Communications Daily Features ICBE-EMF Letter Opposing Fast-Tracking of Cell Towers Without Updated Safety Review on Health Risk
Communications Daily, a leading telecommunications industry publication once described by The Washington Post as “the bible of the telecom industry,” featured the International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields’ (ICBE-EMF) letter opposing federal efforts to fast-track cell tower and wireless infrastructure deployment.
The May 15, 2026 Communications Daily article, “RF Safety Advocates Oppose Efforts to Speed Wireless Deployments,” highlighted ICBE-EMF’s recent filing at the FCC and letters sent to Congressional leadership raising concerns about proposals that would accelerate deployment of cell towers and wireless infrastructure.
According to Communications Daily:
“The International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields filed a letter at the FCC Thursday noting the group’s opposition to efforts by Congress or the FCC to speed up wireless deployments.”
ICBE-EMF’s May 14 letter warns that expanding wireless infrastructure without updated federal safety standards could increase public exposure to radiofrequency (RF) radiation while relying on outdated FCC exposure limits established nearly three decades ago.
The letter states:
“Cell towers, 5G, and wireless infrastructure should not be fast-tracked as this will increase public exposure to RF radiation, an environmental exposure that peer-reviewed, scientific research has associated with numerous health and environmental harms.”
ICBE-EMF emphasized that current U.S. RF radiation exposure limits “unchanged since 1996, are not science-based and do not protect the public.”
The scientists also pointed to a newly published paper analyzing tumor findings from the U.S. National Toxicology Program. According to the letter:
“The analysis, 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 letter further cautioned lawmakers and regulators about the implications of increasing cell tower density nationwide without updated health review:
“We caution that increasing the density of cell towers and wireless networks will come at a serious cost to public health and the environment.”
ICBE-EMF also criticized the FCC for failing to comply with the 2021 federal court remand order in Environmental Health Trust v. FCC, which directed the agency to provide a reasoned explanation for maintaining its current wireless radiation exposure limits despite evidence submitted on long-term exposure, impacts to children, and environmental effects.
The May 14 letter states:
“Congress must hold the FCC accountable to protect public health and the environment.”
The scientists argue that communities should not be stripped of authority over wireless infrastructure siting while significant scientific and regulatory questions remain unresolved. The letter concludes that without updated safety limits and independent scientific review, expanding wireless infrastructure could expose millions of people to higher levels of RF radiation linked in peer-reviewed studies to cancer risk and neurological, reproductive, and immune effects.