[Scan-DC] Montgomery County Residents Express Concern About Adding Antennas To Deliver 5G

[Alan Henney]

Some interesting comments at the end on the below link:


http://www.bethesdamagazine.com/Bethesda-Beat/2018/County-Residents-Express-Concern-About-Adding-Antennas-To-Deliver-5G/

County Residents Express Concern About Adding Antennas To Deliver 5G

Council to consider bill allowing more small cell towers in downtown areas
BY BETHANY RODGERS
4

Published: 2018.04.04 11:27
County Council President Hans Riemer speaks at a public hearing

Montgomery County residents are urging County Council members to show
caution in the race to establish the next generation of communications
networks.

Business representatives, on the other hand, are arguing that slower cell
phones could lead to sluggish economic growth.

The council heard both sides of the debate Tuesday night during a public
hearing on a bill changing county rules for placing telecommunications
towers. The measure offered up by County Executive Ike Leggett would, among
other things, allow more antennas in downtown areas such as in Silver
Spring and Bethesda.

Ginanne Italiano, CEO of the Greater Bethesda Chamber of Commerce, said
expanding service is essential for doing business in urban environments.
Customers rely on data to find shops and restaurants, and many employers
use cell phones to communicate with staff, she said.

"How many of us in this room tonight don't have their phones within arm's
reach and haven't used it in the last hour?" she asked the audience of
about 100.

A representative from T-Mobile said developing 5G networks across the
region could lure companies such as Amazon, which is eying Montgomery
County in its search for a second corporate headquarters location.

Amazon is checking out service maps in the areas it's considering, said
Edward Donohue of T-Mobile.

"They want to know that the counties, the folks that are looking to host
the second headquarters, have eliminated to the extent that they can the
impediments to wireless deployment," he said.

But a number of residents shared concerns about the proliferation of small
cell towers on utility poles near their homes and schools. The legislation
on the table would permit companies to set up these antennas on existing
poles in mixed-use areas without a public hearing, in certain cases.

Donna Baron of North Potomac said her neighborhood is slated for dozens of
towers, and she's concerned for the well-being of her community.

"These 5G towers would emit radiation into our yards, our homes and our
bodies 24 hours a day, 365 days a year," she said.

The towers will also detract from property values, she said.

Susannah Goodman, representing the Somerset Town Council, objected that the
bill would reduce required tower setbacks from 60 to 20 feet in residential
areas.

And Gaithersburg mother Lisa Cline asked council members to add buffer
zones around schools and daycare centers. She pointed to other
jurisdictions that have established such restrictions.

"So cutting and pasting is one way to approach this," she said.

Donna Freshwater of North Potomac also asked council members to slow down.

She said the wireless industry hasn't yet produced scientific evidence
supporting the safety and reliability of 5G networks. So while she's always
been an early adopter of technology, she argued for caution in this case.

"I've loved all the gee-whiz and cool stuff and ideas since the first brick
phone," she said. "But in a sense, I've grown up, and now believe that just
because we can doesn't mean we should. These untested technologies are at
this time not ready to be unleashed into our lives."

A cCouncil committee is tentatively scheduled to take up the bill May 3.
Council President Hans Riemer said officials will consider all of the
testimony.

Federal law restricts the county from regulating wireless infrastructure
based on health and safety concerns, Riemer added.

Leggett sponsored a series of public forums in the past year to hear from
community members about the issue of small cell antennas. Some people have
mentioned the potential health effects of radio frequency emissions from
antennas placed near to homes, and a bill previously before the council
sparked significant community pushback because of its impact on
neighborhoods.