HUMAN PERCEPTION AND ACCEPTANCE OF NATURAL BARRIERS

Natural barriers are large or small closely grown tree belts, vegetation walls, natural stone structures, tree fences etc. Natural barriers, have emerged as the new trend to address problems in urban areas and has developed into vertical gardening, green roofs and hybrid natural barriers presently. The use of natural barriers is highly dependent on the human perception which is focused on natural barrier’s functionality, maintainability, effectiveness of performance, security and aesthetic appeal.

The research was carried out to identify the human perception and human acceptance of natural barriers in Sri Lankan context and find out the level of acoustic disturbance people are facing, focusing urban and suburb areas by adopting a quantitative approach via a questionnaire survey and carrying out actual sound measurements in the western province of Sri Lanka. Lack of awareness of sound levels and risk of adaptation to excessive sound levels in urban conditions were revealed in the research. It was found that traffic noise to be the main sound polluter in urban areas and actual noise levels violate the permissible limit stated in the Sri Lankan regulations. Preference for natural barriers is very high in urban community. Results revealed a high demand by public for aesthetic appeal of natural barriers.