Noise Abatement Act extension should last until February – McIntosh

Chairman of the Entertainment Advisory Board (EAB) Howard McIntosh is suggesting that the two-hour extension granted for entertainment events should be effective until the end of February 2020 and not January 31 as was mandated.

“We welcome the two-hour extension for events for the period of December 13, 2019, to January 31, 2020, that has been granted by the Ministry of National Security. However, this extension should have lasted until the end of February 2020, which is a nationally declared month of celebration for Jamaican Reggae Music,” McIntosh commented in a press release.

Lauding the efforts of Minister of Culture, Gender Entertainment and Sport Olivia Grange in lobbying for this event time extension, McIntosh also had a word of caution for the security ministry. “With Brand Jamaica being highly linked to entertainment and culture, the EAB supports the efforts of Minister Grange in protecting the many jobs that operate within the entertainment industry and the millions of dollars that the industry contributes to the national economy. As a result, we caution the Ministry of National Security to refrain from the use of the Noise Abatement Act as solely a security measure that creates unwarranted tensions between the security forces and the creative industry.”

He added that good sense must always prevail.

McIntosh encouraged the Parish Municipalities and Planning Agencies to be more proactive in partnering with the Ministry of National Security and the entertainment ministry to create long-term strategies that will utilise the Noise Abatement Act as a planning mechanism for sound and area classification so that the rights of citizens who want to reside in quiet areas and the choice of others to enjoy entertainment events are balanced.

The EAB chair also appealed to the industry players to take sound regulation seriously. “There are far too many instances of sound-system operators not using the technology available to regulate sound and forcing the authorities to action as required by law. In many situations, with a few adjustments, the decibel levels can be as stipulated within the law,” he stated.

Amendments to the Noise Abatement Act (1997) have been at the forefront of public discussions within the local Entertainment Industry due to the plethora of event lock-offs by the police in the past three months.