WPLN News

The article reports that xAI’s gas-powered data center near Memphis is creating continuous noise pollution for nearby residents, raising concerns about sleep, stress, health, and effects on wildlife and pets. Jamie Banks of Quiet Communities says standard decibel measurements fail to capture the harm of low-frequency, inescapable noise.

The Guardian

A New Jersey lawsuit alleges that noise from the DataOne data center is disrupting residents’ sleep and quality of life for up to a mile away. Jamie Banks of Quiet Communitieswas quoted calling noise the “forgotten stepchild” of datacenter concerns and warning that low-frequency sounds can enter homes.

Axios

Georgia lawmakers are considering clearer limits on loud vehicle noise. Jamie Banks of Quiet Communities told them chronic noise can contribute to stress and cardiovascular and mental-health problems.

NBC

Concerns about data centers initially centered on their energy and water consumption, but as more have come online, residents’ gripes are increasingly about noise.

The New York Times

Jamie L. Banks, founder and president of Quiet Communities, supports New York’s one-year pause on large data center construction and urges officials to use the moratorium to study and regulate data center noise.

Gulf Coast News

Naples Airport Authority is considering American Airlines’ proposal to launch three daily round-trip commercial flights between Naples, FL and Charlotte, NC starting December 2026, using 65-seat regional jets that meet current noise and weight limits. Supporters say this would give residents and visitors a more convenient local option and better connections via Charlotte.

However, nearby residents strongly object over noise and increased traffic. Mary Tatigian of Quiet Florida warned that allowing one major carrier could turn Naples from a local municipal airport into a regional commercial hub.

The New York Times

The article explains how everyday neighborhood noises like engines and leaf blowers seriously harm quality of life and health, while laws and enforcement lag behind. Many residents pay a personal “noise tax” for soundproofing or even leave their neighborhoods to cope. Jamie Banks, president and founder of Quiet Communities, stresses that the repetitive, unpredictable, vibrating nature of noise is far more serious than a mere “nuisance.”

Imagine5 Magazine

Author and artist Nicole Kelner describes how her work as an artist-in-residence with Quiet Communities helped shape her understanding of the connection between noise and climate change. While documenting New York City's quietest places for her upcoming book, Kelner learned through QC that many of the loudest everyday sounds come from fossil-fuel-powered machines, and that the shift to cleaner electric alternatives also means a quieter future.

KUNC

Jamie Banks, founder and president of Quiet Communities, joined KUNC's In The NoCo program to discuss Denver International Airport's campaign to reduce noise levels for travelers. Banks spoke about how exposure to noise can trigger stress responses in the brain and body, and how creating a calmer, more peaceful airport environment could help ease the anxiety of travel.

Acoustical Society of America

The article presents findings from a Quiet Communities survey on the impact of pickleball noise on nearby residents, authored by QC founder and president Jamie Banks and scientific advisory council member Kathleen Romito. The research, presented at the 189th meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, calls for evidence-based guidelines for court siting and noise control that balance recreation with residents' health and well-being.

The New York Times

The New York Times obituary honors the late Dr. Arline Bronzaft, a pioneering environmental psychologist and member of Quiet Communities' scientific advisory council, who spent five decades researching the harmful effects of urban noise on health and learning. The piece highlights her landmark 1970s study showing that students in classrooms near elevated subway tracks lagged 11 months behind their peers in reading, and her instrumental role in revising New York City's noise code in the mid-2000s.

StreetsBlog NYC

In a posthumously published op-ed for Streetsblog New York City's "Car Harms" series, the late Dr. Arline Bronzaft, a member of Quiet Communities' scientific advisory council, argues that car and truck traffic is the primary source of urban noise pollution and a serious threat to public health. She calls for stronger enforcement of New York City's noise code and highlights recent progress including noise cameras and congestion pricing, while urging the city to do more to hold selfish drivers accountable for the harm their noise imposes on others.

In this article, Neil Donnenfeld makes the case for restaurants to offer "Quiet Hours" — designated times with reduced music, TV sound, and table-clearing noise. Drawing on his personal experience with single-sided deafness and noise sensitivity following radiation treatment for a benign tumor, Donnenfeld notes that about a third of the population has a condition such as hearing loss, PTSD, tinnitus, or neurodivergence that makes loud restaurants untenable. He argues that Quiet Hours come at no cost to restaurants and could drive revenue by attracting the 46% of diners who say they'd be more likely to eat at establishments offering a quieter option.

Clamor

In a detailed interview for the Clamor newsletter, Jamie Banks, founder and president of Quiet Communities, and Rick Reibstein, an environmental lawyer who chairs QC's legal advisory council, offer practical guidance for people fighting noise in their communities. They discuss the patchwork of local noise regulations left by the 1981 closure of the EPA's noise office, the limitations of the decibel as a sole measure of harm, strategies for evidence gathering and engaging local officials, and QC's successful campaign to transition municipalities and school districts — including the entire Los Angeles Unified School District — from gas-powered to electric landscaping equipment.

Grist

In a Grist feature on how fossil fuel-powered infrastructure drives noise pollution, Jamie Banks, founder and president of Quiet Communities, discusses the organization's lawsuit against the EPA to enforce the still-active 1972 Noise Control Act, as well as QC's work helping municipalities transition to electric landscaping equipment. Mary Tatigian, a registered nurse and advocate with Quiet Florida/Quiet Communities, shares her experience living under Naples Airport flight paths and her long-term vision for quieter communities through cleaner technologies and better public transit.

Maine Public Radio

QC President Jamie Banks and board member Dr. Michael Osborne join a panel on Maine Calling on Maine Public Radio to discuss the causes of noise pollution and how it affects our health.

The Washington Post

The article by Allyson Chiu highlights the environmental and health issues associated with gas-powered leaf blowers, including noise pollution, toxic emissions, and habitat disruption. Many U.S. cities are banning or limiting their use in favor of quieter and cleaner electric alternatives.

The Globe and Mail

In a Globe and Mail article on the push to bring noise cameras to Toronto, the late Dr. Arline Bronzaft, a member of Quiet Communities' scientific advisory council and professor emerita at the City University of New York, acknowledges that New York City's noise cameras are just a "drop in the bucket" but argues they serve as both a deterrent and an important signal to noise pollution victims that the government is taking action. The article details efforts by anti-noise advocates in Toronto to adopt the technology already in use in New York, London, and other cities.

Reasons to Be Cheerful

The article explores how communities across the country are confronting noise pollution as a serious public health issue, featuring Quiet Communities scientific advisory council members Erica Walker and Rick Neitzel. Walker, an epidemiologist at Brown University who leads the Community Noise Lab, describes her work helping communities like Gloster, Mississippi, collect noise and environmental data to empower informed decision-making. Neitzel, a professor of environmental health sciences at the University of Michigan, notes growing awareness that noise is more than a nuisance and points to systemic solutions like congestion pricing, expanded public transit, and electric vehicles as the most promising long-term approaches.

Whidbey News-Times

The article highlights a new study by Quiet Communities' Jamie Banks and Becky Petrou O'Rourke, published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, which surveyed over 1,400 residents impacted by aviation noise. The study found that current U.S. aviation noise policies based on outdated "annoyance" metrics fail to capture the serious mental and physical health consequences experienced by affected communities, with military aircraft exposure being particularly damaging. The Sound Defense Alliance, which advocates against Navy Growler jet noise in the Pacific Northwest, praised the study's call for national policy reform.