Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Important EMR Recommendations to Parliament / Links to HESA hearings / Funny video from RETA / Evil Tree

W.E.E.P. News

Wireless Electrical and Electromagnetic Pollution News

28 April 2010

We respectfully submit to Members of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health (HESA), that the Committee urgently recommend to Parliament that:

1) In light of information recently brought to its attention via the HESA Committee, Parliament announce in the shortest delay its serious concern about exposure of Canadians to electromagnetic radiation under prevailing Health Canada guidelines;

2) the Government urgently examine possible dangers and remedies in
depth and commit to prompt remedial and protective measures;

3) Industry Canada declare an immediate moratorium on new telecommunications installations;

4) Industry Canada order immediate provisional reductions in maximum allowable radiative output of cell mast antennae, such that public exposure levels be at least commensurate with the most stringent guidelines or regulations found anywhere internationally, subject to further revision downward in accordance with continuous monitoring of health effects at even these lower levels;

5) Health Canada issue warnings, particularly regarding more vulnerable segments of the population, recommending minimization of exposure to electromagnetic radiation from all sources;

6) Parliament declare a period dedicated to public awareness of electromagnetic sensitivity, as has been done elsewhere;

7) the Government widely advertise these warnings in non-governmental publications, including enumeration of various types of radiofrequency emitters, in consideration of the general lack of information among the general public about these matters;

8) Parliament amend the Telecommunications Act and Radiocommunication Act to explicitly refer to health and safety, and to admit provincial and thus indirectly municipal ability to affect, on health and environmental basis, the operation and installation of telecommunications equipment;

9) as long as Canadians are afflicted by electromagnetic sensitivity, involving "debilitating responses to [...] electromagnetic radiation" (as described for example in a 2007 report published by the Canadian Human Rights Commission), and provincial authorities feel constrained from dealing with these issues, there be federally arranged establishment of zones of refuge of extremely low presence of electromagnetic radiation for those afflicted, with appropriate support and access to services;

10) Health Canada include in research and deliberation learned adherents of complementary medical traditions, in light of the inability of prevailing conventional biomedical research to sufficiently account for the effects of electromagnetic radiation, and in the expectation that valuable insight from such complementary bodies of knowledge would assist with overcoming this inability;

11) research into the effects of electromagnetic radiation on flora and fauna be conducted under federal auspices;

12) a Joint Parliamentary Committee be created, involving at least members from the Standing Committees on Environment and Sustainable Development, on Health and on Industry, Science and Technology, to address the governance of the effects of electromagnetic pollution in Canada, to possibly arrange for the transfer of such oversight to the Environment Ministry;

13) the Electricity and Gas Inspection Act be amended to prohibit wireless transmissions from most utility meters, such as are deployed
throughout Canada adding to electromagnetic pollution;

14) a Royal Commission examine the dangers of too close participation of commercial and military interests in biomedical research, in light of such close association having led to dismissal or neglect of well- established deleterious bioeffects of electromagnetic radiation, as well as to influence against such comprehensive research;

15) privileged federal funding be provided for research and development of safe alternatives, some already in existence, to all existing possibly dangerous microwave technologies;

16) a significant new federal levy on all telecommunications goods and
services involving possibly dangerous electromagnetic radiation be raised, to help offset the continual and steady increase in provincially-borne health care costs since the mass deployment of such technology in the late 1990s;

17) the Government ban public advertisement with intent to induce acquisition or use of such technologies, whereby vulnerable segments of the population would be encouraged to expose themselves to possibly dangerous forms and levels of electromagnetic radiation;

18) this list of recommendations be not considered exhaustive in general description of action required by the Government of Canada to perform the utmost service of protection of its citizens from the potential harms of exposure to electromagnetic radiation.

The following signatories support all or most of the above recommendations: Daryl Vernon, Toronto; Lorraine Penner, Toronto; Dr David Fancy, St. Catharines; Sage Walker, Toronto; Barb Payne, Toronto; Susan Yurychuk, New Denver, BC ; Caroline Orban, Toronto; Martin Weatherall, Stratford; Una St.Clair-Moniz, Citizens for Safe Technology Society, Langley, BC; Leigh Jackson, McBride, BC; Dianne Knight, Toronto; Sharon Noble, Citizens Against UnSafe Emissions, Victoria; J Carroll Fennell, Lunenburg, NS; Robert Riedlinger, Mission, BC; David Heller, Toronto; Rachel Heller, Toronto; Len LeVine, Victoria Harbour, NS; Hans Karow, Coalition to Reduce Electropollution, Salmon Arm, BC; Veronica Ciandre, Toronto; Karen Ledger, Victoria; Arthur Bennell, Victoria; Kayoko Bennell, Victoria; Tricia Lang, Victoria; Andreas Lang, Victoria; Benita Schluschen, Qualicum Beach, BC; Marcus Schluschen, Qualicum Beach, BC; Catherine Mullally, Charlottetown; Frank Choroszewski, Victoria; Maria Choroszewski, Victoria; Micah Vernon, Toronto; Linda Ewart, White Rock, BC; Victoria Lightfoot, Summerland, BC; Joel Whitehead, Summerland, BC; Steve Parry Victoria; John Ermanson, Langford, BC; Barbara Lake, Wolfville, NS; Sharon Labchuk, Earth Action, PEI; Howard Malach, Vaughan, ON; George Tomlinson, Toronto; Linda Sepp, Toronto; Jagdish Mirchandani, Chateauguay, QC; Michelle Lewin, Toronto; John Shavluk, Delta, BC; Marie Shavluk, Delta, BC; Talia Erlich, Toronto; Cheryl Millett, Toronto; Sue Parsons, St. Catharines; Sue Lebrecht, Guelph; Karen Weiss, Victoria; Jordan Weiss, Victoria; Arlene Churchill Surrey, BC; Lorraine Banville, (Brome - Missisquoi), QC; T.A.M. Peet, Victoria; Megan Durnford, Westmount, QC; John Grogan, Valemount, BC; Robyn Heaslip,Vancouver; Paul Armstrong, Toronto; Oshea Davidson, Guelph; Robert Fischer, Guelph; Carl Katz, White Rock, BC; Michele Brennan, Toronto; T James Brennan, Toronto; (to be confirmed: Arthur Kidston, Spryfield, NS; Lola Kidston, Spryfield, NS; Shirley Paterson, Langley, BC; J Cichecki, Shushwap, BC)

To add your name to this list - contact Daryl Vernon at this address  ck872@sympatico.ca  or by phone 416 631 1495, providing at least first name (or initial if preferred), last name, province, preferably with municipality.

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Links to HESA hearings so far:

http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/04/27/13739771-qmi.html

"War on health effects of wireless devices waged in capital"

"A battle is brewing on Parliament Hill over whether mobile phones, wi-fi networks and cell towers emit too many harmful microwaves."

"The Health Committee will hear from more witnesses on the issue Thursday."

http://www.thewirereport.ca/reports/content/10701-further_study_review_needed_on_health_risks_of_microwaves_experts_say [gotta pay -- anyone have access?]

http://www.vancouversun.com/health/hear+conflicting+evidence+cellphone+safety/2957381/story.html

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Hey All,

The audio is already archived and available for your listening pleasure. Go to this webpage and click on the icon "View This Clip":

http://parlvu.parl.gc.ca/Parlvu/ContentEntityDetailView.aspx?ContentEntityId=6025

Don't be put off if you hear classical music -- that stops after a short time and the session begins.

Barb

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Funny video from RETA about high voltage power lines

Hi,

Check out this video RETA put together about high voltage power lines http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2JoYdo1kk8.  Also, if you could pass it on to everyone you know and ask them to pass it on to everyone they know etc., I'd much appreciate it.  This issue needs awareness, not just here in Alberta but everywhere.

Thanks for your help.

-Bruce

bruce-johnson@shaw.ca

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Evil Tree (but is it neccessary?)

Commission to consider cell tower

By JESSE B. GILL, Staff Writer

Posted: 04/26/2010 09:59:19 PM PDT

http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/news/ci_14965247

REDLANDS - The Planning Commission could decide today if San Timoteo Canyon could be home to a new cell phone tower.

Royal Street Communications - a division of Metro PCS - wants to build a wireless communications facility at 28442 San Timoteo Canyon road. The company would build the facility - and tower disguised as a Eucalyptus tree - on 17.14 acres on the southwest corner of San Timoteo Canyon Road and Lisa Marie Lane.

"These things are kind of a necessary evil," said Planning Commissioner Carol Dyer. "In order to provide the coverage that people want, they have to put these things up."

Two homes, a horseback riding academy, a horse boarding facility and three 164-foot-tall radio transmission towers occupy the property now. The radio towers have been in place since 1990 and they service an FM radio station in Moreno Valley.

Royal Street Communications wants to build the 75-foot-tall cellular tower - 80 feet including the Eucalyptus tree disguise -that would include a six-panel antenna array, a GPS antenna and a parabolic microwave antenna.

Dyer said the tower should not raise any major concerns during Tuesday's Planning Commission meeting, as it is well away from other structures and neighbors.

"The efforts to blend (the towers) in has increased over time," she said.

The Planning Commission is scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. today in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 35 Cajon St.

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