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Denbigh mobile mast bid sparks health fears
Wales Created: 6 Apr 2017
Health could be put at risk if plans to erect a 15 metre high mobile telephone mast in the middle of a built up area are given the go ahead.

That is the claim made by a county councillor and local residents opposed to the scheme to allow a mast to be put up on local authority owned land in Denbigh.

Upper Denbigh county councillor, Colin Hughes, is opposed to the plan to site the structure at the junction of Smithfield Road and Lon Llewelyn because he and a number of local residents say it is too close to their homes when the effects of their health could be “harmful”.

Denbighshire Council said it is currently consulting on the pland and has referred the health concerns raised by residents to Public Health Wales to see if there is a risk from the mast.

Cllr Hughes however insisted people had genuine fears about the potential impact of the masts: “Everybody relies on their mobile phones and want a good signal but the science behind the antennas is inconclusive.

“The evidence does not tell us if it is harmful or it isn’t. A lot of people here are worried. And why does it have to be so close to houses when there is plenty of room just up the road.”

The mast will be on Denbighshire property with the council making an income from it if the pylon is built, he added.

Cllr Hughes argued that this could cause a conflict of interest for the council.

“The amount of money they’ll make is minimal but is it ethical for them to make any money out of a mobile phone company when residents are so close to this. They have a duty of care to their residents before anybody else.

“I would be OK with it if somebody came to me and said it is safe. But nobody can do that so I think it is unethical. There is that duty of care from the council to the residents and to the staff and maybe they should be suggesting to the phone company stick it up the road, if you still get the same performance, what’s the issue?”

Samantha Taylor, a resident of Bryn Stanley just yards from the site of the proposed mast, said: “I don’t want it here, I assumed that they would be putting it up on one of the hills away from people, the way the letter was worded it sounded like we were getting this mast whether we wanted it or not. If we have to have it then we have to have it, but put it somewhere out of the way somewhere we won’t get any ill-effects on our health.”

A report by Cancer Research UK on the possible side-effects of mobile masts say the evidence is inconclusive: “So far, the scientific evidence shows it is unlikely that mobile phones could increase the risk of brain tumours, or any other type of cancer. But we do not know enough to completely rule out a risk.”

A spokesperson for Denbighshire County Council said: “The council’s public protection department have contacted Public Health Wales as they are the relevant public body on issues pertaining to human health.

“The Council have asked Public Health Wales to provide information on potential risks to human health from telecommunications masts and we are currently awaiting a formal response from them.”

“We are currently consulting on the application. It will be assessed on its own merits having regard to national and local planning policies, and any material planning considerations.”

Any financial gain the council could make from the mast would not be part of the considerations on granting planning permission, the spokesperson added.
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Source: Daily Post, Shane Brennan, 05 Apr 2017

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