Noise impacts resources and visitor experience in many protected natural areas, and visitors can be the dominant source of noise. This experimental study tested the efficacy and acceptability of signs asking visitors to be quiet at Muir Woods National Monument, California. Signs declaring a “quiet zone” (at the park’s Cathedral Grove) or a “quiet day” (throughout the park) were posted on a randomized schedule that included control days (no signs). Visitor surveys were conducted to measure the cognitive and behavioral responses of visitors to the signs and test the acceptability of these management practices to visitors. Visitors were highly supportive of these management practices and reported that they consciously limited the amount of noise they produced. Sound level measurements showed substantial decreases on days when signs were posted.
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March 2011
March 09 2011
Reducing visitor noise levels at Muir Woods National Monument using experimental management
David W. Stack;
David W. Stack
National Park Service
, Liberty Island, New York, New York 10004
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Newman Peter;
Newman Peter
Warner College of Natural Resources,
Colorado State University
, 1401 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523-1401
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Robert E. Manning;
Robert E. Manning
Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Vermont
, George D. Aiken Center, 81 Carrigan Drive, Room 356, Burlington, Vermont 05405-0088
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Kurt M. Fristrup
Kurt M. Fristrup
a)
Natural Sounds Program
, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Suite 100, Fort Collins, Colorado 80525
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a)
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic mail: kurt_fristrup@nps.gov
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 129, 1375–1380 (2011)
Article history
Received:
December 03 2009
Accepted:
November 20 2010
Citation
David W. Stack, Newman Peter, Robert E. Manning, Kurt M. Fristrup; Reducing visitor noise levels at Muir Woods National Monument using experimental management. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 March 2011; 129 (3): 1375–1380. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.3531803
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