Does the Federal Government Really Believe, There Are Still No Dangerous Bioeffects From EMF Exposure?

All along, Industry and the Federal Government have insisted that either:
not enough research has been done on EMF Bioeffects to determine the potential risk, or
plenty of research has been done to determine that there is no risk.
That these two positions seem to be mutually exclusive appears to have eluded those in charge of public relations ... what is the source of this ambiguity? Is it accidental? Is it intentional, and if so, why?

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The Ambiguity
The terms risk and safe, which are essential to a meaningful dialog on this issue, have in this context, undiscussed controversial definitions, that is, they have been craftily re-defined to mean something other than their intended, (dictionay) definition. Safe and risk, as defined in the dictionary, are absolutes. You are either safe, or you are not safe. You are either at risk, or you are not at risk.
A good example of disagreement is the NCRP pre-release leak of "recommendations." This is a group of people working on THE SAME REPORT, who completely disagreed on what the conclusions should be. Imagine people in different agencies with mutually-exclusive interests, or people in Industry, with jobs, and the future of whole technologies at stake? (Here I am assuming the leak originated with someone inside who thought the final recommendations would not be consistant with the data.)

The people who make up the Federal Government do not agree on EMR Bioeffects, so how can the Federal Government appear to be consistent? Here are some contradictory positions taken by various US Government agencies, or agents.

National Academy of Sciences - National Research Council, report, or press release, -- no danger,
National Council on Radiation Protection, -- danger -- or maybe not,
National EMF Advisory Committee, calls for Continued Research on Electric and Magnetic Field Health Effects, -- danger, "We take this action because, after perusal of the pre-publication NAS/NRC report released October 31, 1996, we conclude that neither the press release nor the Executive Summary of the report adequately reflects the conclusions to be found in the body of the report. ... Contrary to reports in the popular press. the NAS/NRC report does not state that extremely low magnetic fields are safe. Rather, the report concludes that there is an unexplained, but statistically reliable and robust association between power transmission and distribution systems and childhood cancer and that continued research is necessary."

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EMFs: A Health Concern in Schools
EMF Health Report, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1993.

A number of school boards across North America have taken actions to limit exposure of school children to EMF. These actions, based primarily on parental concerns rather than on demonstrated health risks, have attempted to reduce the exposure of children to magnetic field levels which are typical of EMF exposures for the general public.

California. "High" EMF readings have prompted educators and administrators to take action to minimize exposure to EMFs. At the Montague Elementary School in Santa Clara, CA, 13 of the school's 15 teachers have formally requested to be transferred because of the school's close proximity to power lines. In addition, 4 classrooms, a day care center, and a part of the playground located near power lines have been closed off.

Before an evaluation of possible EMF-cancer associations in southern Marin County, CA, was even completed, the Mill Valley school district authorized up to $50,000 for new light fixtures and wiring to reduce EMF emissions. These expenses were approved by the school board after a district survey showed high EMF levels. Mill Valley's Tam Valley School took other cost-free precautions such as moving desks away from fish tanks and relocating physical education classes away from power lines.

New York. New York Attorney General Robert Abrams called on the state's top seven utility companies to study EMFs from power lines near schools in response to concern expressed by the New York State United Teachers Union and other groups. A study by Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation has identified 35 schools in upstate New York which are in close proximity to high-voltage power lines.

Canada. In Toronto, Ontario, parents were successful in a campaign to relocate a kindergarten classroom and library at a Bennington Heights elementary school. Concerns raised over a proposed new kindergarten play area at the south end of the school led parents to request magnetic field measurements of the area. The school building is on a cliff less than 100 feet from a 115-kV transmission line at the same height. Measurements taken at the south end of the school indicated levels about twice the average in the rest of the school. After a series of public meetings and additional consultant reviews, the school board decided to relocate classes and a library to portable units at the north end of the school, reserving the rooms at the south end for occasional use for meetings.

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The safety of computers used at Bennington was also questioned when measurements indicated magnetic field levels of 3 to 13 mG, which were also higher than the rest of the school. The current Swedish standard, known as MPRII, sets maximum EMF emissions from video display terminals at 2.5 mG at 50 cm from the front of the monitor, and New York public schools require a level of less than 2 mG at 30 cm.

Canada has no legal limit on EMF emissions and Health and Welfare, Canada does not recognize any danger from EMF exposure. However, parents at the Bennington School were unwilling to accept existing standards when it came to a potential risk to their children's health, and strongly supported the school board's decision to expend funds to reduce EMF exposures without any indications of health problems in the school. Bennington parents were motivated by accounts such as the series of EMF articles by Paul Brodeur published in The New Yorker magazine. They also credited magazine reports on the recent Swedish studies, which demonstrated a relationship between a 2-mG level of EMF exposure and childhood cancer, as influential.

Safe EMF levels. Scientists recognize that human health studies must set a fairly low EMF cut-off point that separates unexposed from "exposed" individuals in order to have enough exposed individuals for statistical analysis. Even if health studies conclude that there is a statistically significant increased risk for individuals in the exposed group, it is not possible to say with certainty that exposure at or above the cut-off point is a real risk or that all individuals in the exposed group have an equal risk. Further human studies and laboratory animal studies are needed to clarify these points. However, with such studies not yet completed, the public has started to make decisions and expend money based on what limited evidence is available.

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Power Lines and Property Values:
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

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Each of us spends about one third of our lives in one small area--the bedroom--where we sleep, where we sometime work and where we often have our sacred space for meditation or relaxation. It is most important that this area be kept as a healthy space. Since each person's long-term sensitivity to electrical and magnetic fields may vary, depending on genetic, immune system, stress, environmental and dietary factors, these are just guidelines. In general, to date, there seems to be tendencies for sensitivities to develop quicker in persons who have weak immune systems from chronic illnesses, allergies or multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS).

Your workplace

Measurements in milligrams (mG)
The sewing machine operator worked all day, took a 1-hour lunch break at 11:15 am, and took 10-minute breaks at 8:55 am and 2:55 pm.	The mechanic repaired a compressor at 9:45 am and 11:10 am
The electrician repaired a large air-conditioning motor at 9:10 am and 11:45 am.	The government worker was at the copy machine at 8:00 am, at the computer from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm and also from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm.

Repetitious transients and surges (pulse spikes) occur on power lines , but the more influencing transients are created by factors in home and business wiring, water piping (poor grounding/balancing), appliances and equipment. This repetitious long-term exposure may provide a kind of irritation or suppression factor, posing potential hazards to our health. EMF effects have been discovered, at night, reducing brain pineal melatonin hormone production, which affects immune system efficiency, especially in older persons. These effects appear to be caused by the sharp rise and fall of the pulse spikes created by motors and switches (perhaps the electric blanket thermostat switch, for example) turning on and off. That's the reason for 'prudent avoidance' of operating electric blankets and water bed heaters by children and pregnant women. Dr's Wilson and Reiter made these discoveries during the several years ago at Pacific Northwest Laboratory and University of Texas Health Science Center, respectively. This points to a probable irritating or suppressing type of influence which would create symptoms in a variety of confusing ways, due to personal health and immune system factors]. Persons at risk appear to be those having poor health factors and who may be exposed for years in constant proximity to power line components (transformers, sub-stations), appliances (electric blankets, hair dryers), power tools, TV's and computer monitors, and other sources of potentially rapid switching) EMFs.

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There is screed,s of information out there, for and against the ideas in this newsletter, one has to wonder seriously if there are dangers in magnetic fields, personally we measure our environment and try and stay in the researched safe zone, one can never be to careful, and trusting big business and Governments to tell the whole truth,well.
that's another story,,,