Page 36 - Summer 2019 Journal

post these measurements on municipal websites. BEFORE ACTING, KNOW YOUR TERMS
Communities seeking the option of “fiber- to-the-premises” (FTTP) should be aware that the industry may use this term when they actually will only deliver “fiber-to-the-curb” (FTTC), “fiber-to-the-antenna” (FTTA) or “fiber-to-the-wireless” (FTTW). Telecom pro- viders may also use the term “fixed wireless Internet” to describe connecting fiber to small cell sites.
For safer, more secure and more reliable telecommunications, we need wired infra- structure (fiber or copper) delivered to a wired connection in each premises. To move toward this end, we need to repeal the federal acts and municipal mandates that effectively eliminate local authority over telecom facilities. HB 530 may serve as a model.
BEFORE ACTING, KNOW YOUR LAWS Recently passed FCC orders, federal acts and state laws that prohibit restrictions on fiber delivered to public rights-of-way and promote wireless service from public rights-of-way to individual users may have other impacts detri- mental to community interests. For example, ad- vocating municipally owned fiber-to-the-prem- ises may unintentionally divert public funds to deliver fiber to small cells. Such diversions of
public monies would reduce the industry’s costs to build 5G networks. Some communities may have grants to install power lines, cables and fiber optics underground. If you access these grants, be sure that the
fiber is delivered all the way to each building or home.
INTERNATIONAL ACTIONS TO HALT OR DELAY 5G Internationally, some municipalities and political parties have called for proof of safety before deploying 5G small cell sites. Municipalities that have halted 5G development because of health concerns include Brussels, Belgium; Geneva, Switzerland; a municipality of Rome, Italy;
and others.22
In Australia, the Health Australia Party (HAP) has outlined an EMR
pollution policy23 that supports initiatives including:
• Adopting the precautionary approach regarding exposure to electro- magnetic fields
• Designing, building and wiring buildings so as to reduce exposure to electromagnetic fields
• Requiring that new radiation-emitting technologies, including 5G, be shown to be safe for all members of society before their introduction to the market and rollout across the country
• Requiring all radiation-emitting devices to carry the notice: “This device emits radiofrequency radiation—use with caution”
• Carrying out a public education campaign informing people about safer technology use.
FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL ACTIONS
There are a number of actions that you can take right away. First,
to prevent the telecom industry from hijacking fiber for 5G, we need to repeal the federal legislation—specifically, the 1996 Telecommunica-
IMPACT OF ELECTRONIC TECHNOLOGIES ON AGRICULTURE
1. EFFECTS ON POLLINATORS: RF radiation emitted by cellular antennas and devices disrupts pollinators’ cryptochrome- based navigation. Cryptochrome is a magnetically sensitive protein (used to determine magnetic north) located in pollinators’ eyes. If it were only pesticides, the Varoa mite or harsh winters that were causing bee colony collapse, we would see ill or dead bees. A hive’s disappearance signals a navigational issue.24
2. TOXIC WASTE: The ores (such as cobalt, copper, lithium and quartz) used in electronics require washing that takes water from farms and generates toxic waste that further hinders farming.25,26 Cooling systems used by data centers also require water (that can’t go to farmers). In 2014, the National Security Administration’s Utah data center con- sumed 1.7 million gallons of water per day.
3. LOSS OF FARMLAND: To maintain our electricity-dependent lifestyles, solar and wind “farms” now cover what had been farmland.
4. LOSS OF KNOW-HOW: Using artificial intelligence (AI), computer-laden tractors now can determine a parcel of land’s mineral and moisture content, expected weather and the seed, herbicide, pesticide and fungicide needed to yield the most lucrative harvest. Overreliance on AI for these metrics will ultimately deprive farmers of the innate and experience-driven know-how they have traditionally possessed.27 In addition, the tractor’s computers require electricity-reliant wireless access networks, which in turn transmit EMR that disrupts pollinators’ navigation.
5. WEATHER: According to scientists from NASA and other agencies, 5G operations in the 24 gigahertz (GHz) band could interfere with weather forecasting. This is because scientists can only measure water vapor accurately in the 23.6–24 GHz band; adjacent commercial operations in this band “will result in a partial-to-complete loss of remotely sensed water vapor measurements.”28 By and large, weather forecasters welcome 5G, but not in the 24 GHz band.
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Wise Traditions SUMMER2019