Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Fine on mobile phone transmission antennas in Austria?

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Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 06-21-2005, 04:17 AM:

A new dispute has arrived in good ol' Austria:
As I read now in the newspapers there are about 18,000 transmission antennas (for mobile phone communication) installed in Austria (83,858 square kilometres or 32,377.7 square miles).
These antennas are believed to be hazardous to human health. Now the countries want the mobile phone operators to pay a fine for the antennas to prevent new ones to be installed. The operators say that they would pay, but increase the prices - consequently the poor client will have to pay - there are rumors that these costs will increase the bills up to 500 €!! (I personally cannot believe that).

Now what do you think? Are there also a lot of antennas installed at your place? Do you think it is OK to increase communication quality at the costs of human health?

PS: Some reporter wrote that this situation is unique.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 06-21-2005, 07:28 AM:

If the Austrian government is trying to impose extra taxation on mobile 'phone operators because it thinks they're a health hazard, it had better have some pretty solid evidence to back up that belief: otherwise I can see a long, messy and expensive court case in prospect.

There seems to be a mass of contradictory evidence both for and against in the 'do mobiles fry your brain?' debate. This story (BBC Online article from 11 January 2005 reporting on a research study examining the effects of mobiles on children's brains) gives a taste of the kind of claims that are being made.

Part of the problem is that the things have been in widespread use for such a short period of time that if there's a 'time bomb' issue, we don't know about it yet and probably won't do for some years to come. Fears that a BSE epidemic could affect hundreds of thousands seem, thankfully, to have been massively over pessimistic - let's just hope that the same is true here.

That having been said, the mobile communications industry is now so big and turns over so many millions of pounds/euros/dollars that if a consensus of scientific opinion emerges which says that they are a health hazard, it'll be stepping on some powerful toes.

Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 06-21-2005, 08:02 AM:

no doubt about that the discussion on health hazard is still hot here.
As I have heard (rumors), the electromagnetic waves emitted by a mobile are similar to the waves emitted by a microwave oven though they are not that strong (hopefully [Big Grin]

). Yet, some doctors think that these waves are able to change the cell structure which causes cancer.
There are also reports that people, who live in an area where an antenna is installed, have sleeping problems.

Say... what about antennas for radio/television broadcast? Aren't htey dangerouos? Why/why not?

Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 06-21-2005, 02:42 PM:

Until recent years, high power broadcast (AM, FM, TV) stations required a human being at the transmitter to make meter readings. A very large number of people spent a large number of hours practically inside these transmitters. If human health would have been a factor, it would have been well known inside this industry.

Instead, many men grew old (80?) doing this relaxing "work."

Now thse newer transmitter are unattended, run relatively low power, and no one is really near: 1/4 mile.

Who are they kidding??

Louis

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 06-21-2005, 03:44 PM:

quote: Louis Bornwasser
Until recent years, high power broadcast (AM, FM, TV) stations required a human being at the transmitter to make meter readings. A very large number of people spent a large number of hours practically inside these transmitters. If human health would have been a factor, it would have been well known inside this industry.

And by the same token, if deep vein thrombosis caused by sitting still for long periods of time was such a grave threat to long distance air passengers as the doomsayers believe it is, why aren't pilots dropping dead all over the place?

quote: Dieter Depypere
There are also reports that people, who live in an area where an antenna is installed, have sleeping problems.

Low frequency noise from their power sources, probably. That might be a problem, but it doesn't have to be anything sinister.

Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 06-22-2005, 04:14 AM:

quote: Leo Enticknap
Low frequency noise from their power sources, probably. That might be a problem, but it doesn't have to be anything sinister.

Now i know. I just say "electrosmog" as we call it here. Also if you have some power supply cords running around your bed it might cause sleeping problems. These have a frequency of 50 Hz (Europe) or 60 Hz (US). People who live near a railway are even "polluted" with 16 2/3 Hz from the power supply of railways.

Posted by Josh Jones (Member # 447) on 06-23-2005, 05:50 AM:

please, 700mW is going to fry your brain? [Roll Eyes]

If you have a problem with that, I have several multi-bay 100KW installations you might enjoy [Razz]

Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 06-23-2005, 07:08 AM:

quote: Josh Jones
please, 700mW is going to fry your brain?

tell this the medical staff from the university [Wink]

Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 06-23-2005, 07:54 AM:

Revealing is it not? We trust our health to those who cannot comprehend.

Louis

Posted by John Walsh (Member # 168) on 06-23-2005, 11:20 AM:

To me, this just seems like a way to squeeze money out of the mobile phone operators. If the transmission antennas were really that dangerous, they shut them off, or reduce the number of sites.

quote:
Dieter Depypere

There are also reports that people, who live in an area where an antenna is installed, have sleeping problems.
_________________________________

People need to be careful of statistics like this. There have been several reports of people not sleeping well (here in the US) because of increased polution, worry about jobs, worry about terrorism, etc. The fact that there's an antenna nearby may not mean anything.

Posted by Dieter Depypere (Member # 3184) on 06-23-2005, 12:28 PM:

quote: John Walsh
To me, this just seems like a way to squeeze money out of the mobile phone operators.

Indeed, but the operators do not care. It's just the customers who will have to pay up to 500 euros more in a year... And that is not correct. We (customers) did not build up those antennas - guess who was it?