[ RadSafe ] Headline: "EMFs MAKING PEOPLE SICK"

[Richard L. Hess]

Here is my letter-to-the-editor which I also copied to the mayor and 
council and my member of Provincial and Federal Parliaments.

The choice of "EMFs MAKING PEOPLE SICK" as the primary headline for 
an article about Dr. Magda Havas's appearance in front of the Aurora 
Council on September 13th certainly is attention getting, even if it 
arouses unnecessary fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) in the minds 
of York Region readers (Era-Banner 18 Sept 2005, p1).

Web research informs us that Dr. Havas has co-authored a paper 
http://www.stetzerelectric.com/filters/research/Havas_Stetzer_WHO04.pdf 
with David Stetzer of Stetzer Electric concerning high-frequency 
content of electrical power. This was presented at the World Health 
Organization Conference in 2004. Stetzer Electric's business is 
selling power line filters and meters to detect low-level, 
high-frequency pollution on power lines. Among scare stories, graphs 
using two scales 1000 times apart, and commercial messages that 
indicate that people felt better after installing Graham-Stetzer 
filters, the paper reports on one set of measurements which were made 
with a meter that had a rated bandwidth 1/5 of the lowest signal to 
be measured. That is a basic engineering faux pas, and those 
measurements are meaningless. Why were they presented in the paper? 
What other basic errors have been made in the paper?

Dr. Havas repeatedly says that fields "can be measured." So? We can 
measure lots of things, but just because they can be measured, does 
that mean that they are harmful? I can measure the amount of light 
shining on my backyard from the moon,  but I can assure you, I won't 
get a moonburn.

The cause-and-effect assumptions, based on anecdotal evidence at best 
is not a reason to spread FUD throughout York Region. We often lose 
sight of some key basic tenants:
   -- Statistical correlation does not prove cause
   -- No one gets out of this life alive
   -- Levels of risk vary widely and are not well understood by most of us
The level of risk from EMFs is far, far less than driving a car.

One thing to address, however, is the level of risk of rolling 
blackouts in York Region based on an inadequate supply of 
electricity. Some predictions place this as a possibility as early as 
the 2006-2007 winter (Era-Banner 18 Sept 2005, p2). I would think not 
operating your heating system for a while in the winter presents more 
risks than the EMFs. We have approved this large growth, the 
infrastructure to support the growth must be installed ahead of the 
growth, or all will suffer.

My reaction to all of this: I have a generator and I'm not afraid to use it.

Regards,

Richard L. Hess
Aurora