Most workers who are exposed to high noise levels, such as factory employees, are regulated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). 14 As a result of their noisy profession, farmers have a higher percentage of sensorineural hearing loss than the general population. 17 Farm animals also can create high noise environments for farmers for example, pig squeals are documented to reach 100 dBA. Other noisy equipment is also frequently utilized on farms, such as grain dryers and chainsaws, which can reach levels of 110 dBA. 16 However, many farmers do not remain inside tractor cabs the entire work day. 12 13 14 15 Newer, modern tractors with enclosed cabins for the driver can lower daily noise exposure to safe levels. Farm equipment, such as tractors and combine harvesters without cabs, can reach levels ≥ 90 to 100 dBA. 11 Workers on these farms who make up the largest demographic group at the Tomah Tractor Pull are at risk for occupational hearing loss due to their noisy profession. 10Īccording to the most recent agricultural census conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture in 2012, there are 69,754 farms in the state of Wisconsin. The survey also found that attendees of the Tomah Tractor Pull are predominately male (76.8%), with the largest group of attendees being between ages 35 and 59 years (52.9%). 8 National Tractor Pull Association (NTPA) Tomah Tractor Pull Demographic Survey found that the most common occupation for tractor pull attendees was agriculture/forestry (29.1% of respondents). Approximately 5.7 million people live in the state of Wisconsin, with ∼1.5 million of those individuals residing in rural areas of the state. Tomah is a town of ∼9,300 residents in central Wisconsin, surrounded by rural farmland. 7 The event is commonly known as the Tomah Tractor Pull, because of its location in Tomah, Wisconsin. The Budweiser Dairyland Super National Truck and Tractor Pull was established in 1976 and is attended by ∼60,000 fans annually. 2 3 High noise levels at other motorsports, such as car racing, motorcycle racing, and monster truck rallies, 4 5 6 have been documented however, no formal studies have been published on noise levels at tractor pull competitions. At motocross and monster truck events, the peak slow-rate sound levels were 120 decibels, A-weighted sound level (dBA) in the crowd and 125 dBA for employees. 2 In the Morley et al research cited by the NIH, however, only motocross and monster truck rally noise levels were surveyed. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Noisy Planet Web site briefly mentions tractor pull noise in their Monster Noise Levels at Monster Truck Rallies publication. Reprinted with permission of La Crosse Tribune, La Crosse, Wisconsin.ĭue to the large, powerful engines used in the competitions, tractor pulls are anecdotally understood to be extraordinarily loud events. It is yet to be determined if this type of hearing loss prevention project can create long-term shifts in cultural attitudes about rural noise and lead to increased hearing protection usage in the occupational and recreational lives of tractor pull attendees.Ī farm tractor competes at the 2011 Dairyland Super National Truck and Tractor Pull in Tomah, Wisconsin. The number of earplugs distributed and the percentage of individuals who accept them indicates that this outreach is effective in the short term. This study establishes that hearing loss prevention outreach at tractor pulls is necessary due to the high noise levels during the competitions. The objectives of the outreach are to provide hearing protection to those at the tractor pull, to document tractor pull noise levels, and to encourage tractor pull attendees to use hearing protection at work and in their other recreational activities. The University of Wisconsin–Madison audiology group has established an annual hearing loss prevention outreach project at the Dairyland Super National Truck and Tractor Pull in Tomah, Wisconsin. The high noise levels experienced by farmers and motorsports fans in their recreational and occupational activities are not addressed by traditional hearing conservation programs. Many farmers and motorsports enthusiasts in rural areas attend tractor pulls, which are loud motorsport competitions using tractors and trucks with powerful, modified engines.
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