Bartolo Cruz Romero, director of Environmental Sustainability for the municipality of Puerto Vallarta, was authorized to speak at the recent City Council meeting, where he recalled that the issue of noise is one of the main demands of the citizens, but indicated that there is no record of the response to complaints or records of fines being issued to those who violate the rules.
“Three days after I joined the public service, the first files we received regarding complaints were about noise, it is a historical issue that has been reported and has not been answered, in fact I began to look in the historical archives of the now Directorate, and we do not have any record, or in the Judges, of fines being issued precisely for this noise pollution. Here we need that transversality that we talk so much about, the teamwork of all the people who are here present, through the Environmental Sustainability, Inspection, Surveillance and Civil Responsibility departments and of course the Public Safety Commissioner, among these three departments we are the ones who must have the initiative to begin to address this problem,” she shared before the plenary.
This was stated when Councilor María Magdalena Urbina Martínez, president of the City Council Committee for Healthy Environment, Climate Action and Animal Protection, presented the initiative to modify the Directorates to which they must apply by virtue of the fact that a new Organic Regulation of the Municipal Government is in force, in view of the need to address noise pollution, this authority takes responsibility for continuing with the implementation of the protection of the fundamental right to health of all citizens, for that reason the adjustments to have the operational instruments to comply with the Ecology regulations and the Mexican Official Standard.
In its rationale and agreements, it highlights the need to resume the design of the Municipal Noise Pollution Map, which would now be entrusted to the recently elevated Environmental Sustainability Directorate, in conjunction with the Mayor’s Office of Registration and Licensing and the Territorial Planning and Urban Development Directorate, to determine the permissible noise levels in each population sector of the municipality.
The councilor requested that the Supply Department be instructed to carry out the necessary procedures to determine whether there are operational sound level meters in the departments responsible for receiving noise reports made by citizens and that training be provided so that they know the procedure and measurements with which they must be addressed, as well as the sanctions to which they may be subject in the event that they are reported for emitting noise pollution.
At the City Council meeting, the citizen Rocío Arellano gave her testimony of what she suffers from the excess of noise in the city center, for which she asked that the regulations be respected
Councillor Micaela Vázquez spoke of the importance of this issue and that the indicated departments apply the procedures. The general secretary of the City Council, José Juan Velázquez, explained that it is an obligation for the municipality to monitor and sanction; in the case of private homes, the Environment or operational elements can intervene, through the municipal police, to notify, warn and leave a record for their sanction; in commerce, it is the Regulations inspectors who act, he recalled that the noise limits are regulated by international standards, so it is not a “subjective” question, the measured decibels.
The 16 councilors approved that the initiative be sent for study and opinion to the Inspection-surveillance and Environment commissions, all approved
Biologist Cruz Romero, later consulted by this medium, said that what was presented in the town hall is seen in his historical archives: “That is to say, there are complaints, but they have not been followed up on, because we have not issued any minutes. In this Department, they complain about the night noise and there is no inspection during that period of the day. So I cannot act, there are no sound level meters either, therefore, there are no minutes, although there are complaints,” he acknowledged that there is a lack of equipment and personnel for this department.
“Unfortunately or fortunately, it falls practically on the Environmental Sustainability Department, however, the technical and operational capacity is not sufficient, according to the schedules that are handled, Public Security here would be an emergency support for all citizens and of course inspection and Regulations, count on everything that can be on our side, I appreciate the initiative on the part of the councilor,” said Bartolo Cruz.
Source: tribunadelabahia
