Concerns linger about electromagnetic fields

[Susan L Gawarecki <loc@icx.net>]

The real title of this article should perhaps be "Concerns about

electromagnetic fields continue to sell newspapers."  There is a good

rebuttal in ENN's Forum Discussion Area.  Regarding the statements about

burying transmission lines to reduce exposures--I didn't think that

earth blocked EMFs very effectively.  Wouldn't walking over lines buried

5 feet deep give more exposure than walking under lines 20 feet

overhead?  Correct me if I'm wrong.



Susan Gawarecki



Concerns linger about electromagnetic fields

http://enn.com/news/enn-stories/2002/04/04182002/s_46496.asp



By Becky Gillette, E/The Environmental Magazine

Thursday, April 18, 2002



"Generating comfort" is the slogan of one of the nation's largest

utility

companies. But the electric and magnetic fields (EMFs) emitted from

power lines and electrical appliances may also generate a host of health

problems, including miscarriage, cancer, and Lou Gehrig's disease. 



Concern about health effects from EMFs first arose in 1979, when a

study found that children who lived in close proximity to certain types

of

electrical lines had a higher risk of leukemia. However, the electric

power industry and some U.S. governmental agencies have claimed that

research reveals little reason for concern about EMFs. 



So why has there been so much effort to suppress the release of

government-funded studies on the subject? Recently a draft of a $7

million report on EMFs from the California Department of Health

Services (DHS) was made public only after the California First

Amendment Coalition filed a lawsuit seeking release of the information.



The DHS report says it is more than 50 percent possible that EMFs could

cause a very small increased lifetime risk of childhood leukemia, adult

brain cancer, and Lou Gehrig's disease. The report says it is 10 to 50

percent possible that EMFs could be responsible for a small increased

lifetime risk of male breast cancer, childhood brain cancer, suicide,

Alzheimer's disease, and sudden cardiac death. The report also says it

is more than 50 percent possible that EMFs could cause a 5 to 10

percent added risk of miscarriage. 



"If true, this would clearly be of concern to individuals and

regulators,"

says the report. But after evaluating each health problem linked to

EMFs, it adds, "There is a chance that EMFs have no effect at all." It

is

hard to see why it took a First Amendment lawsuit to force release of a

report with such wishy-washy conclusions. But there are a lot of details

in the 309-page report important to those concerned about EMFs. 



LOCATION, LOCATION 



Joan Tukey, founder of the California Alliance for Utility Safety and

Education, said the report proves that it's foolish to locate

high-voltage

power lines next to schools. "Lines next to schools are significant

because this is an involuntary exposure," said Tukey. "There are other

sources of high EMFs, such as your microwave or your electric clock next

to your bed. But you don't need to stand in front of the microwave, and

you can move the clock to the other side of the room." 



Tukey says the California has a plan to bury new power transmission

lines and take other steps that can shield people from EMFs, but

utilities have consistently weakened implementation. "I think we need

to take a hard look at doing statewide mitigation to reduce exposure

from power lines," said Tukey. 



The DHS report isn't the first time EMF findings were delayed. An even

more substantial study conducted by the National Council on Radiation

Protection and Measurements (NCRP) in 1995 has not yet been released

by mid-2001. Dr. Constantine Maletskos, a consultant for NCRP, said

the status of the report is still about the same as in 1995. "There was

a

big hullabaloo about potential recommendations," said Maletskos. "We

want to get the research report published irrespective of

recommendations. But it may just die, which is too bad because that

report contains more information than has ever been discussed by

anyone else." 



The NCRP report, written by 11 leading experts and leaked to the public

in 1995, says the public health recommendations, if accepted, could

force "complex and costly" changes in the electric power industry. The

chairman of the study committee, Dr. Ross Adey, a clinical

neurophysiologist and professor of physiology at Loma Linda School of

Medicine in California, said there is significant scientific evidence

that

suggests even very low exposure to EMFs has subtle, long-term effects

on human health. Adey says the NCRP report, squashed by industry

"stakeholders," recommends no new high voltage power lines should be

built near existing housing developments or schools. The report also

recommends that levels in homes should be less than two milligauss. 



Some European government regulatory agencies have concluded that

there is an increased risk of childhood leukemia and possibly adult

leukemia from exposure to EMFs. That conclusion flies in the face of the

latest study released by the U.S. National Institute of Environmental

Health Services (NIEHS), which says evidence of a risk of cancer and

other human diseases from EMFs around power lines is "weak." Adey

said NIEHS convened an international body of scientists, then rejected

its conclusions after it said the risk was real. "The NIEHS falsified

that

report to say there was no risk," Adey said. "That is one of the most

fraudulent things the government has perpetrated on the health of this

country." 



>From his own research, J. Robert Ashley (an electrical engineer

experienced in both the academic and industrial sectors) said more work

is needed to measure people's exposure to electrical fields. "The

electrical field is 10 to 20 times more likely to explain the link

between…power lines and childhood cancers than is the magnetic field,"

Ashley said. He added that many investigators have compromised their

studies by not separating the electric and magnetic components of

EMFs. 



CELLULAR STATIC 



Concern is also being expressed about microwave and radio frequency

fields from sources such as cellular phones, cellular phone towers, and

television stations. Adey said the cell phone industry has tried to

suppress any findings that indicate concern for health effects. Adey

isn't

convinced by studies that find no evidence of adverse health effects

from cell phone use. "We and others who have spent 30 years

researching the biological spectrum from cells to people have no doubt

that there is the possibility of harm from these interactions," said

Adey.



Adey said the most recent work done by the Swedish government shows

a dose-dependent relationship between cell phone use and cancer. The

longer cell phones are used, the greater the risk of cancer. "The

results

are being squashed by the cell phone industry," Adey said. The safety

of cell phone use is being investigated by NIEHS, the same agency

charged with fudging the EMF data. "We as scientists do not trust

NIEHS to conduct this study of cell phone safety based on its record,"

said Adey. 



KEEP YOUR DISTANCE 



Peter Frech, executive director of Citizens Concerned About EMFs, said

the strength of EMFs from appliances usually drops rapidly within

several feet. Keeping a safe distance (three to five feet) from

appliances, computers, and monitors can minimize exposure. 



Frech recommends avoiding voluntary exposure to products like electric

blankets, waterbed heaters, and alarm clocks. He believes involuntary

exposure from overhead power lines, particularly transmission and

distribution lines, is of greater concern. He says proximity to overhead

power lines should be considered when purchasing a home. In the case

of existing homes located close to overhead power lines, Frech said

residents should lobby their local government and utility companies to

place the lines underground to block a higher level of radiation waves.

Ashley suggested that people avoid strong electric fields whenever

possible. 



Becky Gillette is a Mississippi-based freelance writer.

-- 

.....................................................

Susan L. Gawarecki, Ph.D., Executive Director

Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee

We've moved!  Please note our new address:

102 Robertsville Road, Suite B, Oak Ridge, TN 37830

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