Communication towers banned near Dubai education and health facilities

Dubai: The installation of communication towers will not be allowed near educational institutions and health facilities, air routes, heritage sites or natural reserves in Dubai to ensure public safety, a Dubai Municipality official said on Monday.

“The procedures for the initial evaluation of the construction sites will ensure that the communication stations and towers will not negatively impact on the environment and public health along with the aspects of safety and security,” Eng Hind Mahmoud, Head of Environmental Studies and Planning Section of Environment Department at Dubai Municipality, said after a meeting with the telecommunications sector in the emirate.

Mahmoud based her comment on a recently approved guideline for the installation and operation of wireless communication stations and towers in Dubai, taking into account their environmental and health impacts. No exact details were released as to the allowable distance between a tower and an educational or health institution.

Cellular mobile communication towers cause, on average, low levels of electromagnetic fields in areas accessible to the general public, according to a 2009 paper by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), an independent organisation that provides guidelines on the health hazards of radiation exposure. The guideline, which has yet to be released to the public, is patterned after the best international practices and standards of ICNIRP.

These low-frequency electric fields may influence the human body, which has tiny electrical currents produced by the chemical reactions that occur as part of the body's normal functions.

While the World Health Organisation said current evidence suggests there are no health consequences from exposure to low-level electromagnetic fields, further research is needed.