What should you know about health effects from wireless networks?

International Workshop

TELECOMMUNICATIONS, ANTENNAS, DEVELOPMENT, INCLUSION AND HUMAN HEALTH

Lima, Peru,

10 -11July 2014

Managing Health and Safety

The Role of Local Authorities

Dr E. van Deventer

Team Leader, Radiation Programme

Department of Public Health, Social and Environmental Determinants of Health

National management approaches



Relevant authorities

– National level

– Provincial level

– Local level

• Dispense building and planning permits

• Direct contact with public and operators

• May introduce further conservative measures based on politics rather than science

2 | UNMSM-MTC International workshop, 11 July 2014, Lima, Peru


OUTLINE

 What you should know about ….

– The situation in your country regarding wireless networks

– Your role as local authorities

– How wireless networks operate

– The health effects from wireless networks

– The national and local rules and regulations

– How to communicate effectively with stakeholders

 Examples of some situations around the world


What is the situation in your country for wireless networks?

 Are there national rules or guidelines that apply to the development of wireless network infrastructure?

– Network operators’ obligations to provide coverage

– Limits for exposures to RF fields

– Requirements to demonstrate compliance with RF exposure limits and other obligations

– Building permits

– Constraints on mast / antenna siting and requirements to share sites

– Visual impacts/aesthetics


What is the landscape in your country for wireless networks? (cont'd)

 What local procedures apply? Are they compatible with any national rules? Are new rules / procedures needed?

 What kinds of national support are available to assist at the local authority level?

 What information is available to interested local communities / residents about the health and safety of wireless networks and how can they get it?

 What consultation processes are in place if sites are controversial?


What is your role?

Role

Planning regulator

Employer authority

Source of information

Network operator or

Landowner of site housing a wireless network

Possible responsibilities

• Authorise siting of wireless networks

• Set planning rules for wireless networks

• Approve land use near wireless networks

• Protect public health

• Respond to questions about wireless networks from local residents, elected representatives

• Decide whether to lease site

• Act as a good neighbour

• Use position as landowner to encourage or promote local priorities

• Provide a public WiFi service

• Operate radio telemetry network to monitor status of local infrastructure

• Operate mobile radio network to communicate with staff

• Meeting occupational health and safety responsibilities for staff working near wireless network transmitters


What should you know about how wireless networks operate?

 Radiofrequency fields used in wireless networks are non-ionizing radiation

 Different types of RF sources/antennas

– Emitters vs. transmitters

– Frequency (TV, AM, FM, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, …)

– Power (strength, steady vs. traffic, intermittent)


Network type/purpose

Comments Power

(maximum)

Frequency Exposures to public† Typical antenna size

Typical coverage*

Mobile phone network – macro site

Mobile phone network – micro site

Normally on high poles, masts or buildings to cover large areas

Often used to provide capacity

10 – 200 watt

~10 watt

Mobile phone network

– pico/ femto (small cell) site

Mobile radio

– traditional (e.g., for taxis, trucks)

Mobile radio

–

TETRA (terrestrial trunked radio)

WLAN (Wi-Fi) wireless internet

WiMAX fixed or mobile internet

Base station smart meters (not home units)

Often mounted indoors (e.g., shopping malls, offices) to provide capacity or improve coverage.

~1 watt

Sited on hills in open areas, or on buildings used by network operator

Provides greater security and capacity than traditional mobile radio, often used for emergency services; Sited on hills in open areas, or buildings used by network operator

25 watt: several transmitters may be used together at the same site

25 watt: several transmitters may be used together at the same site

Short-range data communication between an access point and one or several users

Delivery of last mile broadband wireless access as an alternative to cable

Some smart metering systems communicate via mobile phone networks or WiMAX

0.1 - 1 watt

3 watt

2 watt

700

MHz

700

MHz

– 2700

700 – 2700

MHz

– 2700

150

– 450

MHz

400 MHz

2450 - 6000

MHz

2450

MHz

– 5000

900 MHz

Maximum typically ~ 0.05

W/m 2 (~1%), generally much lower

Maximum ~ 0.05 W/m 2

(~1%), generally much lower


(~0.1%)


(~2%)

~ 0.002 W/m 2 (~0.1%)


(~0.01%)


(~0.002%)

< 0.0001 W/m 2 (<0.002%)

1 – 2 metres

1 – 2 metres

0.5 metres

1 metre

1 metre

30 cm

30 cm

1 metre

1 - 30 km

< 1 km

~ 100 m

~ 35 km

~ 8 km

~ 200 m

~ 35 km

1 km


There is no wireless network without the base stations!!! http://www.celtnet.org.uk/mobile-phone/img/cell-coverage.gif


What should you know about health effects from wireless networks?

RF-EMF: Two types of exposure close to body

(near field) environmental

(far field) mobile phone cordless phone broadcast transmitter mobile phone base station other people ’s mobile and cordless phones


Source: M. Röösli, 2014

What should you know about health effects from wireless networks?

 Where to find reliable information (from national authorities, international organizations)

 Different types of studies

– laboratory studies vs. epidemiological studies

 Different health outcomes

– Cancer and other health effects

 Different populations

– Children, pregnant women, EHS, people with pacemakers, …


What should you know about regulations

 Exposure limits in your country

– International limits

– Basis for differences between countries

 Your role regarding compliance and enforcement of limits, urban planning, siting, site sharing, administrative processes and timelines

– Number of licences

– Construction permits

– Location of base stations

– Site sharing/co-location


Management Options

Planning measures

 Access around fixed installations

Provisions to prevent public access around fixed installations


How to communicate effectively with stakeholders

 Understanding basic risk perception concepts


Risk Perception

 New technologies alarm people

– Affecting children

– influencing future generations

– Potentially disastrous consequences

– Cannot be seen or smelt

– Unfamiliar

– Cannot be controlled




 Who are your stakeholders?


With Whom to Communicate?




 Who are your stakeholders?

– Local politicians, citizens, operators, national authorities, ….

– Local media, social media

 Information to stakeholders (local residents, users of public spaces) … prior to installing base stations

 Dialogue with stakeholders on the health, social and environmental issues related to base station antennas

– through f orums, community outreach events (malls, …)


Management Options

Dialogue

 Dialogue

– public debates, mediation, focus groups, round tables www.who.int/emf

82% public announcements or inquiries

38 % meetings or information sessions

Requirements for informing /consulting stakeholders in the planning process for fixed installations


What to Communicate?

 Communicating the science

–

Use trustworthy sources

 Explaining national and local policy measures

 Putting the risk in perspective


Radiation

P

ublic

H

ealth

UV

Radon

P

ublic

C

oncern

EMF

X-rays

X-rays

EMF


Radon

UV

Examples of some situations around the world


Examples of restrictive local regulations

 Some municipalities enact local restrictive rules on cellular antenna siting

 Consequences for the deployment of modern services (e.g. 4G/LTE)

 Consequences for the customers / subscribers


Salzburg, Austria

 Exposure limits mandatory in Austria based on 1999

EU Council Recommendation

 Salzburg "milliwatt" limit (0.001 W/m 2 ) was brought to parliament but rejected by majority in 2002

 UMTS expansion was delayed until agreement between the city and the operators in 2004


Brussels, Belgium


Presented at the International Advisory Committee of the WHO International EMF Project, Paris, June 2013

Reducing Exposure Limits Impacts on Network Coverage

Additional Base Stations needed

Existing outdoor coverage areas (marked in red) (left) and post-3 V/m estimation along with the number of additional base stations required for just one operator to restore coverage to existing levels (right) after required power reductions to obtain manageable compliance boundaries. About 40% more base stations required.

(Example for Brussels).



Case study of France

(2009-13)


Case study of France

(2009-13)

 Multi-stakeholder operational committee (COMOP/COPIC)

 Study the feasibility of lowering exposure to RF emitted by mobile phone masts while maintaining service coverage and quality



16 communities over 1 year (ultimately 4 years)

 Conclusions

–

Reducing exposure to 0.6 V/m would be accompanied by

“a sharp deterioration in network coverage, particularly indoors.

” To compensate for this loss of coverage, about three times as many antennas would need to be installed

– increasing opportunities for public information and dialogue and decreasing the possibility for localities to adopt heterogeneous policies and practices


Distan z


31

The International EMF Project

Radiation and Environmental Health

Public Health and Environment

World Health Organization

21 Avenue Appia

CH-1211 Geneva 27

Switzerland email: emfproject@who.int

website: www.who.int/emf


What should you know about health effects from wireless networks?

Managing Health and Safety

The Role of Local Authorities

National management approaches

Relevant authorities

OUTLINE

What is the situation in your country for wireless networks?

What is the landscape in your country for wireless networks? (cont'd)

What is your role?

What should you know about how wireless networks operate?