Sharing Soundscapes; Human and non- human mutualistic inhabitation of the urban suburbia.

SHARING SOUNDSCAPES; Human and non- human mutualistic inhabitation of the urban suburbia.

Santiago Beckdorf Solรก

�...I remember the sound of the gravel under my feet, the soft gleam of the waxed oak staircase, I can hear the heavy front door closing behind me as I walk along the dark corridor and enter the kitchen, the only really brightly lit room in the house.�

- Peter Zumthor Thinking Architecture

Bartlett School of Architecture University College London, UCL London, UK 2017 18 Design Thesis Report MArch Urban Design Santiago Beckdorf Solå RC11_Antropogenic Topographies Ana Abrams, Aisling O’ Carroll History and Theory Rae Whittow Williams

ÂżHow to produce, through sound manipulation, a mutualistic relationship between human and animals under the process of erosion that natural environment is suffering because of urban sprawl?

Acknowledgements To my family for believing in me.

Thanks to every single chilean, for making this real, through CONICYT Becas Chile Scholarship program. Feel a great commitment and responsability.

Thanks to the Bartlett School of Architecture and our tutors for pushing us to think beyond limits of visible things to get deep inside the world of sound.

For those who through sound shed light onto the world

Contents

Acknowledgekents Glossary Preface Introduction

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Chapter 01;

19

Sonic Dimension; Perception Paradox

Chapter 02;

23

Change of Perception; from natural to urban soundscape

Chapter 03;

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Sound effects over human and non-human species

Chapter 04;

37

Synanthropic Thresholds

Chapter 05;

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Mutualistic Urbanism; tuning soundscapes to design symbiotic spaces within the London Greenbelt 05.1; Ecology

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Case study 01

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05.2;

Landscape Design

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Case study 02

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Conclusion;

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Bibliography;

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List of Figures;

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Glossary

Anthropogenic {adjective}

Def: what is caused by human activities.

Absorption {noun}

Def: acoustic absorption means when a material, structure or object, take some part of the energy of a sound wave when they collide. Some part of that energy is transformed into heat and the other is transmitted into the absorbing object. Is the opposite of reflection.

Diffraction {noun}

Def: a pattern caused by a change of direction of light, water or sound waves. Applied into acoustics, is the change of direction of a sound wave after passing over an obstacle.

Domesticate {verb}

Def: to bring animals or plants under human control in order to provide food, power or company.

Echo {noun}

Def: a sound that is heard after it has been reflected off a surface such as a wall or a cliff.

Echolocation {noun}

Def: a process in which animals, for example bats, find their way in the dark by producing soundwaves that echo when they are reflected off an object.

Ecology {noun}

Def: the branch of biology that deals with the relationships between animals, plants or any living being in their own environment.

Decibel {noun}

Def: a unit used to measure the intensity of a sound or the power level of an electrical signal by comparing it with a given level on a logarithmic scale. Used as a degree of loudness.

Frequency {noun}

Def: is a number of events in a specific period of time. In acoustics is what define the sound length wave and the pitch. The unit of sound frequency are Hertz (hZ).

Infrasound {noun}

Def: sound waves with frequencies below than human hearing range.

Mutualistic {noun}

Def: a relationship between two organisms in which both benefits from the association.

Perception {noun}

Def: the act of faculty of perceiving, or apprehending by means of the sense or of the mind.

Reflection {noun}

Def: is the change of direction of a wave after colliding to a material, surface or object.

Reverberation {noun}

Def: is the feeling of prolongation in the perception of a sound in an indoor space because of the effect of echo. effect of echo.

Soundscape {noun}

Def: refers to any sound composition related to a specific spatial condition.

Synantropic {noun}

Def: relationship between any kind of living being with human, where both gets benefits.

Suburbia {noun}

Def: area located within the city peripheries where there is a mix of land uses but mainly is residential.

Ultrasound {noun}

Def: sound waves with higher frequency than what human can hear.

Preface

This thesis report has been made within the context of the Design Project; Shaping Sound; which propose a strategic and a design guideline to the future developments will take place on the city peri urban areas, where human and non- human species dwell areas that are extremely sensible to land use transformation.

Under the topic of sound, and how through the manipulation of topography and ecology, is possible not only to produce synantropic inhabitation, but also to be able to tune soundscapes and enhance sound as an added value to a better and more liveable environment.

Fig. 1 Shaping Sound; Green corridor design in urban areas.

Fig. 2 Shaping Sound; Sound buffer design proposal.

Sharing Soundscapes

Introduction

It is a fact that cities are experiencing expansion processes, because of the increase of urban over rural population. This phenomenon requires considerable developments in terms of the infrastructure network that provide connections between the new urban clusters and the central parts of cities When we talk about urban sprawling, whatever the study case or theoretical focus is pointing on, the dimension “space and time� is essential to understand and put in evidence the transformations, and analyse the impacts that those changes have over different species in certain environments.

Sharing Soundscapes is about analysing how the expansion process of the city of London is producing deep transformations in the short time over different natural environments around the Green Belt, and how these anthropogenic processes are modifying the sonic composition which have several impacts over human and non-human species. Once the urban sprawl impacts over the natural soundscape are defined under the point of view of sound and the affected species -the goal is to re position and re-think these new urban clusters in the city periphery, in order to produce spaces of mutualistic inhabitation where despite the noisy infrastructures- said species can live in sonic environments where the perception of positive sound overlaps the negative perception sounds produced by urban infrastructures and human processes.

Our design project goal is to develop a design approach of the future sub urban clusters under the perspective of soundscape and ecology, though a design guideline of the new urban clusters that will be develop over the London Green Belt to address the need of housing produced by the migration of people from the city centre. The design position has been taken from the large scale of the Green Belt, considering a new way of how the urban expansion should be outlined close to the infrastructures. Under that proposal, we jumped into the site scale to analyse the soundscape and the species involved, so the idea is to figure out how to take advantage, through a design proposal, of natural soundscape conditions manipulating the sound produced by the road (main sound source on the Green Belt).

Therefore, the importance of the thesis report, inside the framework of the design project is that it gives a more theoretical basis about the relevance of sound for both human and non-human species and why sound is and will continue being a relevant concern in terms of urban planning and urban design, within the context of the city expansion and the transformation of the natural landscape into urban environments.

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Introduction

Fig. 3 Urban Cluster. North area London Greenbelt

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Introduction

The research we have made so far, shows a dramatic change in the perception of urban sound in the last century. People is getting conscious that “noise� defined as un- wanted sounds produces negative effects over physical and psychological health (Newman, 1960). In addition, there are many study cases that point out the importance of reducing the amount of sound of airports close to urban areas, because of the negative impacts it has over people (Chapter 3). Furthermore, technological developments in electrical transport and building materials are now relevant issues in many developed countries over the world. So, there is an existing pressure from the contemporary society to take care about urban soundscape.

The missing point of this, is that we share the urban environment with other non- human species that are also being affected by the sound production of the urban fabric. And the complexity of dealing with animal species is that there is a broad range of acoustic perceptions, so the first step to outline a solution that address many players, is to have a deep understanding of how those species behaves under specific sonic conditions, and from that point it would be possible to define design strategies that will ensure a sonic high quality environment and increase not only urban biodiversity, but also human wellbeing.

Fig. 4 Urban Infrastrures. London Bridge Station Antropoghenic Sound Networks

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 5 Sound spreading behaviour and space perception

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Sonic Dimension: Perception Paradox

Chapter 01;

SONIC DIMENSION Perception Paradox

[The importance of sound in our experience of the world and how many species human and non-human use sound as a way of perceiving the environment.]

Living beings dispose of many different methods to build their own experience of the world (Irwin, Hall, Peters and Plack, 2011). Whatever the medium they inhabit, they have mechanisms to define their space and interact with the environment and other living beings. Some species have developed a sharp sense of sight, eagles can see eight times more than humans do, also they have a precise and quick focus system which allow them to change the point of view in movement when they are seeking for a prey. Another example of an outstanding sight capacity are owls, apart from having the ability to move their heads in 270º and have a wide angle of vision, they see clearly during night time because of “tapetum lucidum”, a thin tissue located behind the retina, which reflects the light back, passing again through the eye and increasing the light collected to have a better view in low light.

As well as sight, living beings have also other senses that allow to build our environments, and one of the most important of them is hearing. Humans without the sense of sight develop a special sound sensibility that becomes the main resource to re build and re define the spatial environment. As Steven Connor declares; “Sound has the capacity to disintegrate and reconfigure space” (Gandi 2014; p09).

The same as the brain translate photons in colours, also sound give us a perception of space through sonic physic phenomenon such as echo, reverberation and sound diffraction, and many species use it as their main instrument to interact with their environments. It is well known the case of whales, which through pulses or clicks, they send sound waves to the bottom of the sea and they bounce back and make possible to identify the composition of the seabed, as well as identifying friendly and non-friendly species. In addition, they communicate between each other using a distinctive sound that can travel for many hundred meters under the sea, making possible to cover vast distances within a group of more whales.

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Sharing Soundscapes

Other non-human species that has developed a sophisticated mechanism to relate with their environment are bats. A lot of research have been done so far about echolocation and how bats manage to live in a low light environment, without a sharp sight sense, but with a perfect spatial perception made from sound manipulation. As well as whales clicking and pulses, bats use echolocation as a SONAR system (Sound Navigation and Ranging), producing a range of ultrasonic frequency sound of about 200 kilohertz (kHz). To have a reference, human can hear a top range of 20 kHz. The advantage of using such a high frequency, is that with a lower wave length, they can recognize in a higher definition the topography and different small living beings as insects and plants (Maltby, Jones, and Jones, 2010). This is the same as seeing through sound.

The importance of understanding sound as a physical phenomenon that help us to have a better perception of the spatial context of a certain place, but also, gives us clues to be able to manipulate sound to produce desired physical and psychological effects over a subject in a defined environment.

Many pieces of research, support that low frequency sounds produce negative impacts over living beings (Chapter 3), even when you don’t perceive an infrasound band of less than 50 hZ, it produces so much pressure that after a long-time exposure, your heart rate, blood pressure and central nervous system suffer deep alterations. On the other hand, even when high frequency sounds feel un comfortable for human, they are less harmful than infrasound.

But here is when objective knowledge about sound and its effects, relates with the subjective world of perception in a paradoxical way. The most recognizable human manifestation of sound in our world, probably is music. If the objective and subjective dimension of sound where acting in coherence between them, we would have a clear and common opinion about some pieces of music. But even though, there is a better perception about classic music over other kind of music, still there is a lot of people that feel really pleased hearing music that is producing negative effects over them.

The world of senses is always dealing between a scientific background, empiric statistic data, and a subjective or perceptual valorisation of stimuli’s. Thus, every design project which seeks to work with the sensorial realm, is open to a positive and a negative valorisation from the users. There isn’t a perfect soundscape, music, lighting, smell or even a perfect taste. So, under this assumption, this thesis report will be a design input to develop spaces that offer healthy soundscape for both human and non-human species, but also, targeting the subjective world of perception, understanding who would be the users, and tuning spatial sound composition according to those specific users target.

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Sonic Dimension: Perception Paradox

Fig. 6 Whale SONAR system to scan the seabed

Fig. 7 Bat echolocation ultrasonic system to detect preys

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 8 Drumer and Horn player. Scene from the Story of the Marriage of Abhimanyu and Vatsala, 1850.

Fig. 9 US Marine Band, 1859.

Fig. 10 Sound Mirrors in the UK coast to detect planes in the 1st World War.

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Chapter 02;

CHANGE OF PERCEPTION

From nature to urban soundscape

[The evolution of sound perception over time. Starting from the definition of sound / noise according to natural and urban sound, to the changes on perception that urban sound has have from the industrialization to nowadays.]

“Industrialisation and new technologies have transformed our sound environment.

New sounds have appeared, have transformed our concept of hearing and have modified our aesthetic criteria” (Schryer, 1998).

“The study of sound as a physical, sensorial, social or environmental phenomenon is not a concern that belongs to the contemporary society” (Morley and Somdahl – Sands, 2011, 59). As it was pointed out in the last chapter, if we think about music, we can go far away in the past and we are going to find many different sonic manifestations related with multiple purposes such as religious practices in ancient cultures, communication systems, also war songs were used by many cultures to intimidate their opponents, and also, it reached a social dimension in the Greek Roman theatre and scenic arts.

At that moment, sound was intentioned and had a purpose. But there have been many human activities that produce multiple kind of sounds. The constant pitch of the rock hitting by a hammer to give them the right shape that would produce walls, columns, streets and every single piece of architecture. For a long time, sound was more related to natural environments, and certain human manifestations.

With all the technology development, the meaning of sound started a vertiginous transformation, and, the way people perceive it because of different human processes started to change as well. The industrial revolution in 18th century is the shifting point of this whole transformation process, and how soundscapes were phenomenology perceived in a different way (Gandy, 2014). Cities become noisy places where fabrics, markets, harbours and many other infrastructures and activities were responsible of a whole new range of sounds (Gandy, 2014). Within the context of modernisation, blacksmith building the rails of the new train that was going to connect two cities, had a positive perception on the society because it was 23

Sharing Soundscapes

an evidence of progress. Consequently, the soundscape of cities changed dramatically because of the transport industry. From chariots, to trains and finally cars to get to the city as we know today.

At a certain point, people start moving into the cities, because of the amount of working opportunities, access to better health and to many consumption products.

Within this context of migration process, the year 2008 was known as shifting point, in which more than a half of the human population (of that moment) moves into cities. So, we became an urban humanity. And because of that, more transport infrastructure network were needed to satisfy the different human processes that take place in cities (Brinckerhoff Jackson, 1984), producing an increase in the amount of sound inside urban environments, thus, what was before the “human environment” ruled by the sound of nature, suddenly was replaced by a constant mask of sound produced by an infinity of sources (Nielsen, 2014).

Even though, the sound perception inside an urban environment could be positive, indeed many people doesn’t feel un comfortable with the idea of dwell a noisy place ruled by traffic noise or other kind of man made sounds. Again, this is just a matter of perception and context (described in Chapter 1). As well as people likes tranquil places, with predominance of natural soundscapes, there are others that likes the sonic atmosphere of cities, and when they are exposed to this quiet area, they are not able even to get sleep at night. Or they feel annoyed because of the loudness of bird singing or foxes barking during night time.

Apart from people, animals prefer to dwell the urban realm, because of the many opportunities it offers in terms of shelter, resources and appropriate places for mating and birthing, still, it doesn’t mean that they are not affected by many kind of sounds that produce negative impacts over them.

For instance, many bird species living in urban areas, are experiencing severe decreases on their reproduction rates, because of the noisy environments, their communication capacity has been obstructed due a sound masking produced by traffic noise. Over 65 decibels, many species of birds have troubles communicating between them in a medium and short distance, which means that their mating capacity is reduced because of a noisy environment that doesn’t allow a clear communication. Is fair to say that 65 decibels could be a quiet borough in central London, far from any important road and without buses. So, in central areas, where the average of decibels rise to 80 or 85 decibels, birds are under sound levels that produces hearing loses and, they must increase the singing volume to attract their mates, which also produce damages in their singing system.

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Change of Perception

Fig. 11 Traffic Sound as main one of the main concerns of the city of London London Assambley

This is just to put in context how sonic perception has been changing over time within urban environments, and how those changes start affecting different players dwelling the urban fabric. And even though we have made the point about subjective perception of sound, the common valorisation of it is rapidly changing, because of the concern about the impacts urban sound has over people but also over animals. Now we have raised the flag of “quiet environments� as better places to live.

The irruption of electric vehicles for public transport such as buses and trains, but also particular cars, the regulation over night operations in airports close to urban areas, e.g. Heathrow night flights restriction since 1962 (Heathrow Airport Operation Handbook, 2018), are some examples of how to reduce the impact of sound pollution over urban areas, which shows a clear changing trend from a positive perception of urban sound, to a negative one. Is fair to think that in the future, urban areas should be quieter places, where nature sounds will rule the soundscape producing a completely different atmosphere than which we are dwelling nowadays.

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 12 Shaping Sound; Evolution of the perception of sound over time

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Change of Perception

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 13 Residential areas close to Heathrow Airport, London

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Chapter 03;

SOUND EFFECTS

Over human and non- human species [A scientific based overview about how certain kind of sound affects in different ways to specific kind of species.]

“Noise pollution is not only an environmental nuisance but also a threat to public health,” says Zsuzsanna Jakab, WHO Regional Director for Europe.

There is a blurry boundary that defines what is it considered as sound, and what is considered noise. The perception of the word “sound” is usually related with a positive valorisation like music for example, or with nature sounds such as wind blowing, rain or also birds singing. But, we talk about noise to add a negative value to a certain sound, because the feeling produced by it is not as pleasant as a “sound”, like music, could be. Furthermore, some people could consider music as noise, and that has to be with sound subjective perception (as explained in Chapter 1).

Even though, we can classify sounds as wanted or un wanted, isn’t enough objective basis to understand what positive or negative impact a sound has over a specific specie (Algers, Jensen, 1991; Kang, 2007). There are several studies that shows with evidences what impacts has different sounds over human dwelling in urban areas (Banser, 2014; Stansfeld, 2000; WHO,2009).

To understand a bit more about how sound, affect living beings, is necessary to divide it in its two main components; Decibels (dB) and Frequency (Hz).

Decibels are the nomination of a specific amount of energy/pressure that a sound wave has, in simple, is a degree of loudness. Meanwhile frequency is the measurement of the length of the sound wave, that defines the range of hearing according to different tones. A shorter wave length will be perceived as a high frequency sound, such as birds singing. T he opposite case of a long wave length, the result will be a lower pitch such as wind blowing or the general perception of urban sound.

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 14 Shaping Sound; Human and animal hearing ranges

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Sound effects

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 15 Shaping Sound; Negative effects over human and birds.

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Sound effects

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Sharing Soundscapes

Both decibels and frequency are relevant at the time to analyse the impacts that sound have over different species. But most of the charts that classifies the sounds according on the damage that produces over a specific specie is about decibels, and frequency is not considered on the equation, even though there is relevant information and studies about how low frequency noise (10-250 hZ), predominant in urban environment, is harmful for human (Castelhano, Baumans, 2009), and some species of birds (Luszczyńiska, 2009). It causes raise on blood pressure, nausea, sleeping problems (Ising & Ising, 2002) and at high pressure levels (dB) can produce concentration problems and stress (Fig. 15).

One interesting example that shows a clear relationship between low frequency sound and human negative effects is RANCH (Road traffic and Aircraft noise exposure and children’s cognition and health), published in the Lancet Journal of Medicine in 2005 and developed by Professor Stansfeld of the School of Medicine of University of London. The aim of the research was to find a linear relationship between the low frequency sound produced by traffic and aircrafts over more than 2,000 children between 9-10 years old, studing at schools close to Schipol, Barajas and Heathrow airports (Fig. 13). The results showed that there are cognitive skills related with the learning process that are affected by the long exposures to these kinds of sounds.

In the case of animals, specially birds, which are the most common specie within urban environment, there are different points of view according on low frequency sound and its positive and negative effects. On one hand, there are measurable consequences such as hearing loose or lack of communication which affects mate attraction and because of that impacts over the bird birthing (Fig. 15). Most of the cases of study are taking in account birds living in sub urban areas and natural environments, because there is possible to isolate certain sound sources which could be affecting their behaviour or health, meanwhile in the urban environment, is almost impossible to separate sounds because of the complexity of the sonic composition. Studies has proved that sound pollution affect birds by physical damage to ears, stress behaviour, flight patterns changes, mating and birthing effectiveness decrease, low response against predators, and vocal communication problems (Ortega, 2012).

Low frequency sound is related with human activities and urban environment, which can be generated by air conditioner systems, aircrafts, compressors (refrigeration systems) and heavy duty vehicles and by the friction between the car tires and the pavement of the road. As it was mentioned, it affects living beings, but also can affect buildings and other kind of structures, because it produces high

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Sound effects

levels of mechanical vibration, which can produce damages due the vibrations that are traveling through certain material. A clear example of this, is when we hear a kind of music with loud drums beats and the low frequency sound (less than 100 hZ) is capable to go through walls and floors and we cannot be sure where that sound is coming from.

The design project defines as one of the main strategies to deal with the low frequency sound, due the understanding of its impacts over living species and over the environmental soundscape. Specially, because the sources of this frequency band are mainly traffic (1000 hZ average over 40 km/hr) and aircraft sound, becomes from infrastructures located in the city peripheries, which are in the middle of an expansion process, and eventually more and more people will be living close to them. That’s why is relevant to look at the London Greenbelt as the case study to develop design solutions that protect the existing soundscapes, even though in a close future they are going to be transformed into urban areas.

Next chapter will be a zoom in into the case of the London Greenbelt, it’s story, aim, the current situation and future trends that makes relevant the discussion about how to include soundscapes into planning and urban design proposals.

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Fig. nn Typical London housing area within the Greenbelt

Chapter 04;

SYNANTHROPIC THRESHOLDS

Looking at the London peri- urban area

[How the city expansion will produce dramatic and quick transformation over the greenbelt soundscape, affecting a lot of species living in those natural environments and conditioning the life quality of people.]

The London Green Belt Policy, realised in the 1930’s cover approximately 5,100 square meters around the city to be the beginning of the countryside, but then the main reason was to constrain the city expansion, to protect the agricultural land use as a food supply for the city markets, and to prevent the fusion of the several rural towns, which means the loose of their cultural identity by being absorbed by other urban clusters. The major problem of London urban expansion was the increasing transport coast that people living in the peripheries would have to assume by living outside the city centre.

According to the 2011 census, the population of Greater London is 8,171,941 people, divided in inner London with 3,231,901 people and outer London with 4,942,040.

A report extracted from the mentioned census by the Trust of London organisation shows a slightly increasing migration trend to leave the city centre looking for better life quality (Fig. 18), even though traveling to the city centre may be a considerable expense. Within that context, and considering the housing needs that the city of London shows nowadays, which is about 66,000 houses per year according to London Mayor Sadiq Kahn in October 2017, urban infrastructures such as highways, motorways and railways will play a key role to prevent urban segregation and ensure quick connection for the citizens to central London.

All these facts, makes necessary to push a critical discussion about the future of the London Greenbelt policy, which points on the position that the city is going to take in terms of increasing density and higher buildings, or expanding its boundaries and offer transport solution for the people will be dwelling the sub urban areas.

Currently, the city of London has considerable density rates, comparing with other

Fig. 16 London Greenbelt suburbian condition. Juxtaposition of Urban and Natural

37

Fig. 17 Existing boundaries between residential areas and farming lands.

Synanthropic Thresholds

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 18 Population trend in London considering Inner and Outer London

big cities around the globe. In the 14th Edition of the Demographia World Urban Areas published in April 2018, which show the densest cities with a population over half million habitants, the city of London is in the place 479 with a density of 5,600 habitants per square kilometre (hab/sq.km), over Madrid, with a density of 4,700 hab/sq.km., Munich with 4,400 hab/sq.km, and Paris with 3,700 hab/sq.km. The average density of British cities is twice higher than United States average, and major cities in England, are denser than other European main cities (Whitehead, 2012).

There are three main scenarios that the city of London could face in order to address the housing issue, and each one of them has different kind of impacts in terms of infrastructures, public policies, land uses, landscape and ecological potential or social segregation. a) The first one is that the government bend the knee under the pressure of the market for increase the density and start developing higher buildings in the city. The benefits of this option are that density goes against expansion, so more people could live close to the city centre and that makes the city more efficient in terms of transport. On the other hand, and to achieve that goal, it would be necessary an important investment to support that population growth with a stronger transport network system. And it would be a threat to the London heritage and identity, when because of proficiency, buildings start to be demolish and replaced by another kind of architecture.

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Synanthropic thresholds

Urban Area Traffic Network Railway Network

London current situation

Fig. 19 Current condition of the urban form of London with transport infrastructure network

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Sharing Soundscapes

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Fig. 20 Top; Current location of the proposal projects within the London Greenbelt Bottom; Design Vision after the relocation of those developments alongside transport infastructure network

Synanthropic thresholds

b. The second scenario is that the city protects its density but also the Greenbelt policy, which means that there is no space within the city and the Greenbelt to accommodate all the London housing needs. So, the result under this condition will be isolated urban development’s outside the Greenbelt, which is an inefficient and un sustainable solution because of the amount of time people will be spending to move from their houses to the city centre. c. Finally, that the Greenbelt policy becomes more flexible and allow urban development close to transport infrastructure network, to ensure connection, but also to preserve natural environments though a strong and clear position and regulation about land use and protection of ecological features through the AONB (Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty). This would allow an organic urban expansion through these transport veins according to the needs and the offer of the state market.

The Design Project took the third position, stablishing a relationship between the urban sprawl phenomenon and its impacts in terms of soundscape transformation. Understanding that sub urban areas are highly sensitive landscapes that face deep and quick transformation under city expansion conditions.

Apart from land use, density, transport, or other layers that interact within urban development, “Sharing Soundscapes� points to the sonic transformations that the London Greenbelt will face under this vision, and how should be designed these futures settlements to preserve proper levels of anthropogenic sounds, but also, to enhance and produce an organic and harmonic interaction between natural and urban soundscapes, considering the mentioned consequences that the transport infrastructure network (Barton and Holmes, 2007) has over dwellings, and considering the future scenario.

Sharing Soundscapes is engaged not only with the intrinsic relation between soundscapes and landscape design, but also with the consequences of the mentioned urban transformation over the natural environment, and specially how this is going to re define the life patterns of living beings dwelling this synantropic thresholds. And from now, the aim includes the manipulation of soundscapes / landscapes to address the ecological dimension of transforming natural environments.

A synantrope is a specie which lives between the conditions of wildness and domesticated, co-existing with humans in a symbiotic relationship (Gunawan, 2015).

Our cities are now inhabited by many living species apart from humans (Connor,2014), and the purpose is not to define an audible comfort zone because of the 43

Sharing Soundscapes

interaction of animals within the urban fabric, as mentioned before, those kinds of judgements belongs to the subjective and idiosyncratic world of sound perception.

Nowadays, there is a vast literature about urban ecology and how peri urban areas are in conflict between expansion and erosion of natural habitats, authors like Timothy Morton have set the pitch of the conversation from an empirical and philosophical approach of how we are sharing the urban space with non- human species, and how to take advantage of that, offering them same kind of benefits, what defines a symbiotic relationship.

Last chapter will take in consideration these pieces of literature and research made so far about soundscapes and the impact of urban expansion on sub urban areas to propose design approaches of how to deal with noisy infrastructures or urban sound, but also to produce interactions between human and non- human according to the manipulation and the re definition of soundscapes through two main drivers; landscape design and ecology.

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Synanthropic thresholds

Synanthropic Species

Pollinators

Soundscape drivers

Fieldfares

Insect population control

Peast controll & Pollination

Bats

Robin

Hedgehog

Rabbit population control Farming benefits

Grey Squirrel

Fig. 21 Synanthropic species and it relationship with human

Fox

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Sharing Soundscapes

Fig. 22 “Synantropic Suburbia�, by Sarah Gunawan. Urban fabric proposal

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Chapter 05;

MUTUALISTIC URBANISM

Tuning soundscapes to design symbiotic spaces within the London Greenbelt

[A strategical approach of how would be possible through design and the application of different ecological resources to produce places where human and non-human species can co-inhabit new peri urban areas in the city]

I had the opportunity to attend to a workshop about “designing the soundscape of the future city”, organized by Anderson Acoustic, a consultancy company that develop integral projects to enhance the acoustic features of buildings or public spaces within the city. The participants were different characters related at a certain point with sound and how it impacts over designing not only buildings but also soundscapes. Part of the workshop, was about categorising different kind of natural and man-made sounds in two main groups; wanted and un wanted sounds, and after that, the idea was to outline some ideas according on the different scales of intervention to improve future urban soundscape.

Surprisingly, many of the un wanted sounds that the participants declared, were natural sounds. Night time bird singing, foxes barking and fighting for the ownership of the corner rubbish bin, the “annoying” sound of the rain drops hitting the roof, thunders or even sea waves. Sounds that for me are extremely pleasant and produce a deep feeling of relax. The reason I am coming up with this, is because we use to think that every natural sound cause positive psychological effects over people, that it is just about introducing birds inside an urban area to sort the soundscape problem. Even though at some point is about that, we shouldn’t forget that a relevant component that defines the sonic feeling, has to be with perception, and as was mentioned in the first chapter, this is part of the subjective dimension of sound.

There is no a formula to design the perfect soundscape, no matter how hard we try, this is a topic that deals with so many players, that it is impossible to satisfy all of them.

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This last section of “Sharing Soundscapes” is about its name, and is closely bounded with a design approach of how to address soundscapes that produce synergic relationships between human and non- human species within the context of the urban sprawl pointed up on the last chapter; which at the end is the aim of the Design Project.

It has been said that “animals are invading the city” (Gunawan, 2012, p.3), and the city is invading the natural environment when it is expanding its boundaries.

This is about ecology and landscape design, and how through specific interventions we can tune a new soundscape, where relationships between natural and urban sounds are no more in a sort of dichotomy, but in a symbiotic system that, as John Brinkerhoff Jackson mentioned, works as an infrastructure to support species life.

Considering sound as a design driver for an urban planning project, implicates to understand its sources and receiver subjects, but also decompose the spatial configuration where the intervention will be taking place. That will allow to work with accurate information about how sound performs under a specific spatial condition. Knowing the absorption capacity of materials, or reflection coefficient, or diffraction rates, or even the sound behaviour under specific topographic configurations, is relevant as designers to re define spaces through sound manipulation (Gandy, 2014).

Therefore, the Design Project is proposing a strategy guideline, which tackles two main sources from where is possible to develop specific design applied to singular areas. This document is providing detailed information about the specific design strategies to manipulate sound according to the different aims of each specific site project.

Designing soundscapes is about manipulating two main intentions: a. b.

Remove un wanted sounds (Landscape Design) Include wanted sounds (Ecology)

Each of those goals can be develop through three main strategies:

1. Activities; that can produce sound masking.

2. Ecology; tune the soundscape through species introduction into urban area.

3. Landscape Design; topography and materials to manipulate wanted and

un-wanted sounds.

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Fig. 23 Material testing; Smoothness / Porousity / Topography

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Fig. 24 Ecology strategies for specific site design “Shaping Sound�

Extending green corridors

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To tackle both Ecological and Landscape Design approaches, the idea is to emphasize on the theory behind these two strategies, but also in specific design developed on the project “Shaping Sound� which offers a practical application of design solutions into a specific area.

5.1 Ecology; Human and non-human co inhabitation in the new urban developments Whenever we talk about human and animals interacting within a spatial context different than natural habitat we should think about domestication as a way of synergic interaction, where in most of the cases, animals change their natural life patterns to fit into a new habitat that offer them comfort, shelter, food and care.

Even though this produce benefits in most of the cases for both human and animals, the domestication process make animals dependents of their supporters.

So, for example, if you stop feeding your pet, probably it will experience a health deterioration because it is used to be fed. Furthermore, if suddenly you change your pet food, it will produce some negative temporal effects until it get used to the new way of feeding. Why is important to pay attention on this?

When we talk about manipulation of ecology as a design driver to re define sub urban soundscapes, as important as the sonic result, is the protection of the natural habits of wild animals which will be living and co inhabiting with humans.

One of the main characteristics of animals is resilience and how they change their patterns with surprising plasticity according to the environmental changes. Thus, if we think about an urban development within a natural environment such as the London Greenbelt, is relevant to look after the interaction between species to not disturb their normal behaviour of vocal communication, mating seasons, feeding and migration patterns.

Taking in consideration our design project as a study case, we realized that traffic noise from the road, produce communication problems for many bird species, so if we want to improve soundscapes for increase bird singing (as sound masking strategy and encouraging bird population growth), was pertinent to design a landscape able to manipulate and reduce low frequency sound and pressure levels (dB). In consequence, ecology strategy is about extending green corridors from the natural environment (in this case the Wick County Park) to the future urban developments (Fig. 24). These corridors are designed according on the kind

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Case Study 01;

SUBURBAN CO- INHABITATION Animals road crossing passages. Montana 93 Highway, EU.

According to the non-profit American Organization “Culture Change”, one million animals are hit by motor vehicles per day. In the state of Washington there are more than one thousand vehicle/animal collisions by year. To revert this situation, the authorities propose a solution that allow animals to have free pass through the highway without meaning a risk for drivers, by a bridge that work as an eco-corridor.

Highways and Railways are the most disturbing infrastructure in terms of animal migration patterns, being able to interrupt the natural paths, and the lack of solutions explains the dramatic figures of animal/vehicle accidents, which not only is an ecological issue but also one of the main reasons of car driver’s mortalities.

Fig. 25 Eco corridors crossing highways to prevent accidents but also for biodiversity preservation.

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Fig. 26 Ecology Strategic proposal section. Understanding of ecological oportunities within the sound buffer from the road to buildings.

Fig. 27 Ecology Strategic proposal section. Wind produced by thermal inversion by road heating.

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of species living in the area, such as small mammals like foxes, rats, squirrels, some kind of rabbits and hedgehogs. So, shrubs planting and protected areas away from pedestrian paths are suitable as migration paths. At the same time, road sides have been always passages for many kind of species that take advantage of sound buffers made as sound mitigation barriers (Attenborough, 2016). Due to sound buffers offer an opportunity for both migration paths and sound attenuation filters, should be considered as a first resource in terms of ecology and landscape design related with infrastructures such as roads or railways.

Either the green corridors and sound buffers alongside the road, produce sound masking because of the wind over trees leaves (Fig. 27), which plus bird singing are the core of nature sound production that rebalance soundscapes close to highways.

Ecology design strategy will be effective in terms of sound buffer or soundscape rebalancing as long as, the vegetation species are chosen according with their acoustic features to absorb and reflect target sound (Fig. 28), but on the other hand, thinking about animals as sonic sources is relevant to work with trees or shrubs species suitable for the animals considered to inhabit this landscape.

Because of that, the species targeting low frequency sound absorption, which

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Fig. 28 Ecology Strategic. Definition of trees species to manipulate low frequency sound and to produce sound masking effect.

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are located close to the road as a first sound barrier, are coniferous species like Taxus Bachata, Cypress or Scot Pine, which are evergreen trees and offer sound protection during all seasons. Furthermore, their foliage made by dense brunches with needles shape leaves have better performance as sound barrier. Meanwhile, Oak which is a common leave tree allow many kind of birds to nest in, and on the other hand it produce high levels of sound masking because of the leaves movement under windy conditions. Due to that, they are placed far from the road and close to the first buildings.

5.2 Landscape Design; Topography and Materials towards sound manipulation Beside considering ecology as a design driver to re think sonic environments, has been probed that topography (ground surfaces) and materials plays a key role in the reduction of the level of pressure (dB) of certain low frequency bands (Attenborough, 2016). In addition, has been probed that combining high density vegetation, with landforms and adding some textures to the ground surface, improves the absorption rates (Attenborough, 2016).

Even though, technology development (such as CADNA software) allows to predict with considerable accuracy the sound behaviour on a specific spatial configuration considering topography and materials but also the sound sources; their nature and kind of sound they are producing, is not a recent discovery the effects that landforms and material produce on sound spreading. A clear example of this are the Greek and Roman theatres, which without having sound amplification systems they solved the acoustics in a brilliant way, understanding which frequencies were not suitable for achieve a clear hearing from the audience, and how through topography, geometry and applying different materials it was possible to enhance wanted frequencies and amplify sound.

In the case of the specific site, working with the landscape was relevant due to the sound diffraction (Fig. 30), specially of frequency bands lower than 200 hZ produced by heavy duty trucks, which are the most harmful bands for living beings but also for the infrastructure because of the mechanical vibrations over materials.

For that reason, we tested different configurations of topographies in a scaled model, with several materials and sound frequencies, to define the number and the highness of the slopes to reduce as much as possible sound spreading. As a result, we proposed a higher first slope from the road, which also consist on an energy harvesting system that transform vibrations into energy, that could be used either to light the highway or as a contribution for people living close to the highway.

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Low Frequency sound Diffraction

Topography to reduce spreading Fig. 29 Landscape design to reduce spreading of low frequency sound produced by diffraction.

Fig. 30 Material studies applyed to topography to encrease absorption rates.

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Fig. 32 Schophol Airport, Netherlands Sound mitigation landscape

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Case Study 02;

SOUND & TOPOGRAPHY Schiphol International Airport, Netherlands, mitigation park

Understanding the process of sound spreading over a specific landscape, give us the resources to manipulate sound through topography. In the case of Schiphol Airport, the aim was to reduce low frequency sounds produced by aircrafts, using topography as design driver, they propose a park in the area between the runway and houses. The design is a landscape made by a composition of slopes that absorb and reflect low frequency sound .

Sound spreading and Low frequency waves difraction

Sound reflected by the slopes avoiding spreading Fig. 33 Sound behaviour before / after using topography

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After this first slope there are two more, not as tall as the first one, according to the distance from the sound source.

In addition, the application of material criteria into the topography comes from past experiences testing smoothness and roughness conditions of different kind of materials. And because of that we propose to work with a system of ribs that add roughness into the landscape to increase absorption of low frequency bands.

The pattern of density and highness of the ribs depends on the sound conditions but also to allow trees and shrubs grow in between which combined with landforms, patterns and materials, produce the most effective configuration towards a low frequency band absorption.

Combining these strategies with an effective urban pattern development that block and narrow down the sound from the road, is an effective way to rebalance soundscapes, removing un wanted sounds or harmful sounds but also to enhance positive ones which produce pleasant feelings on people but also increase animal communication, which means more mating, more birthing and a soundscape enriched by species and trees.

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Fig. 31 Sound buffer strategic design to rebalance soundscape Transition from man made sound from the road to the natural areas.

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Conclusion;

TOWARD DEMOCRATIC HABITATS Beyond a practical or design solution, “Sharing Soundscapes” is a critique on the way we are interacting with other species within urban or sub-urban environments.

Considering the current trends make sense to think and re-think how planning and urban design are going to interact with more variables than regulation, land use and real estate market, but also with ecology and how to prevent massive and irreversible damage over the ecosystems. This work is also to re position our role as designers towards a world in where co-inhabitation opens opportunities for both human and non-human species and how they will be related with the landscape.

The aim of this work was not to set the scope on a specific solution about London and its Greenbelt challenges, this is an opportunity to be conscious of the importance of sound, and considering it as a relevant issue within any urban design process. As mentioned before, we can support our proposals with inspiring and scientific pieces of literature, which offers the basis and the theoretical framework towards the development of integral projects that consider sound, not only from a poetical or technical point of view, but also realize how our cities and human activities, are affecting negatively other kind of living dwellers of the urban and sub urban areas. This thesis report try to open a discussion about the relationship between urban processes, soundscapes and ecology. Even though, is true that we have a long way into the understanding of animal’s sound perception and behaviour, is evident that the current society is more aware about environmental issues, and more and more, people is going to pursuit life forms that offer more benefits in terms of health, sustainability and interaction with more natural ways of living. Here is where I believe is relevant to start discussing about ecology and how we are going to live in the future within the context of urban or sub urban spaces shared with animals.

Remembering the experience of “designing the soundscape for the future city” (see chapter 5), where participants declared to be annoyed by some animals because of “noise”, makes me think on this future city where foxes will be living in a symbiotic way with human and other species, where birds singing will be the most desirable acoustic component of the soundscape, and where urban design and architecture will be the answers to the question of how to produce through sound manipulation,

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mutualistic and democratic spaces that allow an ecological inhabitation of the urban and sub- urban areas.

Fig. 34 Design Project; migration path proposal

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Fig. 35 Design Project; co-inhabitation proposal. Bird nesting facade

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List of Figures

Fig 1_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Green corridor proposal; ecology + topography.

Fig 2_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Sound buffer proposal.

Fig 3_ Author’s own, 2018. Aerial photography, North London typical urban clusters.

Fig 4_ Author’s own, 2018. Photography of London Bridge Station / Urban transport infrastructure network.

Fig 5_ Author’s own, 2018. Sound behaviour / Spatial perception Fig 6_ Author’s own, 2018. Whales SONAR system to scan seabed.

Fig 7_ Author’s own, 2018. Bats echolocation system to detect prays.

Fig 8_ Available from: https://collections.lacma.org/node/179487 Drummer and Horn Player, Scene from the Story of the Marriage of Abhimanyu and Vatsala, Folio from a Mahabharata Different kind of manifestation of sound on history.

Fig 9_ Available from: http://tapsbugler.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/US-Marine-Band-1859.jpg. US Marine band 1859.

Fig 10_ Available from: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/sound-mirrors-the-earliest-form-of-air-raid-warning-unearthed-on-southcoast-9821837.html. Sound Mirrors UK coast from the first World War. Fig 11_ Mayor of London ; Available from: https://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/london-assembly/london-assembly-publications/london-stalling-reducing-traffic-congestion. Traffic Sound as main one of the main concerns of the city of London.

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Fig 12_ By Sun Wenyu, 2018. Design Project; Shaping Sound; Evolution of the perception of sound over time.

Fig 13_ By The Telegraph, available from: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/news/ half-of-heathrow-noise-complaints-made-by-just-10-people/. Negative effects of living close to airports.

Fig 14_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Diagram of hearing ranges of different species according to frequency.

Fig 15_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Diagram of effects of sound over human and birds according to degree of loudness (dB).

Fig 16_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Map of suburban areas on the eastern London Greenbelt. Juxtaposition of urban clusters and natural habitats.

Fig 17_ Photo by Dan Kitwood, 2018. Fox & Hedgehog; available from: http://www. foxhedgehog.com/2018/01/britains-housing-crisis-green-belt/. Existing tension between sub urban areas and farming lands within the Greenbelt.

Fig 18_ Mayor of London, 2018; available from: https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/. Demographic trend in London between Inner and Outer London.

Fig 19_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Map of the current condition of the urban area of London and the transport infrastructure network.

Fig 20_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Top: Map of the existing aproved urban developments in the Greenbelt. Bottom: Map of the re location of the projects in order to define the large scale vision of the Greenbelt development.

Fig 21_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Synantrope’s dwelling the testing area of The Wick county park and how they benefit human.

Fig 22_ By Sarah Gunawan, 2015. Thesis for the degree of MArch at University of Waterloo. Ontario Canada. Syn- urban Assamblage.

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Fig 23_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Material testing of smoothness, roughness and topography as parameters to manipulate sound.

Fig 24_ Author’s own, 2017. Design Project; Testing area ecology strategy to bring species into the future urban development.

Fig 25_ AMichael Van Valkenburgh & Associates, 2010. Available from: http://www. hntb.com/; Eco corridors crossing highways to prevent accidents but also for biodiversity preservation.

Fig 26_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Ecology strategy for road sound buffer design.

Fig 27_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Manipulation of wind as an opportunity to produce sound masking.

Fig 28_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Ecology strategy to define trees species to produce sound absorption & sound masking effect.

Fig 29_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Landscape design to reduce sound spreading produced by sound diffraction.

Fig 30_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Application of material studies (ribs) to the topography to increase absorption rates.

Fig 31_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; ecology and topography configuration .

Fig 32_ Amusing Planet, 2017. Available from: https://www.amusingplanet. com/2017/06/how-amsterdams-airport-is-fighting.html; Schiphol Airport, Sound mitigation park.

Fig 33_ Amusing Planet, 2017. Available from: https://www.amusingplanet. com/2017/06/how-amsterdams-airport-is-fighting.html; Schiphol Airport, Diagrams sound diffraction before / after.

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Fig 34_ by Sun Wenyu, 2018. Design Project; Migration path proposal for mid size mammals.

Fig 35_ by Sun Wenyu, 2018. Design Project; Co-Inhabitation through bird nesting structures attached on building facades.

Fig 36_ Author’s own, 2018. Design Project; Vision of park, birds / bats nesting structures: Sound Mirrors.

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Bartlett School of Architecture University College London, UCL London, UK 2017 18 Design Thesis Report MArch Urban Design Santiago Beckdorf Solå RC11_Antropogenic Topographies Ana Abrams, Aisling O’ Carroll History and Theory Rae Whittow Williams