Mobile phones and health
Mobile phones have become a part of our everyday lives. With mobile phones, people can communicate with their friends, family, and customers in a flexible way, at a time and place that suits them.
At Vodafone we recognise that some people are concerned about the possible health effects of mobile phones and their base stations and we are committed to addressing these concerns.
This fact sheet is designed to provide an overview of the procedures and safety standards put in place by health authorities, governments and mobile operators to ensure there are no health impacts from mobile phones or base stations.
Mobile phones and base stations: how is my safety assured?
Mobile phones are sophisticated two-way radios that use radiofrequency (RF) signals to transmit and receive voice and data. When you make or receive a call, your mobile phone communicates with a network of low powered radio transceivers called base stations. Each base station covers a small area, referred to as a "cell" and cells are interlinked to create the cellular network. RF signals are used to transmit mobile voice and data. Radio and television broadcast towers send high power RF signals over long distances whilst mobile phones and base stations send low power RF signals both ways over short distances. RF signals travel as energy through the atmosphere as electromagnetic waves. Information is encoded onto these carrier waves to transmit voice and data.
Mobile phones use different technologies to encode information, such as 2G, 3G and CDMA. These technologies relate to how the information is encoded, and not the level of energy within the RF signals. The power of the phone and the base station adapts to the minimum necessary to maintain a quality voice or data transmission.
RF signals and health
Some people are concerned that exposure to the energy carried by RF signals may affect their health. For more than five decades, health authorities and recognised independent expert scientific groups have analysed the International research on radiofrequency signals. These authorities include the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), the Royal Society of Canada, the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (Stewart Report) and the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA).
Like the WHO, each concludes that "based on current scientific review there is no evidence of an impact on human health when exposure levels are below internationally recognised guidelines."
Special research has also been conducted into the concern that mobile phones may in some way contribute to cancer. A Swedish review in 2002 concluded that "a consistent picture has emerged from these studies that appears to rule out, with a reasonable degree of certainty, a causal association between cellular telephones and cancer to date."
How do the RF exposure standards assure my protection?
The National and International standards within which mobile carriers such as Vodafone operate are based on more than five decades of extensive bio-effects research.
Australia's RF exposure limits, the ARPANSA Standard 2003, are derived from the guidelines of the International Commission Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, the independent scientific body that advises the WHO. The ARPANSA Standard is one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date RF exposure standards in the world, and is based on thorough scientific research into RF signals and exposure.
The Australian Communications and Media (ACMA has set mandatory limits based on the ARPANSA Standard. Vodafone ensures that all Vodafone base stations comply with these standards and compliance with these mandatory limits is enforced through random audits by the ACMA.
Telecommunications base stations operate at very low power and emit low levels of EME. Independent field monitoring of exposure levels around mobile phone base stations has been conducted since 1999 under the control of government agency, ARPANSA (Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency). Findings from the 2003 audit of 60 mobile base stations around Australia indicated: "On average the measurements showed that exposure levels at the location of the highest predicted level were 0.0021% of the Australian (ICNIRP) limits.
Research results have not been able to establish adverse health effects at these low levels.
What about newer technologies like 3G?
The latest mobile phone technologies, sometimes referred to as 3G, are subject to the same exposure standards as the current digital 2G technology. These technologies relate to how the information is encoded, and not the level of energy within the RF signals. A 3G network operates at very low power because it uses smart technology to encode information on the RF signal and has a smaller cell area that requires less power.
When assessing exposure levels, the ARPANSA Standard ensures that cumulative levels from all radiofrequency signals are taken into account. Therefore, all technologies would be accounted for in exposure calculations or measurements.
Some people are advocating the adoption of the "precautionary principle" for the siting of mobile phone base stations.
Vodafone supports the adoption of cautionary practices in the siting, design and operation of mobile phone base stations.
Both the ARPANSA Standard and the ACIF 'Code for the Deployment of Radio Communications Infrastructure' require the adoption of such precautionary practices. Implicit in these precautionary practices is the objective of minimising RF exposure whilst meeting service objectives.
Our commitment to safety
Vodafone will always meet the RF exposure levels set in the Australian and International standards. In practice, levels many times below the mandatory ACMA's limits (i.e. ARPANSA Standard) are normally achieved through the adoption of contemporary best practices.
For further information, please contact
Vodafone's EME Manager.
Phone: (02) 9415-7002 or (02) 9415-7008
Email: ememanagement.au@vodafone.com
