Dubai: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has reassured residents that all telecom towers installed in the UAE follow international guidelines and radiation levels are within safe limits.
The statement followed complaints filed by residents of Al Furjan community seeking to stop construction of a mobile tower in the residential area.
"The UAE telecom sector is complying with the international guidelines of mobile radiation, through the technical survey that measures mobile radiation levels across the emirates,” a TRA spokesperson told Gulf News.
The spokesperson said the TRA “regularly measures radiation levels using different chosen base stations across the UAE to ensure compliance to international standards."
In 2010, the TRA issued a regulatory policy to ensure that levels of non-ionising radiation emitted by mobile towers conforms to safety standards set by International Commission for Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and adhered to around the world, added the spokesperson.
He further pointed out that in line with the TRA policy, surveys were carried out across the country to ensure that operators were complying with the guidelines, at 50 sites, where towers are set to be built in Abu Dubai, Al Ain, Dubai and the Northern Emirates.
“All emissions from the mobile towers had to comply with the general public exposure limits. The survey has covered all emirates, in particular the sites that were chosen in sensitive areas such as near schools, in school playgrounds, near classrooms, hospital grounds and near hospital wards especially children’s or maternity wards,” he said.
A notice informing residents about building a telecom tower in Al Furjan area was first posted in December 2016. “We raised concerns about the tower at that time and when nothing happened after exchange of several emails with the developer until last month when the construction started, we re-approached the developer Nakheel,” Nicholas Cox, a resident of Al Furjan told Gulf News.
He said that residents are requesting for the relocation of the tower, which is being built close to playgrounds, a nursery and a medical centre. “The tower is located right next door to houses where the majority of the residents have young children,” said Cox.
The British expatriate said many residents do not want to live in the area as they think that radiations from the telecom tower pose a risk to their health.
Vikas Gupta, an Indian expatriate said that he moved into the area in 2012 and the tower is located 50 meters from his home. “The tower is being built without taking into consideration the residents’ concerns. Since there is no owners association in the community, we had no prior information about the tower being built there,” he said.
Gupta, who has a three year-old son, said he is concerned about the harmful radiation and suggests its relocation to another area in the community away from homes and playgrounds.
Meanwhile, M.L from France, said the tower is being built beside her garden. “I have two children aged 4 years and 16 months and I am extremely worried about the radiation. The area where the tower is being built is a trash site and badly maintained,” said M.L.
Pointing out that mobile signal reception has not been an issue in the area, M.L and other residents said they don’t see the need for another tower in the area.
