Re: "Massive 5G towers in St. Albert cause for concern," The Gazette, May 26.
The letter-writer asked why we weren't advised by the city and what about the health risks of the roll-out of 5G in St. Albert. Fifth-Generation technology is being rolled out by all of the major cellular companies around the world, and in Canada by Telus , Bell, Rogers, and Shaw. It is being rolled out nationally with the support of the federal government to bring high-speed access to Canadians. The roll-out is not controlled by the city, nor is it up to the city to advise us about it. Fifth-Generation technology is actually a foundational part of the city's Smart City Master Plan. In fact, St Albert's smart city plan was internationally ranked third out of 153 cities around the world (London England, second; Vienna, Austria, first).
There are hundreds of scientific, peer-reviewed, independent health studies available. One benchmark study, due to the length in years and high number of people studied, is a 2019 study of mobile-phone use and the incidence of brain tumours in Australia. The study found no increase in the incidence of brain tumours since the 1980s. Researchers looked at the periods 1982–1992, 1993–2002, and 2003–2013, which covered the introduction of analog cellular (1G), 2G, 3G, and the beginning of 4G. Their conclusion: “There have been no increases in any brain tumour types, during the period of substantial mobile phone use from 2003 to 2013.” As for skin cancer, a 2018 review of medical studies undertaken between 1995 and 2017 found that “overall evaluations showed that the effects of mobile-phone radiation on skin diseases are weak and have no statistical significance.” These skin cancer studies alone comprised data from 392,119 individuals – a large sample size.
A recent test of 5G sites in 2020 by regulators in the United Kingdom found that the electromagnetic field (EMF) levels are well within International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines. The ICNIRP is an independent scientific group based in Germany that works with the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, and the European Commission. The highest EMF level recorded among the 22 locations tested was 1.5 per cent of the acceptable level – in other words, 98.5 per cent below the acceptable level. Most of the sites tested supported four generations of mobile technology; that is, a combination of 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G. At all of these sites, 5G contributed the least to the EMF fields measured. In 19 of the 22 locations, the highest 5G band value was less than 0.01 per cent of the acceptable ICNIRP level. These studies provide the data that there are no long-term or short-term physical or mental health risks.
I would not want to live in a 5G desert with no 5G coverage if everywhere else was equipped with it and it was not available in St. Albert.
Mike Killick, St. Albert
