Only one week after many residents stepped forward to petition the City Council to vote against a proposed wireless facility at 249 Miles Standish Drive, resident David LoVecchio is preparing his own list of questions about another cell phone antenna soon to be mounted. LoVecchio, whose Heritage Hill condo directly abuts the telecommunications facility proposed for the existing water tank located at 97 Arnold St., said as a former cancer survivor he has a personal concern about the potential health threat from wireless facilities.
After addressing his concerns with the representative from MetroPCS during the public hearing Oct. 6 at the City Council meeting, LoVecchio was distressed by the inability of the representative to answer his questions.
"It has become so easy for wireless companies to come in and place antennas and towers in residential communities," he said. "They don't even send someone qualified to answer the questions."
Aware that there are federal regulations in place to prohibit municipalities from stopping the placement of the facilities based on health reasons, he said it is time for the City Council to start asking questions.
"I'd love to see a vocal City Council start to ask questions about the health implications," he said. "Pressure needs to be put on the Environmental Protection Agency state and federal representatives."
In e-mail messages sent to local government agencies and representatives from MetroPCS, LoVecchio raises several questions. Included is whether the Wireless Committee and city councilors are aware of the findings of a $28 million research program paid for by the American cell phone industry and directed by Dr. George Carlo.
According to LoVecchio, Carlo has written several books based on his findings and is one of the leading figures raising questions about the health risks for children and adults associated with wireless facilities, and his concerns have been ignored by the industry.
LoVecchio explained that the proposed wireless site will allow for three groupings of antennas, which he called a pretty extensive network. He asked about the documented non-thermal adverse eff ects caused by exposure to radiation/electromagnetic frequencies sent out by the proposed wireless facility.
LoVecchio said one of the documents sent to the City Council from MetroPCS legal representatives to disprove that thermal effects could cause cancer touches upon other studies that point out the relationship between cell towers and non-thermal effects, which negatively impact the production of melatonin, which plays a role in the immune system.
Attorney Francis Parisi, representing MetroPCS, responded to LoVecchio's questions by citing section 704 of the Telecommunication Act of 1996, which does not allow state or local municipalities to prohibit the placement of wireless facilities that meet the federal regulations based on the environmental eff ects of radio frequency emissions.
"Just because the studies say they do not know [whether there's a health risk] does not justify putting them [cell towers] up," LoVecchio said.
With responses from city councilors stating that their hands are tied, LoVecchio said that at some point that is just an excuse.
"In my mind this needs to be re-addressed," he said. "Taking away the power of the municipalities is a flagrant disregard to the health and safety of the citizens."
Realizing that his questions may not stop the immediate placement of the towers and antennas, LoVecchio hopes that residents will attend the Wireless Committee meeting Monday Nov. 24. He also said he hopes that residents and city councilors will become educated about the studies that have been conducted and begin to rock the boat.
National WorkerRF Safety Crisis Video Our nations’ workers and the welfare of their families
are at risk! Watch the video to see how.
A hang-up in cell antenna effort as neighbors object
Source: CommunityAdvocate.com
