Telecom towers:

Balancing development imperatives and health concerns

With the opening up of the local telecommunications market in the 90s and the subsequent entrance of private telecom companies, especially mobile phone service providers, into the country, telecommunication facilities have ceased to be a luxury for average Sri Lankans.

According to statistics, the number of cellular phone users in Sri Lanka had grown to 5.4 million by the end of 2006, while fixed-line subscribers have risen to 1.9 million.

While the liberalisation of the telecommunications market has definitely been beneficial to the country, a number of disadvantages of having multiple service providers have also transpired of late, one principle hazard being threats posed by telecommunication towers to public health.

As new telecom companies commence their operations in Sri Lanka, new towers have started mushrooming throughout the country, amounting to 3,200 towers in the country already.

Although, in terms of international and loacl standards, only only one tower should be permitted within a radius of 500 metres, this guideline is not strictly adhered to by regulators or service providers.

Sometimes, the towers built are not properly earthed owing to high costs, thus creating a high risk for the inhabitants of the respective areas and their property being struck by lightening.

For the same reasons, telecommunication towers have been a a frequent cause of litigation in different parts of the country, culminating in a recent verdict of the Kesbewa District Court that towers must be constructed in line with international standards.

As a result, the Government has taken several initiatives to address this problem, including the formulation of a set of guidelines for the erection of telecommunication towers which is currently open for public views.

Measures are also underway to build a state-sponsored 250 metre common broadcast tower for telecom companies, television and radio stations.

What is the remedy for the hazards posed to public wellbeing by telecommunication towers? Is the construction of towers regulated properly and adequately? What are the standards to be adhered to in permitting the construction of towers ?

Minimise impact ...

Continued from last week

Mahinda RAMASUNDARA

The telecommunications industry should be encouraged to continue to develop innovative design solutions, in terms not only of the structure of towers / masts and antennas but also the appearance.

Operators should be encouraged to provide to the authorities examples of different design solutions in areas where appearance is important. A number of different design solutions are currently used in developed countries.

These include towers / masts designed to install at roundabouts look like trees or street lamp posts. Authorities should discuss with operators different design and camouflage options in connection with development proposals.

It should be borne in mind that some designs may not be suitable for future sharing. Where it is agreed that a site is suitable for future sharing, it may be appropriate to install a tower / mast specifically designed to facilitate its redevelopment for sharing.

Health considerations and public concern can in principle be material considerations in determining applications for erecting towers.

Health Considerations

Whether such matters are material in a particular case is ultimately a matter for the appropriate authorities to decide. It is for the decision-maker to determine what weight to attach to such considerations in any particular case.

It remains central Governments responsibility to decide what measures are necessary to protect public health. If a proposed mobile phone base station meets the internationally accepted guidelines for public exposure it should not be necessary for each and every authority, in processing an application for planning permission, to consider further the health aspects and concerns about them.

Other authorities not dealing with health and environment issues should not be allowed to implement their own precautionary policies e.g. by way of imposing a ban or moratorium on new telecommunications development or insisting on minimum distances between new telecommunications development and existing development. It should be the responsibility of the TRCSL to lay down the required specification for health hazards in consultation with health authorities.

There is no necessity for Sri Lanka to carry out new investigation on the effect of health hazards due to electromagnetic radiation from mobile radio systems as there are enough research done in developed world investigating these matters of public concern. Internationally agreed specifications are available and it is a matter of deciding what standards are to be adopted in Sri Lanka.

What are EMFs? Mobile phones and their base stations transmit and receive signals using electromagnetic waves (also referred to as electromagnetic fields (EMFs) or radio waves). EMFs are all around us. They occur naturally, such as the earth’s magnetic field which causes compass needles to point north.

Natural biological processes also produce electric and magnetic fields within animals and humans. EMFs also arise from a wide range of man-made sources and will be present wherever there is electricity.

Sources of man-made EMFs include domestic wiring and appliances (such as lamps, hairdryers and television sets), visual display units, mobile phones, Man-made sources of EMFs also include electricity power lines, broadcasting transmitters and telecommunications base stations.

It is these sources which are most commonly encountered by us. It is also such sources of EMFs that often give rise to the greatest levels of public concern about possible health effects.

Health effects of Exposure

The public has become increasingly aware of the presence of EMFs in the environment. This growing awareness has been accompanied by concern that exposure to EMFs may have possible adverse effects upon health. It is clearly important that the public be protected where an adverse health effect exists.

Established health effects of exposure to radio waves from mobile phone systems are associated with the heating of tissues. International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) have published guidelines on limiting exposure to radio waves.

However, a particular point of public concern is whether exposure to low-level EMFs might cause other, non-established health effects, such as headaches, sleep disturbance, depression, stress and also long term health effects such as cancer.

Various International institutions have set up Independent Expert Groups on Mobile Phones. These Groups have considered concerns about health effects from the use of mobile phones, base stations and transmitters.

They have conducted a rigorous and comprehensive assessment of existing research and gathered a wide range of views. As per published reports, in respect of base stations, the conclusions are that there is no general risk to the health of people living near to base stations on the basis that exposures are expected to be small fractions of the guidelines.

However, there can be indirect adverse effects on their well-being in some cases. They also say that the possibility of harm cannot be ruled out completely with confidence and that the gaps in knowledge are sufficient to justify a precautionary approach.

These Independent Expert Groups have recommended a precautionary approach, comprising a series of specific measures, to the use of mobile phone technologies until we have more.

These include the emissions from mobile phones base stations should meet the ICNIRP guidelines for public exposure. Generally most mobile phone base stations meet the ICNIRP guidelines.

However, the mobile phone operators are expected to assess and adjust, where necessary, all their existing sites to ensure that they meet the ICNIRP guidelines.

An independent audit of emissions could be established to give the public confidence that base stations do not exceed approved guidelines. TRCSL can carry out this audit in line with the standards. Clear exclusion zones should be in place around all mobile phone base station antennas to prevent the public from exposure to radio frequency radiation above ICNIRP guidelines. (These exclusion zones relate to an area directly in front of and at the height of the antenna).

Environmental Considerations

Protection from visual intrusion and the implications for subsequent network development will be important considerations in determining site approvals. Towers and antennas often require a particular operating height, which allows signals to clear trees and urban clutter.

Telecommunications development may therefore need particular locations in order to work effectively. But those may be exactly the prominent locations that pose challenges to policies for the protection of high quality landscapes and quality in urban areas.