A group of concerned citizens have requested the help of Wellesley council in fighting a proposed Rogers telecommunications tower near their homes just outside of Bamberg.
Meeting at the township council chambers on Oct. 3, the group of about 25 residents – led by Cynthia and Jason Jantzi and Robert Doerner – voiced their concerns over the proposed 45-metre tall communications tower slated to be built on a hill near the intersection of Moser-Young and Hessen Strasse.
The group brought with them a petition containing 39 signatures of local residents opposed to the tower who live within one kilometre of the site. This is the first time a tower has been opposed in the township. It would be the third tower in the area.
Among their objections, the group believes that Rogers could merely use another tower that they have already built to fulfill their service requirements, such as the tower on Manser Line about seven kilometres from the proposed site.
Second, they question why Rogers chose a site so close to a residential area, and want to know why another less inhabited section of Wellesley Township was not chosen instead.
Third, they are concerned that the tower will negatively impact their property values as well as the landscape of the cultural trail in Wellesley.
Finally, they question why the tower is even required given the fact that the Rogers public coverage map indicates full service in the township already and that they receive nearly full coverage on their Rogers cellular devices already.
“We do not want a landscape covered in towers that mask our community and our heritage,” Cynthia Jantzi told councillors.
She also expressed some concerns over the health impacts of living so close to a microwave antenna. To bolster their argument, they invited Prof. Enrique Navarro of the University of Valencia in Spain to speak to council.
Navarro, who happened to be in the country visiting McMaster University, was the lead author of a 2002 study in Spain on the effects of microwaves on the human body.
The study cites a phenomenon called microwave sickness that afflicts those living close to these types of towers, ranging from irritability and fatigue to headaches and even depression.
“In this study I found that people who were living near these types of towers developed these kinds of problems,” Navarro said.
Coun. Herb Neher asked Navarro if he was challenging the ruling of Health Canada. Under Safety Code 6, which covers the health effects of electromagnetic fields and was last updated in 2009, the government has determined that these types of towers pose no threat to human health.
Navarro countered by saying that many of the safety guidelines in use around the world were developed back in the 1970s and were focused on the short-term effects, not the long-term impacts.
He also cited the World Health Organization’s decision to label some radio waves as potential carcinogens earlier this year.
When it comes to the siting of the tower, however, the township has no authority over the final decision. Everything concerning communication towers, from their location to the engineering, falls under federal jurisdiction and is out of their hands.
The telecommunications act also says that opponents appealing the location of a radio tower based on health concerns, such at the Jantzi’s and their neighbours, are not reasonable grounds given the federal ruling that microwaves are not harmful according to Safety Code 6.
“The necessity for the tower is easily demonstrated,” said Jeff McKay, a representative from Rogers who was present at the meeting, defending their location for the tower.
New 3G and 4G products introduced by Rogers will need to work within a two-km radius of a tower, said McKay, meaning towers need to begin being built closer together.
“We need a two-km radius of coverage for the next technology in order to support the town of Bamberg, and we’re at about 1.5 km when we get to this spot.
“Our subscriber base is dead in the water out here.”
He also explained that the company will continue to abide by the standards set by Industry Canada and Health Canada concerning the health risks associated with these types of towers.
“These [towers] have an area of about one to two metres where it’s a danger area for someone to be in constant contact, [and it’s] at the top of the antenna,” McKay said.
“There is absolutely no health risk, as it is defined by our government, any place that the public has access to these towers.”
McKay said that the company is willing to work with local residents and the township to solve this issue and are still receiving public comments on the project until Oct. 16.
After that date the township has three options; the first is to issue a letter of concurrence that states the company has undertaken then necessary steps to inform residents.
Second, they could issue a letter of non-concurrence and if an impasse is reached the issue is brought to Industry Canada, who would likely rule on behalf of Rogers.
Finally, the township could object to the location of the tower and try to work with Rogers in finding another suitable location.
Township chief administrative officer Susan Duke recommended to councillors that they not take any action until they had more information.
“We knew this site would generate a lot of controversy so there has been 10 times the effort go into siting this tower than the hundreds of others I carry in my portfolio,” said McKay.
“We have no difficulty justifying that this is the site we want.”
