton we received, amongst others, the two emails below. We have taken out any identifying details but otherwise they are reproduced word for word ( so don't blame us for bad spelling !)

Email #1
To whom it may concern;
You will either hate what I am about to say,or respect sombody elses
opinion.
I have several points to bring up regarding your mail drops in the Templeton
area.
1:you must have known of the existance of Ruapuna before you moved into the
area,therefore surely you took this into account,so why complain about a
facility that was there first.
2:If you failed to consider the noise generated by a motor racing facility
then either a;you just plain made a mistake,or b;you are ignorant beyond
belief
3:The reason you are not getting much response from council is that there is
millions of dollars tied up in the facility and 99% of the population of the
south island are aware that it is there and would not move into the area if
they had sensitive hearing or were highly stressed individuals.
4:if you bought a house in the area without realising how noisy motor racing
is,you made a mistake.You should accept that and if it is that much of an
issue then MOVE to a more pieceful area.
5: STOP WASTING PAPER
6: STOP WASTING MY TIME
7: STOP LITTERING
8: STOP WYNING
9: ADMIT YOU MADE A MISTAKE
10: MOVE
Best Regards and good luck re-locating,
( Name deleted for privacy )

Email #2

Dear Quiet Please

I got your leaflet in our letterbox today and believe me I already do ring Noise Control !

My husband and I have lived in this township for many - many years. (At present we live in ******* ) We were here well before that noisy place was put there. For many years we just ignored it, it wasn't on very often and we, like most people around here, just accepted the situation. However in the past few years we have noticed an increase in both the frequency and noise levels of Ruapuna and believe me, we don't have young ears! Last week I tossed and turned for what felt like hours before I leapt from my bed and phoned Noise Control at 11.30 pm on a Thursday night. My memory isn't quite what it used to be but i'm fairly sure they used to stop at 10 pm until a few years ago.

Often when I am out in my garden during the week or if I am out walking , I can hear some bored person with too much money roaring around and around that track monotonously and as you can see from my address I don't live that close to the track either !

I know that some in this township badmouth your group , making comments such as " if they don't like it then they should move" or " they shouldn't have moved into the area" What exactly do these people want ? A 5 mile exclusion zone around that track ? The fact of the matter is that most houses in this area have been here since well before Ruapuna became a carbuncle on our landscape and before the noise reached epidemic proportions ( and even if they haven't been, so what ? ) Nobody should be entitled to inflict that amount of noise onto neighbours. If they have enough money to race cars why don't attach decent mufflers as well ?

I'm sorry if I sound angry, but the fact is, I am angry, this USED to be a good quiet Rural township and now Garry Moore and his chums have handed over our rights to car racing folk, who in the main, head home to quiet areas once they've made their noise in our area.

My husband and I are appreciative of your group's efforts as are quite a few people here, the problem is that many people don't like to stand up out from the crowd and others like to complain but not DO anything, I think we fall somewhere between the two so many thanks for your efforts.

Keep up the good work

Regards
( Name deleted for privacy )

Please click "Comments" below to read more.

Late January

Thursday 25th : Loud Cars on the track ALL DAY

Thursday Night - Speedway until 11.30 PM ( Loud enough to be heard in Prebbleton)

Friday 26th : Loud cars on the track all day

Saturday 27th : Loud cars on the track all day

Saturday Night : Speedway until 11.00 PM ( Loud enough to be heard in Prebbleton)

Sunday 28th January : Loud cars on track ALL DAY

Monday 29th January: 1-2 loud cars on track all day ( once again a single car which could be heard outside the Cookietime Factory Shop on the Main South Road )

The previous week, noise from Motorcycle racing and practise continued for 3-4 days in a row - this was so loud it was audible over 5 km away at times.

This level of noise is happening because the rules concerning noise from Ruapuna are SO liberal that this is actually permissable, unlike other Countries ( and indeed other cities in NZ ) which have regulated Noise producing Racetracks so that residents living nearby are afforded some protection and respite from noise.

Residents who for decades lived alongside Ruapuna with no complaints have now had their lives affected to the point that some of them are suffering health problems because of the continual noise.

On January 30th the noise continued from the Open Track at Ruapuna but thankfully at a lower level .
January 31st delivered loud noise from both the Open Track AND Speedway throughout the day, until 6.00 pm when the driver of an incredibly loud car finally tired of driving around the Open Track . No doubt he then headed home for some peace and quiet.

Goodwill to all ... ?

Xmas eve.... a time usually given to quiet nights with family and early nights for children who head to bed to sleep and await Santa's arrival .

Not for 2-3 Powerbuilt Speedway members, who at about 6 pm decided to roar around the track on bikes until well after dark ( about 10 pm) keeping children awake and enhancing their reputation as "neighbours from hell".
Thanks also for running the grader on your track ALL day on Boxing Day, a day treasured by most Kiwis as a day on which to quietly relax . Very considerate.

Then , in another great example of " how to be the perfect neighbours-from-hell " , on December 27th at 7.15 in the morning , a lone but LOUD motorcyclist hit the Powerbuilt Speedway track, waking up locals as far away as 1.5 km. There's a word for people like this but we won't use it here.

They've taken the "sport " out of Motorsport

If you would like to get an understanding of why Auckland Speedway promoter Dave Stewart ran advertisements on ChCh radio last year saying " We're not allowed to make noise in Auckland so we're coming to CHRISTCHURCH to make it ! " , just check out this video. Unlike Aucklanders, people living here have been given no protection at all from the shocking and unhealthy noise levels demonstrated in these videos. Here is another example of noise from last saturday night.

This noise started at 7.00 pm and finished at approx. 11.30 pm .

After that residents on were kept awake by traffic leaving Speedway until 12.30 pm THEN until 2.15 am they listened to the rattling trailers and loud vehicles of Competitors leaving down local roads. The Speedway has a 24 hour Liquor License .

In every way Saturday 16th December was an appalling day - from 8 am when locals listened to speeding boyracer cars arriving to set up for Drift Racing at the Powerbuilt Racetrack - to the enforced noise of Drift Racings' squealing tyres, and cars so loud they could be heard inside homes in the Templeton Township 3km away. This is noise from their Practise day - held on 12th December.

An hour or so of relative quiet and into another block of noise - this time from Speedway and so loud that people living 10 km away could hear it.

Then to top it off a fireworks display in an area full of Horse Training establishments.

After dropping a note in local's letterboxes giving 48 hours notice of a fireworks display "between 9.30 - 10 pm " this Saturday Night, Ruapuna Speedway actually held the display at 11.40 pm .

This meant that local farmers and trainers had to stand out in paddocks for 2 hours waiting for this "display" to start in an attempt to be there to calm horses and other stock .One resident left his night- shift job early to get home and look after horses only to have to stand about for two hours.
Residents have asked Speedway Management NOT to hold Fireworks displays because the mortars used terrify stock . There have been two instances where horses, frightened by the noise , have bolted through fences, incurring large Vet fees . These people are indeed the " neighbours from hell ". This area has been "the home of Harness Racing " for longer than Ruapuna has been here .

It's not just on weekends that locals are force fed this noise. During the week this racetrack continues to force noise onto neighbours. This noise carried on for eight and a half hours on Friday 16th December.

This extremely noisy racetrack complex now operates virtually every day from 9 in the morning until 6 at night thanks to rules set down in the 1999 Christchurch City Plan. Of course when Speedway operates the noise carries on until close to midnight.

Remember when listening to the above videos, that they were filmed one km from the track .Consider also that inside the track, where, judging from a photo in today's Press, many children are seated just metres from this noise, levels reach 110 dbA - hearing loss can be caused by exposure to noise at 85dbA. This noise is THREE TIMES louder than that .

Consultation - what's that ?

Despite claims by Ruapuna management that Templeton residents "had every opportunity to make submissions " not one resident did.
Why ? Because not one resident knew about the proposed rule change.
Why ? Because other parties involved in the rule change did NOT have the common decency or civic mindedness to directly inform the local community that the rule change was in the pipeline.

Members of the various Ruapuna Car Clubs , who could have, in some cases, walked across the road to the homes of residents who have lived alongside their track for decades, didn't even give them the courtesy of a letter , or an item in the small community newsletter.

Christchurch City Council and our Community Board didn't alert locals to the fact that a MotorRacing track had applied to extend their hours of operation and increase their permitted noise levels.
City Council and Community Board didn't advocate on behalf of residents and ratepayers in this area . They listened to submissions that spoke of the need to make NOISE and completely forgot( ?) that residents would have to listen to this noise.

It seems that once this had happened once then it was OK to keep doing it. As if the rule change wasn't bad enough, in 2001 some bright spark had a really DUMB idea. lets spend $70,000 on a "burnout pad " and situate it at Ruapuna....(way to look after the environment guys ! ) Locals called a meeting to oppose it. Hundreds of them turned out to voice their opposition and at the end of the meeting they were promised that they would have a chance to make submissions about it. A month later they got a letter telling them the burnout pad was "non notifiable " - tough luck !
( The burnout Pad has been used about 3-4 times since 2001 - way to waste ratepayers money guys ! )

More recently a resident in this area was alerted to the fact that No Stopping signs were going to be placed outside homes in Hasketts Road - " to save Ruapuna money on traffic management ".... " consultation has taken place ...with Ruapuna and the Templeton Golf Club "
NOT with locals outside whose homes these signs were to be placed !
They consulted the people who were directly and financially benefitting from the signs - and a Golf Club . The only part of the Golf Course affected was the BACK of the course , not the frontage, or the entranceway but the BACK of the course. But those people who actually LIVE in the area and who would most affected by a No Stopping sign outside their properties were not consulted at all !
After hearing of the proposal affected locals had two days to write letters opposing it.
In the end, the signs were not put up outside their homes but if an alert resident from Awatea hadn't spotted this travesty and alerted locals then it would have been yet another example of Council appalling lack of consultation with this community.
We're not sure how much this exercise cost , but most weekends you can drive past these No Stopping signs - and have a chuckle at all the cars parked in and around them.
Way to waste ratepayers money guys !
The lack of consultation with local residents is an indictment on this Council and makes a mockery of it's 'visions' and 'commitments to consult".
Locals are also not well served by one of our Councillors, Bob Shearing, who when phoned by one of his constituents regarding noise from Ruapuna told them " i'm not going to take sides ". Well Councillor Shearing, you stood for Council to represent people in this Ward NOT the Motor Racing lobby and we would suggest that at the very least you could drive out here one day and meet the people affected by this noise.

Our Submission to Council

Submission- read to the ChCh City Council On August 24th 2006

This problem is about Noise Pollution - pure and simple - and how it is affecting the health and lives of ratepayers and residents in our area

Living within a 5 km radius of a motor racing facility should not disqualify people from the basic human right to enjoy some peace and quiet , especially over the summer months , when everybody likes to get out and enjoy the warmer weather and longer evenings

The Christchurch City Council is the Landlord of the area leased to Motor Racing Interests in Canterbury. Your tenants, up until recently, have been good neighbours . However since the City Plan has taken effect your tenants have become the proverbial neighbours from hell . The amount of noise and associated problems coming from the Powerbuilt facility at Ruapuna now amounts to what could only be described as a Legal Nuisance.

Prior to 1999 Ruapuna was allowed to make noise between 65 dbA (l10) and 85 DbA 120 days a year between 9 am and 7 pm – the rest of the time they had to comply with Open Space 3.

For those who live in our area these rules afforded us protection, gave us a good amount of quiet time and allowed Ruapuna users a good crack at what is a very noisy pastime.

After 1999 Ruapuna was permitted to make noise up to 90 dbA on any day of the year ( 365 days ) and on 200 of these days they are allowed to make noise up to 95 dbA – between 9 am and 11 pm

These rules may have looked harmless on paper, and theory is all very well but we are here to tell you that in real life they are causing health problems and heartache and this part of the City Plan simply isn’t working

So that you might know what these decibel numbers sound like we would like to show you a video, some of this footage was taken from the house of a nearby resident and some of it was taken 1.4 km away. You will see a short passage which starts with some birdsong, this is the sound of one car on the track, it’s followed by footage of the same car taken from inside the home of a local, all doors and windows are shut . All of this noise you are about to hear is heard in the Templeton Township as the second statement in your information package shows and the speedway noise at the end can easily be heard up to 10 km away on many nights. The first footage is of drift racing ( DVD of Noise played to Councillors )

Overseas Noise Pollution Experts have commented that this noise is outrageous and one states that the levels set in the City Plan are the highest he has seen in his 30 years as a Noise Expert.

You will know by now, that there are many, many weeks when we are exposed to Noise seven days a week, and on some of these days we are exposed to noise from nine in the morning until, literally , past 11 at night.

That’s an appalling FOURTEEN hours a day. Most days in the summer we average 6-8 hours a day and by anyone’s standards that’s a disgrace.

We have often had to listen to that Speedway Noise (A DVD of Noise from Ruapuna was played to Councillors ) until close to midnight, when both adults and children are trying to sleep . A mother in W********* road, well over 5km away tells us that her children are kept awake by this noise. Sometimes we listen to that noise twice on ONE weekend.

Compare this with this Australian example of Motor Racing Noise Levels in your information package.

 We KNOW that Ruapuna complies with the City Plan, although does not absolve it from
adherence  to Section 16 of the Resource Management Act – we know the numbers and
we know that your  noise experts say that they are acceptable.They are NOT acceptable.
It is not acceptable that  ratepayers have to leave their own homes for hours on end,
day after day,  to find peace and quiet,  it is NOT acceptable that some in our community
are suffering ill health because of this noise and it is NOT acceptable that two summers
have passed  and now we are looking at another  “summer from hell” 

In many countries overseas it is seen as imperative to PROTECT people from Noise Pollution, but here it seems it was OK to actually increase the dose of noise emitted into our Community , we would have thought it sensible to either lower noise levels and increase days or decrease days and raise noise levels .. but to actually treble days of operation and more than Double Noise Levels beggars belief ,

We think that people living near a motor racing facility should be protected not punished

Talkback & Noise

Following another article in The Christchurch Press , Christchurch talkback hummed for a while with calls about noise from Ruapuna.
A few local residents called Ali Jones and spoke of the effects of the increase in noise and their anger at Council for allowing this to happen.

Ali also took calls from members of various car clubs , one gem of a caller stated that he could hear Speedway from his home at Church Corner and it didn't bother him ! ( Church Corner is a good ten minute drive from Ruapuna ) - if he can hear it from his house how does he think the callers from Templeton feel about it ?

A Drag Club member trotted out the tired old argument about "how long have people lived there " - we note that he didn't mention the Templeton Golf Course which was there 30 years BEFORE Ruapuna and the Templeton Township has been here since 1861. Most of the homes in the rural area around Ruapuna have been there since the 1960's and some have been there since the 1950's , indeed a high percentage of present residents have been here since BEFORE Ruapuna was dumped out here, we are tired of listening to the noise from what is now being called " the neighbour from hell ".

Ali also took a call from a self described " motor racing nut " who said he ate, drank and breathed motor racing .." there wouldn't be a bigger motor racing man than me " he said , BUT he thought that Ruapuna were not behaving as Good Neighbours should and weren't giving local residents a "fair go". He also observed that there was absolutely no planting around the facility to mitigate noise and that the facility had gotten too noisy for its present situation.

We agree .

A bouquet ... and a brickbat

This post was originally titled " A Bouquet " but we've since added a brickbat, the paragraph immediately below was written on the evening of Thursday 9th November :
Since Monday 6th November locals have enjoyed an unprecedented FOUR days in a row of QUIET - this is due in part to rain but also because Audi have been hiring the track to test these vehicles.
How utterly pleasant to have vehicles using this track which are very quiet and can't be heard for miles around - what a difference it makes to the lives of locals.

A Brickbat to the owners/ drivers of the two VERY loud cars who couldn't even shut up for a minute on Armistice Day at 11.11 am , people as far away as Templeton heard your noise as they tried to observe a minutes silence .

Guy Fawkes day goes off with a bang

The noise started at 9.15 this morning - Sunday.
A supporter living in Hornby has phoned to say the noise is driving him to distraction and that his morning in the garden is over and he's off inside to get away from the noise.

A mother living in the rural area has taken her children away for the day because she's concerned about their young ears and because the noise means she is unable to go outside. She left home, she marked time, staying away until 5.30 and returned to find this noise still going - 8.5 hours after it started!
She wasn't the only one driven from her HOME this Sunday and it's an indictment on this Council that residents have had noise force fed to them on Saturday , Saturday Night AND Sunday. We wonder if someone from Council would like to pay us a visit and explain to us exactly HOW residents are supposed to cope with these levels of noise ?
NB : The wind is actually blowing sound AWAY from the home where the noise is being recorded and the home is approx. 1.5 km from the track - which gives an indication of the severity of the noise.