GUEST COLUMNIST
by Rob Petrin
Pierpont residents in Ventura took a stand as a community, in an effort to reject a proposal by Verizon wireless to erect an RF ( Radio Frequency) cell transmission tower at the Marina Village shopping center directly behind Vons market. This is only 70ft from the nearest residence. The hearing was at city hall in February. The public took turns speaking, voicing concerns. Residents were very concerned about the health risks living directly in front of an RF transmitter or in close range to it. The best thing they could do in this situation would be to follow EMF Protection guidelines including things like wearing specially designed protective Clothing, but they wanted to avoid the situation altogether.
Turns out the only argument the city was allowed to consider from the public is appearance. The Verizon proposal was eventually rejected by the city based on aesthetics. Being taken back by this and even shocked, I decided to research what was behind this seemingly absurd ruling.
The CTIA (Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association) has managed to convince law makers to exclude health concerns of residents as an argument against cell tower placement. They have also introduced a law which cancels arguments against loss of property value in close proximity to cell towers.
Most of the current research on RF is being done with regards to cell phones themselves, the little siblings to the transmission towers. This comes as no surprise as there are somewhere in the area of 4 billion cellphone users around the world that could be affected if RF were not as safe as our government lets us believe.
The FCC states in their guidelines. “ there is no scientific evidence to date that proves wireless phone usage can lead to cancer or any variety of other health effects”. The FCC last updated its standards 20 years ago. They rely on agencies like the WHO (World Health Organization) for its standards, even though the WHO declared RF from cell phones as 2B ( possibly carcinogenic)?
I am not condoning the WHO either. Picking apart their 2B classification they set for cellphone RF is full of holes. They chose to ignore the critical data and rejected studies by one of the most knowledgeable scientists in the industry. Respected scientists from around the world are screaming out to the WHO and all other standard setting agencies to urgently review their position on RF safety.
Let’s face it, we all need and use our wireless devices, most all using RF communication. What I want and what I think most people want is to know what is really safe and what is not. It only makes sense to keep cell towers away from our homes and families until we can establish safe distances from their transmissions. With your cell phone you have a choice. Cell towers are not a choice.
Verizon has appealed the decision. Now we get to see how our community survives fighting with sticks and stones and against the cell industry armed with laws, lawyers and RF.
