Proposed amendment to the Environmental Noise (Scotland) Regulations 2006

Closes 11 Feb 2026

Opened 3 Dec 2025

Contact

environment.protection.team@gov.scot

Overview

The Environmental Noise (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (“the 2006 Regulations”) require the Scottish Government and some airport operators to meet a number of statutory requirements to bring about measures which are intended to avoid, prevent, or reduce, on a prioritised area basis, the harmful effects, including annoyance, due to the exposure to environmental noise. This public consultation applies to Scotland only and seeks the views of those interested in environmental noise pollution.

Read the consultation paper. The consultation paper contains full background information for this consultation. You may find it useful to read or refer to while responding.

Reason for consultation

The 2006 Regulations require the competent authorities under the Regulations (the Scottish Government and some airport operators) to produce, on a five yearly cycle, strategic noise maps, which covers agglomerations, major airports, roads and rail, and sets out the candidate noise management and quiet areas, and related Noise Action Plans for agglomerations (larger urban areas), airports and transport (major roads and railways). To date there have been four rounds of noise mapping and action planning. The process to compile the noise maps and the associated action plans currently takes in excess of three years, which affects our ability, within the five year cycle, to fully validate the modelled Noise Management Areas and then to programme and implement appropriate mitigation.

The Scottish Government recognises that environmental noise can be distressing and have an adverse effect on the population’s health and quality of life and as such, it is important to ensure noise mapping data is utilised in the most effective way and to ensure the action subsequently taken has a material impact. The noise maps allow for the presentation of complex information on sounds levels and noise exposure in a clear way on a map, and the associated noise action planning process aims to manage and reduce environmental noise where necessary and preserve environmental noise quality where it is good. Both help identify potential areas subjected to the greatest noise exposure.

Responsible Authorities

The Scottish Government as the competent authority has responsibility for the delivery of the strategic noise maps detailing locations and noise in agglomerations, major roads, major railways and the quiet areas in agglomerations, and the action plans for agglomerations and transport (major roads and railways). For airports, the airport operator is the competent authority and has responsibility for the delivery of strategic noise maps and action plans.

Background

The 2006 Regulations require Scottish Government to produce strategic noise maps for agglomerations, major roads and major railways on a five-yearly basis and major airport operators to do the same in relation to airport noise. Other airports have obligations depending on their location and levels of noise. The 2006 Regulations implement Directive 2002/49/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 June 2002 relating to the assessment and management of environmental noise (“the Directive”). The timings to deliver the environmental noise maps, develop the noise action plans and the subsequent implementation of the action plans are challenging.

To date, there have been four rounds of noise mapping and associated noise action plans, with the round 4 maps published in summer 2024, and associated action plans consulted on during 2025.

The 2006 Regulations were amended in 2018 to reflect changes made to the Directive, introducing improved methods for calculating noise exposure and incorporating advancements in computer modelling used to develop the noise maps. These methodological updates have resulted in a more comprehensive and robust modelling framework, enhancing the identification of areas with higher noise levels that may cause annoyance to residential populations. However, this improvement in modelling has extended the time needed to produce the noise maps.

2006 Regulations definitions

    1. “agglomerations” where there are more than 100,000 inhabitants in an urbanised area with a population density equal to or greater than 500 people per km2
    2. “Major airport” where a civil airport has more than 50,000 take off or landings per year excluding those for training purposes on light aircraft;
    3. “Major road” as a road having more than 3 million vehicle passages per year.
    4. “Major railway” as a railway having more than 30,000 train passages per year.
    5. Under the 2006 Regulations any airport in an agglomeration with Lden value of 55 dB(A) or greater or, has an Lnight value of 50 dB(A) or greater is required to prepare a strategic noise map.

In this consultation, unless the reference is to the specific definitions above, the term airport has the meaning of major airport and any airport in an agglomeration meeting the specified criteria above.

What does the consultation cover?

This consultation seeks your views on amending the 2006 Regulations to change the timing cycles from five years to ten years for all mapping and action plan requirements.

Your views are also sought on the following further changes:

  • to remove the requirement to review, and if necessary revise, strategic maps whenever a major development occurs affecting the existing noise situation; and
  • to reflect the EU Environmental Noise Directive amendments extending the time between publication of the noise maps and action plans from one to two years.

Consultation questions preview

The consultation questions are included here for your reference. Please click 'Begin consultation' at the bottom of this page to proceed.

Question 1 Do you agree with the proposal for the Scottish Government to produce maps identifying noise sources and quiet areas, on a ten-yearly basis

Question 2 Do you agree with the proposal for the Scottish Government to produce strategic noise maps and noise action plans (for noise sources other than airports) every ten years?

Question 3 What are your views on the proposal for the Scottish Government to produce maps identifying noise sources and quiet areas, strategic noise maps and noise action plans (for noise sources other than airports) every ten years?

Question 4 Do you agree with the proposal to remove regulation 7(3) that requires the Scottish Government every five years, and whenever a major development occurs affecting the existing noise situation, to review and if necessary, revise any strategic map showing agglomerations and major roads and railways?

Question 5 What are your views on the proposal to remove regulation 7(3) that requires the Scottish Government every five years, and whenever a major development occurs affecting the existing noise situation, to review and if necessary, revise any strategic map showing agglomerations and major roads and railways?

Question 6 Do you agree with the proposal for airport operators to be required to produce strategic noise maps and noise action plans (for airports) every ten years?

Question 7 What are your views on the proposal for airport operators to be required to produce strategic noise maps and noise action plans (for airports) every ten years?

Question 8 Do you agree with the proposal to remove regulations 10(3) and 11(4) that require airport operators every five years, and whenever a major development occurs affecting the existing noise situation, to review and if necessary, revise any strategic map showing the airport?

Question 9 What are your views on the proposal to remove regulations 10(3) and 11(4) that require airport operators every five years, and whenever a major development occurs affecting the existing noise situation, to review and if necessary revise any strategic map showing the airport?

Question 10 Do you agree with the proposal requiring the time between the publication of the maps and action plans to be increased from one to two years?

Question 11 What are your views on the proposal requiring the time between the publication of the maps and action plans to be increased from one to two years?

Question 12 Do you have any other comments on the proposal not covered in response to previous questions?

Useful information about responding to this consultation

As you complete your response, each page will provide the option to 'Save and come back later' at the bottom. This means you can save your progress and return to the consultation at any time before it closes. If you don't use this feature and leave the consultation midway through, your response will be lost.

Once you have submitted your response, you can enter your email address to get a pdf copy of your answers sent to you.

On the 'About You' page at the end of this consultation, organisations will have the opportunity to tell us more about their work and/or how their response was informed.

After the consultation has closed there will be a few months delay before any responses are published. This is because we must check any responses to be published abide by our Terms of Use.

All relevant submitted responses will be analysed. This may be carried out by third party organisations who Scottish Government, its executive agencies or non-ministerial offices, contract to do this work. Such data sharing will be governed by appropriate contractual arrangements to keep your data secure.

An analysis report will usually be published some months after the consultation has closed. This report will summarise the findings based on all responses submitted. It will be published on the Scottish Government website and you may be notified about it if you choose to share your email address with us.

You can also join our consultation mailing list where we regularly list newly published analysis reports (as well as new consultations).

Why your views matter

Responses to this consultation will inform the future development of environmental noise policy.

Give us your views

Begin consultation

Interests

  • Environment and Climate Change