A 300-meter green belt specially designed to reduce noise will be planted along one of Shanghai's railway lines by the end of next near, as a pilot project to use plants to shelter citizen from urban noise, scientists from the Shanghai Science Commission revealed lately.
To date, gardeners from the science commission has collected 30 commonly used urban plants and tested their effect on noise reduction. Dense arbores such as cypress, camphor tree, privet, and heath are most effective to insulate sounds. Shrubs like rosebay, Japan fatsia and Racemose Mosquitomam are also good sound shelters, according to Tuesday's Shanghai Daily.
A forest consisting these plants will be grown on slopes along the railway. With the varied category and dense planting, the forest may significantly reduce the noise from the rails.
The 15 to 30 meter wide green belt will hopefully reduce noise by 4 to 10 decibels, scientists said. If effective, the plants used in the green belt will be grown around the city.
(Shanghai Daily July 14, 2004)
