At the planning board meeting a couple of months back, the gentle legal lady informed us that according to Federal Communications Commission regulation, no local government could prevent the erection of a cell tower on grounds of human health. What she deliberately did not say was the following from that same regulation: “The Act provides that [n]othing in this section shall affect the ability of a State to impose … requirements necessary to … protect the public safety and welfare … and safeguard the rights of consumers.”
Therefore, local residents can also make a compelling argument that zoning rules limiting the size and placement of telecommunications facilities protect their economic and emotional welfare.
Our zoning regulations took this into account, which is why communications towers are only allowed far from humans.
Please sign the petition to put the cell tower on the ballot in November and give the citizens the right, under the Maine Constitution, to have the final say.
Frank and Nancy Nadeau Novotny, Biddeford
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