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Post Time: 07/03/2009 14:37:07 |
Jayne Papworth
Total Forum Posts: 23 |
I live near three masts and the local school where one of my sons currently attends has 2 masts close - the recently erected mast is 127m from the school fence (without permission from the parents, as per the Stewart report!) and the other is 300m away and has been up for approx 3 years. The school also has 7 wifi transmitters.
I am concerned about the possible health effects for my family by living in this community. My sons are 2 and 5 years old. The masts are approximately 285m, 320m and 780m from my home respectively and have been erected within the last 3 years or so, the last one was switched on just last week - the one that is close to my sons school and 320m from my house. Although there is a fair amount of shielding from other properties from 2 of the masts, I can see one mast (the 320m away one) from the end of my garden if I look between the houses and trees.
I am concerned about the school situation (2 masts, wifi as well as any possible interaction between the radiation sources)and home situation (living near 3 masts and having to walk around them in day to day life with my children) and considering the need to take professional advice and/ or purchase a meter to measure levels. I am already involved in "campaigns" to try to remove both the latest mast and the Wi-fi from the school but in the meantime want to take precautions for the safety of my family both at home and school. I am even wondering whether we should move house but this would be so very disruptive for my children as all our friends and family are here. But the way things are going will we just move to an area where more masts will soon be up so we will be no bettter off? Also I understand virtually all the local schools have or soon will have Wi-fi! Please can you advise on how I can safeguard my family and can you recommend any consultants? Very many thanks. (I appreciate this is a long winded query and do apologise!) Jayne |
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Post Time: 10/03/2009 22:26:18 |
alasdairP
Total Forum Posts: 173 |
Jayne
The masts are probably ok-ish at your house with those distances. 320 metres clear line of sight should only give you a low level of exposure. We recommend the Electrosmog detector as the first device to use to check levels in your house (etc). It has a audio output but really is excellent at locating hot spots and giving you a guide to how much you are exposed to. I don't know what part of the country you live in regarding a consultant survey (name of nearest town will suffice).
The mast at 127 metres from the school is likely to give a considerable exposure level in the school grounds, but we really can't get away from these signals nowadays. Has the school has an Ofcom survey? They did them free of charge to the school and believe that they may still do this upon request by the Head. See:
www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/ra/topics/mpsafety/school-audit/audit.htm
I don't know your personal circumstances, but I don't think that I would move. I have lived close (about 80 metres) to a powerful base station for some years and have had to shield my bedrooms in order to sleep properly and well, but that can be done. I now am moving to an area in Scotland well away from microwave signals (no mobile phone networks have signals enabling phones to work there!), but that would not have been practical as my family was growing up.
I am concerned about WiFi in schools. I will answer your other forum posting on this topic.
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Post Time: 11/03/2009 10:25:21 |
Jayne Papworth
Total Forum Posts: 23 |
Hi Alasdair , Thankyou again for your informative and prompt reply. Please could you also consider the following issues arising from our discussions. Very many thanks again as I realise I have now raised even more points.
1. I live in Stockton on Tees, north east England, so if you can recommend a consultant that would be much appreciated.
2. I will get an electrosmog detector but also have ben considering getting something which can measure the accurate levels. Can you advise on something not terribly scientific (and durable as I am rather clumsy!) but will also put me at ease in my house by knowing what the levels are? Also, what levels does the simpler, electrosmog detector start to pick up readings?
3. I have had some initial readings taken by a friend who has a HF analyser and the highest reading was .005mW/m2 at the window in my son's bedroom but at bed level it was .001mW/m2. The same in my other sons bedroom as they are both at the front of the house and obviously we are picking up some readings from the closest mast. I took some readings at another time myself and they were much higher but this may have been as I dropped the Analyser (oops) and now have to get it checked/ fixed. Can the readings vary depending at the time of day and if so what is the best way to ensure you know what max exposure levels are so you can take precautions? Also what levels do you work to as being acceptable, bearing in mind espeacially that my children are just 2 and 5 years old.
4. My sister lives in the same locality and is affected by the same 3 masts. She is close to a mast and in direct line of site of one, 130m away. It is an 02 mast, trans power 28dbW, max lic power 32dbw. (All three seem to be the same monopole sort of thing with max trans power of up to 32dbw. It doesnt mean much to me but I guess they are pretty standard?)The others are 285 and 375m respectively. I took readings with a HF analser and they seemed "high" in all rooms of the house. (Not sure how much was the masts and how much next doors wifi and DECT phones as although she has spoken to them we are not sure if they have done anything about it) When I say high I mean .601mW/m2 in the main bedroom. That was the highest reading I took but it was only my first attempt with the HF analyser so I couldnt rely on it being 100% accurate! Other readings were 0.131mW/m2 in living room, .019mW/m2 in the hall, 1.2mW/m2 in the dining room. Can you give any advice on what we should do next to ensure her families safety. She has been in the house just over a year and has a 3year old daughter.
5. As regards the Ofcom assessment at the school,thankyou for mentioning it, I have heard about this and indeed been considering it as an option - as regards the two masts potentially affecting the school - the one at 300m and the one at 127m away. However, wondered whether all they would say was it complies with ICNRP levels etc etc which we know are far higher than the levels at which biological effcets take place. I did however think that at least we would have some readings to work from as at present the school would not allow us to take any. My friend has asked and been refused. It sounds as though I would have to persuade the Headteacher to allow this to happen? Do you have any further thoughts?
Very many thanks for your support.
Jayne |
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Post Time: 12/03/2009 00:03:22 |
alasdairP
Total Forum Posts: 173 |
Hi Jayne
I have replied to (1) by personal email.
2/. As an initial monitor I like the Electrosmog Detector (which I designed, so I may be biased! Actually, the Gigahertz solutions meters which also have sound are even better as they give readings but they are much more expensive. EMFields sells the cheapest one worth getting, the MW35C) - I find the different sounds of the different types of radiation modulation very helpful and don't feel that I usually need an actual reading in the first instance. We do have complex meters and RF analysers (including one costing £10,000!), so I am not saying this because we don't have suitable measurement equipment. It is easy to get too worried and hooked on "actual numbers" when, in reality, even the best equipment has large tolerances and you only have to move a few centimetres for the levels to change by a factor of 10-fold, especially if you are near masts (hot-spots etc). Its sensitivity starts at about 0.03 V/m. By 0.05 V/m (the level at which we believe sensitive people react from the various scientific reports) the sound is clear.
3. I don't know what make and model of HF analyser you were using. You have to be very careful if it was an Aaronia SPECTRAN. The latest version 4 may be good, but some earlier at times gave very misleading answers and missed some frequencies altogether unless specially set up. I much prefer a broadband meter to a spectrum analyser for overall RF pollution levels.
0.001 mW/2 is equivalent to about 0.02 V/m (20 mV/m) continuous wave. That is a low level and quite difficult to get down to now in many places. 0.005 mW/m2 (5 microwatts/m2) is getting close to the 0.05 V/m that people seem to react to, but I would judge would be fine for most people. See, especially, the Bamberg doctors results at:
www.powerwatch.org.uk/News/20050722_bamberg.asp
You will see that the symptoms start to appear at 0.01 mW/m2.
(Col. 1 are no attributed symptons - the visit to doctor was for other reasons)
The most I would suggest would be screening curtains and the bedroom windows, but unless you were having health problems I don't think I would spend the money to reduce these already quite low signal levels.
4. 0.6 mW/m2 is equivalent to about 0.5 V/m and 1.2 mW/m2 to about 0.7 V/m.
These are levels that are (in our opinion) far too high. Some serious screening needs to be done and/or a house move is advised. Just look at the bottom two graphs in the Bamberg doctors results. Download and read our documents:
Radiofrequency EMFs and health risks and Radiofrequency Protection for you and your family.
Your sister and her family may be fine (not everyone reacts to RF pollution at these levels), but I would not be happy to stay there without considerable screening work. Such levels of chronic (especially nightime) exposure cause me sleep problems and seem to leave me with headaches, chronic fatigue and irritability. Screening could be carried out and would significantly reduce the levels inside the house (but not the garden, of course). It would be fairly expensive to do effectively (at least several thousands of pounds) and would require full redecoration in the affected rooms and special window curtains or RF screening films.
The power levels on Sitefinder are not very helpful. The transmitter power is per channel and the mast may have anywhere from 1 to 16 channels(!). Also, we have found many errors when comparing masts we have measured with what is claimed on Sitefinder. The figures are supplied by the Operators and no checking audit has been carried out (the audit mentioned on Sitefinder does not check transmitted power). Also, the T-Mobile data is now over 3 years out of date (they are in legal dispute with Ofcom - see notes on the Ofcom Sitefinder website front page).
5. The Ofcom (RA) schools audit measurements are quite good and they do provide spectrum analyses, thought they explain their results in very dismissive terms.
I would be surprised if the school is not violating your human rights by not allowing you to take readings (unobtrusively) where your child spends the day. I would have thought that you could have come to some sort of agreement that you could take readings but not use them in any adverse publicity about the school.
If not, then you could formally write to the Governors and ask them, as you are not allowed to measure the exposure levels, to guarantee that the levels to which the children are being exposed to will not in any way adversely affect their well-being. That might spur them into some more positive action.
I am glad we are able to help. Thanks.
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Post Time: 12/03/2009 21:00:05 |
Jayne Papworth
Total Forum Posts: 23 |
Hi Alasdair.
I continue to be impressed by your prompt and knowledgeable responses, so if I may just ask a few more questions that would be very much apprecaited.
1. Still not sure about the varying levels ie do levels of exposure change throughout the day and if so what is the best way of assessing max exposure eg taking sample readings at different times over a week perhaps?
2. What could my sister do immediately to protect her daughter at the least before she decides to proceed with either redecoration and /or house move. Would a bed net be good for her daughter? Any other simple, quick/easy measures? I presume you would advise a consultant assessment in her case?
3. Have been thinking about the Pilkington K glazing for my sons' bedroom windows to be on the safe side but we have white PVC everywhere else and think I have read somewhere to be effective against the raditaion meta is the only suitable option. Any thoughts? Do you have any ideas of cost and presumably the units are easily available?
4. Am new to all of this ( have just been aware and done my research in the last month) so this may sound a basic query but what are the riks associated with the electric side of things and to what extent is this a real risk compared to the radiation from mast/ wifi/ DECT phones etc. Also what is the best way to assess this risk in my house? Both my children have metal bed frames. Should I be concerned. I hadne given it a second thought till I started doing this research. It it something the consultant would/ could help with? Please could you advise?
Once again, so many thanks.
Jayne |
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Post Time: 17/03/2009 00:05:03 |
alasdairP
Total Forum Posts: 173 |
Jayne, thanks for your kind comments.
1/. Yes, taking regular and fairly frequent readings is really necessary.
2/. If Your sister and her family are in good health and states of well-being, it may well not be necessary to do anything in the short-term.
Most of the microwave radiation is probably coming in from one side of the house and that side should really be screened with paint and window-film or screening curtains as soon as reasonably possible, in my personal opinion. The signals are of such levels (according to your measurements) that just screening the upstairs is unlikely to be successful and quite a lot of the microwave radiation is likely to be being reflected off the ground and coming upwards from below as well as directly from the mast. I wouldn't panic, but some good planned actions are advisable in my opinion.
3/. Pilkington-K is quite good. The Hilte-70 window film is better. Many PVC window frames have quite a lot of metal inside them. The levels in your house were really quite low and I think that window film would be more than adequate to significantly lower the already quite low levels, even with PVC frames.
4/. Gosh, this is a big question! Electric and magnetic fields, unless very high, are less of a worry to me than the RF/microwave pollution. Keep plug top transformers / power supplies away from bed and frequent chairs. Keep most electronic gadgets out of bedrooms, or unplugged at night. Try to have beds at least 100 cm away from all walls. Keep bedrooms dark at night (this is really important and relates to the night-shift workers cancers story running this week on the news). Having read around the subject and talked with many "experts" over many years, I would always now choose a wooden bed and a mattress without metal springs (i.e. a body-form foam one or similar). There is reasonable (but not absolute) evidence that magnetic field gradients (the change in magnetic field with position) are bad for our long-term health, especially where we sleep. Again, I certainly would not panic and rush to change everything immediately, but would gradually try to change over to non metal non magnetic bedroom furniture.
Alasdair
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Post Time: 17/03/2009 09:53:56 |
Jayne Papworth
Total Forum Posts: 23 |
Thanks again Alasdair, so very helpful and informative as previously. Three final queries if I may (at least for the moment!).
1. At least two of the three mast near us have just in the last week or teo been upgraded from 2G to 3G. What does this mean in practice? Will the microwane radiation emitted be more?
2. Does the radiation emitted from the masts come out in directed beams OR is it 360 degrees all around (or does it depend upon the type of mast)?
3. How would I be able to calculate if a property is the main beam of intensity of a particular mast which is a phrase I have heard used frequently?
Thanks
Jayne |
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Post Time: 23/03/2009 18:18:14 |
alasdairP
Total Forum Posts: 173 |
1/. Yes. More radiation. It is different, too. Some studies (especially the TNO one and the Essex Eltiti one) have found that sensitive people seem to react more to 3G/UMTS signals than they do to the older GSM signals.
2/. Most masts can send signals in all directions but have three sets of 120 degree sector antennas, usually North, South East and South West. There will usually be one transmit antenna and one or two receive antennas for each direction. Some masts have 4 and some use different directions. Some masts have one sector missing. Some low power fill-in ones just have a vertical 360 degree antenna. The sector antenna masts direct the signals to the sector where the mobile phone user is. So people are using their handsets in a residential area, with the mast on the outskirts, will attract most of the mast emissions towards their house. That is one of the reasons why we say people should use a landline from home, where possible. The more mobile calls to/from homes, the more masts are needed and the more the microwave radiation from the masts is directed towards the local houses.
3/. You can't. You need detailed technical specifications of the antennas and their tilt angles, etc, that the mobile operators do not give out. Best method is to walk around with a microwave meter or monitor. From a typical 15 metre high free-standing mast, the BOGI will come to ground between 50 and 200 metres away on level ground and will be strongest directly in line with the sector diections (usually N, SE and SW, but look to see where the antennas are mounted). It isn't a simple pattern and there are local hot spots, especially closer to the mast, due to unwanted sidelobe emissions from the mast. There is quite a lot about this in "Radiofrequency Protection for you and your family" available as a free download to subscribers like you on the Powerwatch website in the "Subscriber Area".
This short HPA article is quite good - remove line break and paste into your web browser.
www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1195733767890?p=1158934607786
You are welcome.
A.
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