Monday, January 11, 2010

UMTS / 3G electromagnetic radiation safety.

First thing is to get your hands on to the latest government EMR (electromagnetic radiation) standard. Check you government web site

Your government pages should have more information and contact information where to order a booklet that gives guidelines at least of:




  • What is the safety zone round the mobile and transmission antennas.

  • How the combined radiation field values is calculated from different antennas on a same rooftop.

  • Local guidelines how antenna should be placed.

  • Power levels of indoor antennas.

  • How all EMR calculations are done.

    Local city councils might also have their own additional guidelines, check those.

    Governments usually do not state exact values what is safe and what is not safe, for legal reasons. EU countries normally issue "guidelines" that are bit tougher than EU standards. In USA FDA has a clear statement: "Thus, the available science does not allow us to conclude that mobile phones are absolutely safe, or that they are unsafe. However, the available scientific evidence does not [emphasis FDA's] demonstrate any adverse health effects associated with the use of mobile phones." See: FDA Mobile Phones page

    In most countries operators are required by law to calculate these safety zones. Ask your mobile operator if they can provide safety calculations.

    According to recent news articles there have been over 700 studies related to EMR without a final conclusion, so don't hold your breath to get a final answer in a near future. People always forget that mobile antennas radiate about 40W power, but TV and radio towers use kilowatts of power and even a hair drier generates a nice EMR field from 1000W like a kitchen microwave oven.

    WCDMA transmitter spread the 20-40W power over 5MHz, while GSM 40W transmitter uses 200kHz band, but GSM BTS need more radios to serve an area. Both systems use similar types of antennas, so EMR levels are similar. Both BTSs normally use power control to minimize the used power.

    EMR Resources:

  • WHO

  • WHO fact sheet

  • EMR Network

  • Report

  • FDA Mobile Phones page

  • FAQ

  • Another FAQ

  • FCC Guidelines

  • ARRL resources

  • CWTI resources

  • Example download site from Australia

  • Google Search

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