Buitenschot Land Art Park

BUITENSCHOT LAND ART PARK IN HOOFDDORP, NETHERLANDS

The Buitenschot Land Art Park was established in response to severe noise issues experienced by residents in Hoofddorp due to the low-frequency noise from jet engines on the Polderbaan runway at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. This park project was developed collaboratively by Schiphol Airport’s management, TNO (Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research), local residents’ associations, and the Municipality of Haarlemmermeer. The primary aim was not only to reduce noise annoyance but also to enhance the environmental quality and offer recreational spaces to the local community.

Artist's impression of Buitenschot Land Art Park [1]

2011

CONTEXT

The need for Buitenschot Land Art Park arose from the intense noise disturbances caused by aircraft engines, particularly in certain weather conditions when noise could carry over a wide area. Traditional noise mitigation methods were ineffective due to the low frequency of the sound, which is not easily absorbed or blocked. The project began in 2011, focusing on an innovative landscape design to address noise by creating physical modifications that would disperse and deflect sound. These solutions included constructing angled bunkers and landforms to target and alleviate low-frequency noise specifically [2].

2013

INTERVENTION STRATEGIES

Physical Modifications: The park incorporates two sections with angular surfaces at an eighteen-degree incline to reflect and scatter low-frequency sounds. This design significantly reduces perceived noise levels.
Recreational and Educational Spaces: Besides noise mitigation, the park offers spaces for sports, recreation, and public events, enhancing the area's environmental and social quality.
Sound-Related Art Installations: Art pieces such as the "Listening Ear" and "Chladni Lake" encourage visitors to engage with and heighten their awareness of sound. The Listening Ear amplifies ambient sounds, while the Chladni Lake allows visitors to adjust wave patterns to experience sound wave simulations.
Community Engagement: The project was developed in close consultation with local residents to understand their noise-related concerns and design effective responses, ensuring that the park met both acoustic and recreational needs [2,3].

References

[1] https://www.hnsland.nl/projecten/landartpark-buitenschot/

[2] Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, The Netherlands, 2019. Inventory of Urban Planning-related Soundscape Projects in The Netherlands.

[3] Van Kamp, I., & Brown, A. L. (2019, September). Soundscape and restoration: observations from planning case studies. In INTER-NOISE and NOISE-CON Congress and Conference Proceedings (Vol. 259, No. 4, pp. 5545-5554). Institute of Noise Control Engineering.

Case provided by: Kirsten van den Bosch. Entry edited by: Xiaochao Chen