Public meeting April 20 for Bell Tower opponents
Port Franks
By Lynda Hillman-Rapley
Posted 4 days ago
Port Franks residents are not alone when it comes to their concerns regarding telecommunication towers.
A Silver Hill man has petitioned Industry Canada for an environmental impact study regarding a proposed 100-metre telecommunications tower.
Lewis Balogh is a property owner on the Silver Hill Side Road southeast of Langton. His home is less than 400 feet from the tower’s proposed location.
“I don’t think those who were in the right position to evaluate this have done everything they could to find the best solution,” Balogh said Monday. “This is a big country. There are all kinds of spaces for things like this.”
Balogh is seeking a study under provisions of the Environmental Protection Act of Ontario, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the Radio Communications Act of Canada.
The legislation allows for impact studies where a proposed development may have monetary or economic consequences for neighbouring property owners. Impact studies are also indicated where a proposed development may have health consequences or impair a person’s right to the enjoyment of their property.
Federal law requires tower proponents to consult with municipalities on the proposed location of this infrastructure. However, at the end of the process, municipalities have no authority to determine where telecommunication towers go. The final decision rests with Industry Canada.
In Port Franks the issue is health. Spokesperson Wendy Hoy says, “This proposed one hundred and twenty foot tower will be located near to residences, waterfront, the beach, and marshlands, as well as summer cottages. It will be directly in the flyway of the migratory birds, including the famous Tundra Swans. It will be extremely near to where many Ontario boaters dock their craft for the warm seasons.”
“Also, there is a child in our community who frequently visits the proposed tower area. She has a pre-existing neurological condition. The EMF radiation could be a detriment to her health, and that of any other children in the tower area. All local parents should be concerned about the health effects of these electromagnetic frequencies on their children.”
Hoy says the municipal council is aware that a majority of residents are against this structure being built. They have advised Bell Canada that they now have a proposed protocol, but Bell says it is too late to apply to this transmission tower proposal.
FROM THE MUNICIPALITY
CAO John Byrne advised that he has undertaken a review of the policies that other municipalities had passed dealing with “telecommunication towers” and it was the consensus of those polled that while Industry Canada made the final decision regarding tower placement, policies were important to express the community’s desires for tower location and public consultation.
After reviewing the available policies, a Lambton Shores protocol for establishing Tele-communication facilities was developed, and Policy # 61 drafted, a copy of which was presented for Council’s review. It was also suggested that this policy be forwarded to the Municipal Affairs Manager undertaking the public consultation for the proposed Bell Tower in Port Franks and that the Manager be advised that the policy was drafted in response to the concerns raised by the community. Also a a letter from Port Franks resident Sherry Cook outlining residents’ concerns with a proposed communication tower in Port Franks was discussed along with the possibility of having this tower located other than a residential area and it was noted that staff had notified Bell of the Municipal protocol regarding communication towers and had looked at alternative locations for the, all of which were deemed unsuitable.
It was reiterated that Bell be advised that it was not acceptable to have this type of tower in a residential area, that other locations outside of residential areas be considered.
CANADA’S ROLE
Health Canada has developed guidelines for safe human exposure to Radio Frequency (RF) energy. The current version of these exposure guidelines is specified in a document called: Limits of Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Energy in the Frequency Range from 3 kHz to 300 GHz - Safety Code 6 (2009). The safety limits in this code are based on an ongoing review of published scientific studies, including both internal and external authoritative reviews of the scientific literature, as well as Health Canada's own research. This code is periodically revised to reflect new knowledge in the scientific literature. The current version of this code reflects the scientific literature published up to August 2009 and replaces the previous version published in 1999.
Cell phones are regulated by Industry Canada. This department also oversees the licensing and placement of cell phone towers, considers the effects on the environment and local land use before towers are installed, and ensures that these towers comply with regulatory requirements. Industry Canada has adopted part of Health Canada's RF exposure guidelines to protect the general public by ensuring that exposure from cell phones and cell phone towers do not exceed the specified limits.
Health Canada says RF energy (sometimes called RF emissions, RF waves, or RF fields) is a part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which includes microwave radiation, visible light and X-rays. Health concerns are sometimes expressed by people who live or work near cell phone tower antennas located on towers, poles, water tanks or rooftops. Yet, the consensus of the scientific community is that RF energy from cell phone towers is too low to cause adverse health effects in humans. In fact, RF exposures from cell phone towers are typically well below Health Canada's exposure standards.
Over the past decade, the use of wireless telecommunication technology has increased significantly: more than 24 million Canadians now have cell phones. To ensure that the public's RF exposure falls within acceptable guidelines, Industry Canada, the federal regulator responsible for the approval of RF equipment and performing compliance assessments, has chosen the human exposure limits established by Health Canada and outlined in Safety Code 6.
If you go:
Neighbourhood Community Information Night
Port Franks Community Centre at 9997 Port Franks Road
7 p.m. on April 20, 2012.
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