Don’t break the eardrums of your congregants – Professor advises Ghanaian preachers

An Associate Professor of Linguistics with the University of Ghana Clement Appah has advised preachers of the Gospel to take into account that sound beyond certain decibels is harmful to the ear and take steps to protect their congregants.

Prof Appah’s counsel to Ghanaian preachers is that they get stage monitors to help keep the sound at acceptable levels.

“Dear Ghanaian preacher, please note: There’s a level of sound beyond which it becomes harmful to the tympanic membrane (eardrum). So, when you stand behind the speakers and command that they “raise/increase the mic”, note that you’re doing your audience a lot of harm. Please get yourself a stage monitor,” he advised.

The advice of Prof Appah, a preacher and Gospel musician himself, comes at a time when many churches have huge speakers that take sound way beyond their church premises to distant places, polluting the immediate environment and beyond.

Some churches have been cited by city authorities for flouting laws on acceptable noise levels in Ghana.

According to the Ghana Standard Health Protection requirements for ambient noise control code GS 1222:2018, the allowed noise produced in residential areas is 55db during the day from 6 am to 10 pm and 48db at night from 10 pm to 6 am.

While areas with educational, health facilities and offices among others must have 55 decibels (db) during the day and 50db at night while residential areas and commercial or light industrial activities should have 60 db of sound during the day and 55 db at night.

Noise level for Commercial areas is between 75db during the day and 65db at night whereas areas with light industries must have 70db of sound during the day and 60 db at night.