The Urban Soundscape of Western Harbour : Soundwalks and Psychoacoustics in the Western Harbour Area in Malmö

Abstract: Sustainable urban design requires human wellbeing to be prioritized, considering all human senses (Torigoe, 2002). Sound, which is often overlooked in the municipalities planning offices, affects health in both positive and negative manner. The general approach for handling sounds in cities are through quantitative measurements such as noise abatements and decibel measurements, while the qualitative visual and audial perception; also known as psychoacoustics, is disregarded (Raimbault & Dubois, 2005; Steele et al., 2020; Cerwén, 2016). Research also show that urbanisation decreases pleasant sounds to the human ear(Steele et al., 2020; Beatly, 2012), and some scholars argue that people are losing their skill to identify and name what they are hearing (Schafer, 1994 & Westerkamp, 1974). In this thesis the Western harbour area in Malmö, flagged as exemplary sustainable urban development model, has been using soundscape methodology of soundwalks to contribute to a better understanding of sound perception and the functions of the identified sounds. The Western harbour has previously had troubles getting BREEAM-certifications in the past due to noise(ÅF, 2013), and previous surveys by the Malmö municipality present that the wind is a large unpleasant factor to both residents and visitors’ perception of the area (Kristensson, 2013).The results show similarities to presented studies, for example with birdsong being identified as a pleasant sound whilst traffic being an unpleasant sound. Moreover, most identified sounds by the soundwalk respondents were loud and intense, indicating a lack of listening to less-intense, more quiet sounds. The thesis show that qualitative soundscape methodologies can highlight further dimensions of sound beyond decibel levels, positions sound as a central dimension of sense of place. The thesis provides suggestions for the municipality to have updated information and state what sound actions is being made in each area in the city to include sound and acoustic wellbeing as a central dimension of their sustainable urban development, in order to be able to reach their own goal of having all stakeholders working in the same direction. Along with the fact that the Swedish noise abatement law’s approach is preventative, but does not include the aspect of social change in a space after it is built (Kling, 2013; Malmö comprehensive plan, 2013; Dalman, 2013), since the city of Malmö have grown quickly and is still facing a rapid expansion in demographics (SCB, 2021), as Raimbault & Dubois (2005) argue, denser cities are more noisy.