Is a cell tower going up in your neighborhood?
If its not now, it may soon.
Wireless carriers are installing millions of them across the country to enable the new, faster 5g cell phone technology.
But tonight, Julie Watts asks the question-- you're not supposed to ask
Are there legitimate health concerns?
It's keeping John Heistand up at night.
This new pole outside his bedroom window…
Where Verizon will soon install a next-generation cell tower…
just feet from a school.
"this would be a big tower, pushing out radiation outside of our bedroom window 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for many years."
It's called a small cell... Or distributed antenna system
similar to this one in San Francisco
The industry says they're safe.
Many in Piedmont aren't convinced.
"our daughter is a cancer survivor."
13-year old Sophia has been one of many petitioning the city council to deny this cell tower and others.
"I'm also a brain cancer survivor and I am against the cell towers."
"I mostly talked about my cancer."
"And how it affected me ..."
But according to federal law… the city simply can't consider health concerns
It's outlined in this small section of the telecommunications act…
Based on science from 1996…
Back when this was the height of technology
But if cities do consider health… cell companies can sue…
So, with few legal arguments to deny a cell tower…
they're popping up outside bedroom windows,
and school campuses…
Despite objections from across the county.
"5g can be a tremendous boom to California, but only if it can be put up quickly and easily."
Hayward assembly member bill quirk co-authored legislation
that would make it even harder for cities like Piedmont
to object to a tower …
"you wouldn't have to go through the planning commission, through the city council"
The former NASA scientist says he may resurrect the bill… recently vetoed by the governor.
"I know scientifically that putting up these cell phone towers is safe."
But the international association of firefighters disagrees.
They began opposing cell towers on fire stations…
After firefighters complained of health problems.
"these firefighters developed symptoms."
Dr. Gunnar Heuser conducted a pilot study - on firefighters at a station with cell towers
"the symptoms included problems with memory, problems with intermittent confusion, problems with weakness."
Heuser says their brain scans suggest
even low level RF can cause cell damage...
And he worries about more vulnerable groups - like kids.
"we found abnormal brain function in all of the firefighters we examined."
So, following lobbying by firefighters
Quirk and his co-author exempted fire stations from their bill
Making them one place -- cell companies couldn't put a tower.
Watts: This is the first piece of legislation that anyone is aware of
where somebody got an exemption because they were concerned about health...
Watts: Did they tell u at all about the study?
Quirk: All I know is that when the firefighters ask, i do what they ask me to do
Watts: Because they are strong lobbyists? Quirk: Yes.
Watts: So if school teachers and parents had a strong lobby and they asked you to pass something...
that would prevent these from going up near schools, would you do that?
Quirk: If I couldn't get the votes any other way!
Firefighter and cancer survivor Tony Stefani notes…
"It's not only firefighters. It's the people that live within the vicinity of these towers."
Current regulations don't take into account continuous low-level exposure from these small cells - 24-hours a day.
"more of these studies have to be done"
Watts: There are 230 scientists from 41 countries who
...reviewed more than 2000 peer reviewed studies and
...they are calling on the World Health Organization to do more studies ... they're not convinced this is safe.
Quirk: I think doing more studies is always a good thing.
Watts: Do u think that maybe you should consider putting a pause on legislation that speeds up these towers until there is definitive evidence that there is no harm?
Quirk: We can do a lot of studies and there are people right now -- believe it or not --
who are sure the world is flat."
In a statement wireless industry says it...
But what about the UN-known?
Well, back in Piedmont the Heistands don't want to wait around to find out.
"We're gonna get some meters and we're going to measure the micro-radiation today."
"And then when the cell towers go up, we can measure it and see how dangerous it really is."
And he says if he has to, they'll move.
"For my daughter's health, definitely."
Julie reports,
Piedmont did block some cell towers -- and is now being sued.
Meanwhile new government research -- set to be published next month --
could radically alter the debate.
It's expected to link RF radiation to health effects in lab rats.
We've posted more information on our website.
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