Are There Health Risks from Cell Towers?
As communities debate the placement of new cell towers, many people ask a simple question: Are cell towers safe? Is the RF radiation they emit safe?
According to the International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields (ICBE-EMF), experts on the science, human health, and environmental impacts of non-ionizing electromagnetic (EMF) radiation, the current scientific evidence indicates that existing cell tower radio-frequency (RF) radiation exposure limits are not sufficiently health protective and should be updated with a comprehensive scientific review. Until then, governments should adopt measures to reduce unnecessary exposure, such as ensuring cell towers and base station antennas are located far from homes and schools.
In scientific comments submitted to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), ICBE-EMF urged the agency not to fast-track cell towers and wireless infrastructure until current cell tower and wireless radiation exposure limits are independently reviewed and updated. The Commission references peer-reviewed scientific research that has linked RF radiation exposure to numerous health and environmental harms. It states that U.S. cell tower RF radiation exposure limits, unchanged since 1996, “are not science-based and do not protect the public.”
The ICBE-EMF sent a letter to U.S. Congress documenting the science on cell tower and wireless radiation and explaining how an analysis of U.S. government research, published in the journal Environmental Health, found that FCC limits need to be reduced by at least 200 times to protect against an excess cancer risk of one per 100,000, the level typically used by the EPA to determine safety limits for environmental hazards. The ICBE-EMF also has a policymakers factsheet for governments.
What do experts say about cell tower radiation?
“There is no consensus for wireless safety. The International EMF Scientist Appeal, a petition submitted to the United Nations and signed by more than 260 scientists who have published over 2,000 peer-reviewed papers on EMF, biology and health, states that the current wireless RF radiation human exposure guidelines set by the FCC and other national and international organizations such as ICNIRP do not adequately protect against health risks. In addition, numerous medical organizations and public health experts recommend reducing exposure as substantial evidence exists pointing to serious risks.”
According to ICBE-EMF:
- Current FCC cell tower RF exposure limits are based only on short-term heating effects and ignore decades of peer-reviewed research reporting biological effects at lower, non-heating exposure levels.
- The FCC’s limits do not account for long-term exposure, children’s greater vulnerability, cumulative exposures, electromagnetic hypersensitivity, or documented impacts on wildlife and ecosystems.
- A rapidly expanding body of peer-reviewed research demonstrates that RF radiation from wireless infrastructure, including cell towers and 5G small cells, can produce harmful biological effects at levels below current FCC and ICNIRP limits.
- Studies of people living near cell towers report increased biomarkers of DNA damage, oxidative stress, hormonal disruption, sleep disturbance, neurological symptoms, and increased cancer rates.
- Children are uniquely vulnerable, as research shows children absorb higher rates of wireless RF radiation deeper into their more sensitive brains, as compared to adults. Further, research has also documented that cell phone radiation exposure can exceed limits when the phone is close to the body, and that Wi-Fi and cell towers can increase children’s exposure in schools.
Human Exposure Limits for Cell Tower Radiation Have Not Been Updated Since 1996
The FCC’s RF radiation exposure limits for cell towers and cell phones have remained unchanged and without a comprehensive scientific review since 1996, despite the widespread deployment of smartphones, Wi-Fi, 4G, and 5G technologies.
In 2021, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a remand order on the FCC’s decision not to update its human exposure limits for RF radiation, unchanged since 1996, when only a fraction of the cell towers and cell phones that we have today even existed. The court order found the FCC’s refusal to update the limits as “arbitrary and capricious” and mandated that the FCC show proper review of the record evidence regarding scientific research on the effects of long-term exposure, effects on children, as well as on wildlife and the environment. To date, the FCC has not complied. It has been nearly 5 years since the remand order was issued. The ICBE-EMF recommends a halt to the fast-tracking of cell towers in light of the failure of the FCC to respond to the Court order.