[NBLUG/talk] Cell Tower Upgrades in Sebastopol

[Christopher Wagner]

It's a fair point, to be sure.  I'll also admit that my statement came 
up lacking.  Thanks for keeping me on my toes. :)

I do think that if the towers don't get upgraded, the old antennas will 
never be decommissioned, so upgrading is really the only path to move 
towards reducing unneeded EMF, in my opinion.  Also, the newer antennas 
will be supporting some of the older technologies also (the applicant 
specifically stated that the new antennas would also be supporting 3G in 
addition to 4G), so while there is a total net increase in radiation 
(around 800 watts each for the three antennas, not exactly a huge 
amount), it is likely that the older equipment can be replaced not too 
far in the distant future with more advanced and efficient equipment.

If nothing else, electricity is expensive, and companies are always 
looking for ways to make things more efficient.  I think that we can at 
least trust the companies to find ways to save money on electricity, 
which will push them to demand more efficient products from their 
vendors.  We all know profit margins are the best way to motivate any 
company.

I'd also like to add that radio technology is nothing new.  It has been 
improving drastically (Moore's Law in action) in efficiency over the 
past 60 years.  Radio gear can serve a far higher number of users with 
far less wattage than was possible even 20 years ago.

To go back to the human health discussion, I know dozens of people that 
have been working at close proximity with very high powered radio gear 
for years and many of those for decades (some up to 40 or 50 years), at 
a pretty wide range of frequencies.  None of whom show the slightest ill 
effects other than the normal range and occurrence of typical human 
minor maladies.  It's hardly scientific, but that's my observation and 
human nature dictates that I be at least partially influenced by my 
observations.

Thanks for your input, Steve.  I appreciate the insight and discussion.

- Chris

On 12/06/2011 08:47 AM, Steve S. wrote:
> On Tue, Dec 6, 2011 at 1:46 AM, Christopher Wagner<waggie at waggie.net>  wrote:
>
>> Personally, I support the upgrade, it'll will add 4G coverage in Sebastopol
>> and despite claims by the opposition, my research indicates this will
>> actually reduce overall EMF radiation (newer wireless technologies are far
>> more efficient).
> While I'm essentially in agreement with you -- I'd like to see
> more/better coverage -- I have to note that ADDING the 4G won't STOP
> the older service (at least not for some years... not until pre-4G
> phones (and the signal that serves them) fall out of use).  The net
> load of radiation will thus be higher (for those years)...
>
> :-/
>
>
> - Steve S.
>
> _______________________________________________
> talk mailing list
> talk at nblug.org
> http://nblug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/talk
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://nblug.org/pipermail/talk/attachments/20111207/5e31d615/attachment-0001.htm>