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Post Time: 19/02/2009 09:33:49 |
guest16
Total Forum Posts: 1 |
Hello
The circumstance outlined in this post is probably quite common on this forum, but any advice given would be welcome.
I’m buying a new home. The house is situated about 70 yards from a substation. I checked with the local electricity supplier, and I was informed that this particular substation is an 11 kv installation. I’d assume at this distance it is perfectly safe.
However, there is a buried 11 kv cable running down the street itself. I discussed this with the engineering section of the electricity company. They looked at their detailed plans, and it appears the cable maybe laid beneath the footpath across on the other side of the street – a distance of about 10 yards from the edge of the property’s front garden, plus another 10 yards for the size of the front garden itself i.e. a total distance of about 20 yards from the actual house itself. Again, I’m assuming at this distance a buried 11 kv cable would be safe.
However, the engineer admitted he may’ve misread the plans (which are complicated with respect to house/street layout) and its possible the cable maybe buried on my side of the street, in which case I’d have a buffer the size of my front garden – about 9 or 10 yards – between my house and the 11 kv cable. Would this pose any health risk?
Thanks
JS
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Post Time: 25/02/2009 11:38:58 |
Jean Philips
Total Forum Posts: 22 |
Dear JS,
Health risks have been investigated with respect to specific levels of electromagnetic fields rather than distance from the sources of the fields.
As you say, the fields from the substation itself will be very low at 70 yards distance. The cables may be a different matter. Immediately above underground cables, the magnetic field levels are significantly higher than below the equivalent voltage overhead line. They do reduce more quickly however, but it is partly a matter of how the cable are laid in the cable trench and other factors which determine how far away you need to be to be at an acceptably low level.
The only way to know for certain is to measure the field levels at the places of interest/concern and compare them with the internationally accepted levels at which health effects are acknowledged. 0.4 microtesla is accepted internationally as being associated with an increased risk of developing childhood leukaemia, and other health problems such as other cancers, depression, heart problems etc have also been linked but not with unanimous consensus.
Jean |
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Post Time: 02/03/2009 17:41:24 |
alasdairP
Total Forum Posts: 173 |
I agree with Jean's comments. You should measure the magnetic fields if you are concerned. That will show you where the cables actually are and what EMFs they are actually producing. Doing it about 18:00 hrs is a good time (high power usage).
I suspect that all will be fine in this case. Certainly the substation itself should not be a problem.
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