Cartama residents complain over airport noise levels

NOISE levels at Malaga Airport are being measured following complaints from residents in the area.

Since the airport’s new runway was opened at the end of June, residents from Atalaya de Cartama, El Sexmo, Estacion de Cartama and Doña Ana have complained to the Cartama Town Council about the noise produced by aeroplanes landing.

The Deputy Mayor Miguel Espinosa passed on the matter to the Spanish Airport Authorities (Aena) and within a few days technicians had been sent to the area to measure noise and determine whether it is within the legal parameters.

The Minister of Public Works, Ana Pastor, agreed that Malaga must follow the rules which apply to airports that have “more than 50,000 annual operations.”

Pastor claimed that Malaga airport will be one of the 10 Spanish airports to make adjustments to fulfil the new European regulations which plan to raise the sound limit from five decibels to eight.

A measuring device called a sonometre was installed at the town hall office in Estacion de Cartama following an agreement with AENA, and will be in place for a month.

The results, which will be included in a final report, will establish if the airport is within regulations.

Some residents in the area say that although they can hear the planes more now than they could before, it doesn’t really bother them, while others complain that it is disrupting their day to day life.