The editorial published on Sept. 10 seems to brush away citizens’ concerns about radio frequency exposure from a planned cellphone tower in an urban neighborhood. Aside from not mentioning RF, you choose to ignore that long-term studies on RF are not conclusive. Cellphones are still the latest toy.
The citizens’ initiative petition drive came very close. It would be a shame to disallow their real concerns when their opinions were never considered from the start. City councilors only listened to the business venture, which offered no alternative.
If we had not alternative to this “necessity of modern life,” I guess we would still be enjoying DDT, chlordane, Alar, saccharin, chlorofluorocarbons, MTBE and polychlorinated biphenyls. The atomic-powered airplane never made it off the drawing board, but the above inventions needed empirical evidence before being banned. It couldn’t hurt to err on the side of caution.
On Sept. 11, the Journal Tribune had an article on ozone layer recovery due to the phase-out of CFCs. There is hope in this crowded world when decision can be made for a healthier environment. It is up to all of us to decide whether necessity is a matter of common good or just a dropped phone call in the Pemigewasset wilderness. I personally do not believe in the attachment people have to cell or smartphones nowadays to the exclusion of what’s going on around them. So much for communication.
RF from cellphones is a relatively new part of our living space. You can’t see it increase but it will increase as people and cellphones increase. It carries no litany of side effects like some new drug ad on TV, yet it should be used with the same precaution. Too often government officials and big businesses feel no need to explain their decisions to affected citizens. This leaves plenty of room for doubt and skepticism. The people on Hill Street have a concern that is not being addressed by city councilors or this newspaper.
I have kept my landline at home because it still works when the woodstove is on, the power is out and time is going slowly by.
Doug Yohman, East Waterboro
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