Cell towers get mixed signals
The proposal by Bell Mobility for three new cell phone towers in Innisfil — at Innisfil Beach Park, Fennell's Corners Park and at the Stroud Arena — has prompted a battle of the petitions.
A 252-signature petition opposing the installation of a tower at 2155- 25 Sideroad (Innisfil Beach Park) was handed to town council on July 11.
At the same time, a petition has been started by businesses and residents who want the new towers which are intended to improve cell service, complaining of dropped calls in the Alcona area.
Normally an Industry Canada decision, Innisfil council will make the decision on the cell towers because all three are proposed for municipal property.
Should Bell Mobile be turned down by the town, the company can approach private landowners for permission to place the cell towers.
Shelly Wright and Brian Durkin live one kilometre from the proposed site near Innisfil Beach Park, immediately behind the Alcona fire station, and just tens of metres away from a popular toboggan hill and other activities in the park.
But for Shelly, Bell might as well be placing the tower in her backyard.
She is among a small but growing percentage of the population who have been diagnosed with extreme electromagnetic sensitivity. She experiences a well-defined suite of symptoms that can include confusion, short term memory loss, tingling, numbness in the hands and feet, difficulty sleeping and migraines, when exposed to Wi-Fi, cell phones, cordless phones, routers, and communications towers.
On July 10, Wright and Durkin held a public meeting at the Innisfil Community Church — which turned off its Wi-Fi for the occasion — to present some background information on cell tower safety. The presentation included a video of Dr. Magda Havas, associate professor of Environmental and Resource Studies at Trent University, who has been studying the biological effects of radio frequencies for over a decade.
Dr. Havas pointed out that in May of 2011, the World Health Organization classified electromagnetic radiation as a Class 2B carcinogen. In other words, as a “possibly carcinogenic.”
The findings are complex, she noted. “Four of six studies showed increased incidence of cancer,” when combined with exposure to other carcinogens not directly causing cancer, but promoting it.
In the U.S., the IAFF (International Association of Fire Fighters) has expressed strong opposition to using fire halls as base stations for communications towers or antennas, at least until a majority of studies prove that the radiation is safe.
Their opposition is based partly on new information on the 'side lobe' radiation patterns emitted by antennas — which irradiate areas near the towers — and partly on anecdotal evidence. Within five years of the installation of a tower at a fire station in California, firefighters experienced a long list of symptoms that included brain fog, confusion, tremors, migraine and vertigo.
That information led to a 2004 IAFF resolution calling for a moratorium on the placement of mobile phone towers at fire halls.
Durkin pointed out that the town has a policy on the location of mobile phone and telecommunications towers, that specifically states that the towers should not be placed within 300 metres of a residential area, or involve any tree-cutting.
The Innisfil Beach Park proposal “goes against most of their policy,” he said.
The town will be accepting written submissions until July 27.
No comments:
Post a Comment