Knowledge Base Safe Mobile Phone Network

 

Summary:

 

A properly functioning mobile network is feasible with much lower radiation levels in homes. The levels could be lowered to such an extent that no-one living in the vicinity of mobile phone masts needs to suffer from neurological effects  such as headaches and migraine. This is (probably) also true for the higher cancer incidence around mobile phone masts, which has been found in several studies. In the present - polarised - public debate regarding the public health effects of phone masts, this fact is largely ignored. We propose here to adopt such a more modern mobile phone network (see safe network), as is already functioning in a number of regions in Europe.

 

Introduction:

 

Mobile telecommunications based on radiation in the Gigahertz region have increased dramatically since their introduction in the 1990s. However, this has taken place without regard to the biological effects. It was, and still is, assumed by the operators that it can do no damage provided that the absorbed radiation does not heat the brain by more than one degree Celsius in 30 minutes. Unfortunately, today’s exposure standards in the Netherlands are still based on this, despite mounting evidence that biological effects, some of which are deleterious to health, occur at levels well below this.

 

Recent research by TNO and the University of Zurich suggest that there is no need to worry about the neurological effects of short term exposure (30-45 minutes) to the radiation from the antennas of either GSM or UMTS base stations. While these two studies have been given much media coverage, little attention, has been paid to the ever increasing volume of studies and reports demonstrating clear neurological symptoms after longer periods of exposure.  This is especially serious in the case of people suffering chronic exposure to radiation from neighbouring GSM masts. Many epidemiological studies published in international journals, as well as anecdotal reports from a multitude of physicians and individual citizens have revealed a wide range of adverse effects. These include headaches, migraine, problems with concentration and an unpleasant jittery feeling. These effects begin at radiation levels as low as 100-500 microwatt/m2 (pronounced microwatts per square meter) corresponding to 0.2-0.4 V/m (see Neurotoxic effects).

 

Despite this, the actual levels experienced since the growth of the UMTS network peak at around 10000-20000 microwatt/m2 in hundreds of thousands of homes in the Netherlands, and many millions of houses in the whole of Europe.

 

At first sight, there seems to be an unbridgeable gap between the economic and social importance of having a good mobile phone network and the need for a healthy living environment. However, this is a false premise; current radiation levels are many times higher than those needed for functional mobile networks.  Most mobile equipment will already work with signal strengths of the order of 0.001 microwatt/m2 and, with a relatively small adjustment to the height and power of the antennas, no citizen should be burdened with a radiation level greater than 100 microwatt/m2. Indeed, with even greater but still practicable modifications (e.g. still taller masts) the maximum radiation could be brought down to well below 10 microwatt/m2 (see Safe network)

 

The most important message to come from this website is that there is no conflict between having a good functional mobile phone network and the need for a healthy environment. It just needs careful planning and an appreciation of the adverse biological effects of non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation.