Parliament backs children's noise on school playgrounds after residents complain

The Catalan parliament has unanimously approved reforming the law to protect school playgrounds after many residents have complained about children's noise.

The new regulation modifies a 2002 noise pollution law and eliminates the maximum noise levels in school spaces "used for teaching, physical activity, recreation, and enjoyment" between 7 am and 9 pm.

Political parties from all sides favored the reform, including the pro-independence Junts, Esquerra, and CUP, the conservative People's Party, and left-wing Comuns, who had submitted a petition to modify the existing legislation. The plenary also approved appeals filed by the Socialists lifting a noise limit on sports activities between 9 am and 10 pm.

The parliament passed the reformed ruling after several residents in Barcelona filed complaints and threatened to close playgrounds due to noise pollution in recent months.

One affected school, Barcelona's Salesians Rocafort, greeted the news. Its director, Jordi Barberan, considered the reform as "playgrounds will now be able to return to be playgrounds," he told the Catalan News Agency (ACN).

The school has had one of the areas closed for eight months and a second one for four months.

"We cannot compare the noise from a vehicle with children at the playground," Barberan added.

The school has already implemented many measures to "minimize" the noise from the fields and playgrounds. For example, they have lowered the volume of the bell that lets students know when classes start and finish.

Barberan said, "We cannot say no to any of those typical things from a school, but we do not plan to go against anybody."

Constitutional Court

Meanwhile, members of the Residential Network Against Noise (Xavecs) and the Catalan Association Against Noise Pollution (ACCA) do not share the school's excitement.

Both organizations believe that the parliament has passed an "unfair" law as it grants "privileges" to some children instead of others.

The organizations are still planning future steps, but ACCA president Marga Furró did not rule out filing a complaint against such legislation with Spain's Constitutional Court and the European courts on human rights and justice.

"Lawmakers cannot suspend laws that protect health," Furró told the Catalan News Agency (ACN).

"Noise kills," she said, as many of the residents linked to the association are "sick" because of the noise.