This resettlement area is home to more than 60 households and hundreds of people. A series of diseases including hair loss, insomnia, chest tightness, muscle soreness, and declining vision have become common topics among them. After ruling out water pollution and air pollution, the residents cast a suspicious eye on the communication base station transmission tower not far from their doorsteps. On October 17th, the residents of the resettlement area at No. 64-1 South Ring Middle Road in Kongtong District, Pingliang City gathered under the transmission tower to discuss this iron tower that instilled fear in them. This photograph was taken by Zhang Peng, a reporter for our newspaper. Electromagnetic radiation, a term slightly unfamiliar to the residents of the resettlement area at No. 64-1 South Ring Middle Road in Kongtong District, Pingliang City, is now causing them great distress.
This resettlement area is home to more than 60 households and hundreds of people. A series of diseases including hair loss, insomnia, chest tightness, muscle soreness, and declining vision have become common topics among them. After ruling out water pollution and air pollution, the residents cast a suspicious eye on the communication base station transmission tower not far from their doorsteps. Is all this trouble caused by the communication base station transmission tower? A reporter from China Youth Daily conducted an investigation. The families with severe conditions are those closest to the transmission tower.
On the morning of October 17th, before getting up, Liu Shuwen felt her eyes were unbearably dry. Not only that, her hair kept falling out. Two patches of hair, each the size of a one-yuan coin, had already fallen out, and she had to cover them up carefully every time she went out. Five years ago, after moving from the city center to the resettlement area at No. 64-1 South Ring Middle Road, Liu Shuwen opened a small hair salon, mainly serving familiar customers around her. Recently, she noticed that almost every customer was talking about hair loss, even children's hair was falling out.
Neighbor Zhou Biying's hair has almost completely fallen out. Her husband Yang Defu joked that his 43-year-old wife's head looked like a bald monk's, "A woman losing all her hair looks too ugly." This Sichuan-born couple moved here in October 2004 and made a living selling Sichuan pickles. The low rent attracted them to choose this remote suburban neighborhood. Now, they have no choice but to temporarily close their business and live off their savings. Customers complained that they often found strands of hair in their pickles.
Li Yongcai, a retired cadre aged 72, noticed that many strange illnesses and events have appeared in this area in recent years. He paid attention to the complaints of the residents - widespread hair loss was the most concentrated issue raised by everyone; additionally, many middle-aged and elderly people found themselves starting to suffer from insomnia. Residents also reported frequent full-body pain, including back pain, neck pain, muscle pain, and other symptoms. Most puzzlingly, many people complained that their vision was rapidly deteriorating.
After using the elimination method to rule out air pollution and water pollution, the residents targeted the communication base station transmission tower. They said there were no factories or tall chimneys within a kilometer radius around them. They drank tap water, just like the residents in the city center.
According to Lu Xiulian, an elder who has lived here for over 20 years, the transmission tower was built in 2002. Her house was located in a sunken pit foundation just about 10 meters away from the transmission tower. She remembered that most of the residents in the resettlement area moved here gradually after 2003.
Although the residents have yet to gather sufficient evidence proving a necessary connection between their symptoms and the transmission tower, they found that the families with severe conditions were those closest to the transmission tower.
Now, Yang Defu has started to consider moving away from this "troublesome place." Every day when the couple made pickles in the kitchen, they could see the transmission tower by just looking up. They moved the bed in the bedroom to the living room, but his wife's hair continued to fall out severely.
Li Junping, 48 years old, said that he bought this house after working in the south for 14 years, "tightening my belt and saving bit by bit from my meals," now with the situation causing panic, he doesn't know where else he can move to.
At the entrance of Liu Shuwen's hair salon, her 9-year-old daughter pointed at the transmission tower about 20 meters away and said in the tone of Ultraman from a cartoon: "Big Tower, you're so bad, I'm going to split you!"
Defeated overnight
A year ago, at another corner of the same city, the retired doctors of the outpatient department family building of the People's Hospital of Pingliang located at Panchuan Road similarly began to defend their rights and make appeals due to the construction of a transmission tower nearby.
"Everyone here is professional, we all know the harm of electromagnetic radiation," said Hao Youfu, a senior pharmacist of 76 years old, who participated in that arduous defense of rights.
According to the recollections of several elderly doctors, in October 2008, a communication base station was to be built outside their neighborhood. Considering the possible threat of electromagnetic radiation, these elderly doctors spontaneously went to negotiate with the construction personnel. When it failed, the residents gathered together and carried away the transmission antennas that had not been installed yet. After the other side reported the case, the police mediated, and the residents had to return these devices.
However, these retired and off-duty doctors did not immediately stop their fight for rights. Afterwards, they organized more than 30 people to appeal to the Pingliang City Petition Office, posted messages on the Pingliang Government website, and some even called the mayor's hotline.
But the residents soon retreated. While they were looking for channels to express their demands, one day, they suddenly found that the main pole of the base station had already stood upright.
"There's nothing we can do. We wanted to block it, but ultimately couldn't," said a resident.
Someone proposed to dismantle the transmission tower, but was dissuaded by elders like Hao Youfu. The elders believed that doing so would violate national laws. Someone suggested that legal action should be taken to solve the problem, but the high litigation costs and complicated procedures deterred them.
On the afternoon of October 17, 2009, a reporter from China Youth Daily saw on-site that the base station was built on the east side of the spacious parking lot behind the Pingliang Grain and Trade Hotel. The main pole of the base station was located in the middle of two residential buildings. According to on-site measurements, the distance between the base station, which was only separated by a wall from the residential building, and the nearest residential building was approximately 10 meters in a straight line, while the distance between the white transmission antenna and the top floor was about 20 meters.
Zhang Wei, a senior pharmacist of 46 years old, also discovered symptoms of insomnia and hair loss in himself. He told reporters that electromagnetic radiation mainly affects the heart.
Controversy in the industry
What exactly are the hazards of electromagnetic radiation to human health?
In his 2005 paper "Improving the Quality of Human Living Environment and Reducing Public Electromagnetic Radiation Exposure Levels," Professor Zhao Yufeng, deputy director of the Indoor Environmental Monitoring Work Committee of the Chinese Association of Interior Decoration, wrote: "The theory that electromagnetic waves are harmful has been questioned because currently humans cannot explain the causes of many diseases such as leukemia. Research on electromagnetic waves has only been ongoing for more than 20 years, and unlike smoking, its intensity, frequency, exposure time, waveforms, etc., are relatively complex, making it difficult to prove its relationship with cancer. Based on current medical surveys, people cannot deny the impact of electromagnetic waves on the human body. Research and discussions regarding the three effects of radiation-induced carcinogenesis, teratogenicity, and mutagenesis are ongoing."
Zhao Yufeng introduced that electromagnetic radiation mainly affects the human body through thermal effects, causing neurasthenia syndrome and vegetative nerve dysfunction in the cardiovascular system. Typical symptoms include headache, dizziness, general discomfort, fatigue, insomnia, vivid dreams, memory decline, etc., while some individuals experience excessive sleepiness, chest tightness, palpitations, etc. Women may experience menstrual cycle disorders, and a few people may experience hair loss.
When interviewed by phone by a reporter from China Youth Daily, the veteran expert explained: "Electromagnetic radiation does not equal electromagnetic pollution. Exceeding certain safety standards and reaching sufficient intensity will affect sensitive populations, requiring people's attention and preventive measures. However, even if uncomfortable symptoms appear, don't be overly afraid. There's no need to panic excessively about electromagnetic radiation. Uncomfortable symptoms can be restored by detaching from the electromagnetic radiation environment or taking certain remedial measures."
"Exceeding the standard will be harmful to the human body," Wang Yi, an expert on electromagnetic radiation from the Nuclear and Environmental Regulations and Standards Expert Committee of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, explained to the media recently: "Within the working frequency range of mobile communication base stations, the state stipulates 40 microwatts per square centimeter. If it exceeds 40 microwatts, the environment may be risky. If it is below this standard, there is no problem."
Wang Yi informed the reporter from China Youth Daily that this standard was set by the Electromagnetic Radiation Protection Regulations (GB8702-88).
An expert introduced that during the environmental assessment of mobile communication base stations, the power density of GB8702-88 is taken as 1/5, i.e., 8 microwatts per square centimeter as the standard.
This expert revealed that in the 1990s, the country once organized a compilation group consisting of more than 20 experts from environmental protection departments, health departments, power departments, communication departments, and radio interference aspects to revise the electromagnetic radiation standards, "to align with international standards, but due to inconsistent opinions from various parties, no agreement was reached."
"Now this standard can be said to be relatively strict, internationally it is 50 microwatts," Wang Yi said, "it is still a matter of quantity. Nowadays, people's lives cannot be separated from electricity, nor can they be separated from electromagnetic waves. Many people do not understand the base station, and since electromagnetic waves are invisible, intangible, and odorless, people are thus afraid."
Regarding some residents' reports of experiencing hair loss, insomnia, and other symptoms due to electromagnetic radiation, this expert further explained, "Now the urban environment is relatively complex, and people's stress is also relatively large. It might also be caused by social reasons or other reasons."
Professor Zhao Yufeng, who has participated in the environmental assessment review of communication base stations for many years, introduced: "The vast majority of base stations in residential areas meet safety standards. But some old base stations have larger power and are closer to residential areas, and they are gradually being renovated." He found that many base stations originally built in rural areas now have dense buildings around them. "Many problems are historical legacy issues, and the planning department did not strictly control."
During the interviews, reporters found that the current industry still has controversies regarding whether the electromagnetic radiation emitted by communication base stations poses a threat to human health.
One view holds that the electromagnetic radiation emitted by mobile base stations seriously affects people's physical health. Another opposing view argues that the construction of mobile base stations follows national relevant standards, GSM base station antennas heights all comply with the nationally prescribed safety values, plus the energy attenuation of electromagnetic waves in the air, the actual impact of electromagnetic radiation has become very weak.
An insider who wished to remain anonymous told a reporter from China Youth Daily: "This is an unclear issue. The three major operators once explained this issue, but found that the hotter it was discussed, the less clear it became. Later, they simply stopped mentioning it altogether."
This person who has observed the communications industry for many years expressed: "Perhaps this is the sorrow of modern people. Unless you return to primitive society, otherwise, you cannot avoid this kind of harm."
The residents of the community where he lived once proposed to remove the mobile base station installed in the community, but the residents soon discovered that the mobile phone signal became increasingly poor. The residents then started calling to complain about the poor signal and requested the restoration of the base station construction.
(Source: China Youth Daily)