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The cell tower has been a major irratation to Preble residents since it was put in by Peter Knapp, Town Supervisor at the time. This is an interesting and compelling story about the use of power and money. This archive will, over time, document that story. See the minutes of the Town Board on 8/18/97 and 9/8/97. The following letter, presented to the Planning Board by it author is an attempt to stop further development of the tower. The author lives right next to the tower and was helpless to stop it when it was put up. Even now with good laws that prevent certain uses in Preble power and money continue to have an unfair advantage over common folk. |
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(Scanned from the original letter using OCR - Not proofread for typos or errors) July 7, 2000 Town of Preble Preble, NY 13141 To Whom It May Concern: 1 am writing to you in regards to the pending proposal to allow Cellular One to piggy pack their transmitter on the tower the presently exists on Preble Road. As you are well aware, when this tower was originally constructed in the summer of 1997, the zoning rules and regulations that were in existence at that time did not specifically address the citing of cellular towers in our community. Since that time, the zoning laws have been updated and now include regulations which apply to cellular tower citing. One of these new regulations require cellular companies to share space on existing towers before additional towers can be constructed, the basis of Cellular One's request. However, it is important to point out that the existing Frontier tower was not constructed under the present zoning regulations which require co-habitation of an existing tower. Allowing Cellular One to piggy back this tower further exposes local residents to emissions from the tower, something the present zoning regulations attempt to prevent. Which brings up another important point, health risks associated with electromagnetic emissions from cellular towers. For years the telecommunication industry has stated that there is no proof that cellular emissions cause any health problems. But given the newness of this technology, how can they make any claim with regards to long term effect? For years, the manufacturers of asbestos and breast implants made similar claims, their products did not cause any health problems. However, today, millions of dollars and countless lives have been impacted by the fact that they did cause health problems. With regards to the health risk issue, 1 would like to point out that on June 9, 2000, the Food and Drug Administration launched a $1 million study into the potential health risks of cellular phones. Also, the British government issued an official recommendation that children be discouraged from making non-essential phone calls. In light of a recent story on 20120, the FCC is re-examining its regulations with regards to the radiation levels that are emitted from cellular phones. If everyone is so concerned about a cell phone that puts out 0.5 watts, then what are the implications for residents that live near a cellular tower operating at 100 watts, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year? And what further implications are when you allow another cellular company to piggy back this tower? Consider for a moment a simple house lamp with three bulb sockets. If you insert one 100 watt light bulb and turn it on, it emits 100 watts of energy. However, when you insert two 100 watt bulbs and turn it on, each bulb is only emitting 100 watts of energy, so why then does the lamp appear brighter? Could it be that their combined emissions create a synergy effect, resulting in higher light emissions, traveling a farther distance? The existing Frontier tower is emits a 100 watts of energy. Cellular One is proposing to piggyback the tower with an additional antennae, emitting an additional 100 watts of energy. Will this same synergy effect with the light bulbs exist with the tower, putting neighboring residents at more "brighter" exposure and exposing neighbors further away? There are no real benefits to allowing Cellular One piggy back the existing tower, other than lowering Cellular One's construction costs. Yes, there would be a second tower constructed within our town and an additional eyesore in our valley. However, it is my understanding that the Frontier tower was constructed as part of a three year land lease, which should expire this year. Hopefully, given the friction this tower has created in the community, the property owners will elect not to renew the lease and the tower will come down and the health risks will be eliminated. But the probability of this happening will be greatly diminished if another company is allowed to add to the tower. Lastly, 1 would bring to your attention a document entitled "A Local Government Official's Guide to Transmitting Antenna RF Emission Safety: Rules, Procedures, and Practical Guidance" which was published by the FCC on June 2, 2000. This guide provides recommendations for local communities to assist them in ensuring that antennae facilities comply with the FCC's limits for human exposure to radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic fields. This document is available from the FCC's website, which can be found at http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety/ Given the fact that the existing Frontier tower was not sited under the current zoning regulations and allowing Cellular One to piggyback this tower further exposes local residents. to a unknown health risk, 1 would respectfully request that this proposal be rejected. Sincerely, Elizabeth Pitman 2071 Preble Road Preble, NY 13141 |
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