Vol. 488 No. 1
105 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Public Enterprise her views on the press statement by a company (details supplied), in view of the fact that a study on a short-wave transmitter concluded interference with sleep down to two nano watts per square centimetre, 100,000 times below the international limit and 76 times above the self professed operation level of the transmitters of this company. [5735/98]
The shortwave transmitter referred to by the Deputy is the Short Wave Schwarzenburg Transmitter in Switzerland which is operated by Swiss Radio and which has been transmitting overseas to a worldwide audience since 1939, when the Swiss Government decided it was necessary that there be at least one source of objective information broadcasting from continental Europe at that time. It is a powerful transmitter with three 6.1-21.8 MHz antennaes each with a power of 150,000 watts. In 1971 an additional 250,000 watt antennae was added.
Health complaints from local residents led in October 1990 to the Federal Department of Transport and Energy setting up a study group under the direction of Dr. Abelin of the University of Berne. The study group reported in August 1995. They found no evidence of any increase in disease among the exposed population. Neither did the transmitter affect the normal production of night-time melatonin. A reduction in the production of this hormone by the pineal gland has been associated with increased cancer in animal tests. The main observation of the study group was of more sleep disorders among the exposed population compared to an unexposed control group.
In discussing these results the study group noted that the insomnia was self-reported — residents maintained a diary — and commented that "self-reporting of sleep disorders is not very reliable". They further commented that the effect of electromagnetic fields "if really present is not very strong". The statistic supporting the association of sleep disorder with electromagnetic fields from the transmitter was only very marginally positive, odds ratio 1.04 to 1.23.
The power output of a mobile phone mast is around 30 watts and is vastly less than the 700,000 watt output of the short-wave transmitter in question. In the context of the press statement to which the Deputy refers it is understood that the statement relates to a recent publication by four well known Irish scientists on the subject of phone masts. There is no technical, medical or scientific basis at this time to dispute their conclusions, although further research is continuing and this Government is supporting that research through participation in the WHO International Electromagnetic Field project.
