The measuring stations installed by Les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau (LPDMT) are provided by a European organization, Worldwide Aircraft Noise Services (WW-ANS).

This organization was created to support communities around the world who battle aircraft noise, by providing solid arguments to validate the harm they suffer, and to support them in their quest for the establishment of curfews. WW-ANS has been able to create an airport monitoring network, as all data recorded by measuring stations is accessible on their website (http://www.ww-ans.net/: click on Canada, then Montreal and choose a location).

The measuring stations installed in Montreal are the first in America, although there are already more than 275 in Europe. The installation of these stations requires the purchase of certain accessories, and the cost of each station is about $500 in total. There are other ongoing costs required to coordinate the participation of citizens who have agreed to lend their support to this initiative. Including maintenance costs, to date les Pollués have spent on average $ 530 $ to complete the commissioning of each station. The installations were done by volunteer members of the organization.

Each station consists of a sensor (microphone), mounted outdoors, which is connected to a receiver inside the house, which transmits data received to a nano computer (a Raspberry Pi, in the case of Montreal stations). This nano-computer is linked to the homeowner’s wireless internet, and every hour the data recorded by the nano computer is sent to the WW-ANS server, which decrypts it using a software program. When the program establishes with confidence that it is the passage of an aircraft that caused the noise disturbance, it circles the top of the noise peak that is generated.

Although Les Pollués measuring stations are less reliable in extreme cold, they are pertinent almost 10 months a year. Besides the level of dB (A), the stations record the wind direction; moreover, daily, monthly and yearly statistics are automatically recorded. These statistics have allowed Les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau to collect the following data:

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The Leq shows that noise is often louder further to the east of the airport than it is around it.

Leq measures the average noise level. The Leq recorded by both ADM’s noise measuring stations and those of Pollués give the following readings (noisiest to least noisy):

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August 19, 2015

Carte des stations

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