READER’S EDITORIAL: LA MESA CITY COUNCIL SET TO APPROVE HAZARDOUS 5G SMALL CELLS TUESDAY
Update: La Mesa's City Council voted 4-1 ton October 22 to approve the 5G measure, with Councilman BIll Baber voted against it.
By Susan Brinchman
Photo: Small Cells on pole in Topanga, CA (Dafna Tachover)
October 20, 2019 (La Mesa) -- URGENT ALERT! The La Mesa City Council will vote on a policy to allow thousands of very hazardous 4G and 5G small cells (cell towers on poles) to blanket La Mesa's streets, at their public meeting on Tues. 10/22/19, at La Mesa City Council Chambers, 8130 Allison Ave. La Mesa, CA 91942. It starts at 6 PM and agenda item #7 (see below) will occur sometime later. Note that scheduling it late in the meeting is a typical ploy used to reduce community input on controversial or harmful agenda items, and oversight. This certainly falls under all of those categories.
In the words of a Scientific American article published this week, " We Have No Reason to Believe 5G is Safe". Don't hesitate to act quickly in the next few days, to stop the rampant 5G infrastructure that the city plans to roll out in the next few months, if their current plan is approved. Here's how!
We invite the community to request, at the start of the meeting, and in writing ahead of time, that this controversial item receive its own separate consideration and vote, and only after a 5G Workshop has been held by the city, as was recently done in Encinitas, with consultation from stakeholder residents and organizations on the wording of the city policy, to allow city residents input into the process, as was recently allowed in local cities, the County of San Diego, and many other cities and towns in California and beyond.
Further, we invite the residents of La Mesa to consider this letter to download, personalize and email to the City's mayor and city council.
Photo, right: Cornet Electrosmog Meter shows high levels of rf radiation at 25+ feet from small cell
La Mesa City Councilmembers and Mayor Arapostathis email addresses are: marapostathis@cityoflamesa.us, bbaber@cityoflamesa.us, kalessio@cityoflamesa.us, aweber@cityoflamesa.us, cparent@cityoflamesa.us
5G infrastructure is being criticized as extremely hazardous to health and safety. 167,ooo signatories, including organizations, scientists, physicians, and other professionals not affiliated with the wireless industry have signed a petition to stop its deployment, in addition to many other petitions, local, state, federal, and global. The industry has admitted there are no safety studies. Small cells and 5G can destroy your property values if in front of or near your home (every 2-3 homes can have one on a new or existing street pole), as people do not want to live near cellular antennas or cell towers. Health risks cited by scientists include cancers, DNA damage, reproductive harm (mutations, infertility and miscarriages), autism, Alzheimers, mental health disorders, damage to vision, and escalations of violent behavior with exposures, headaches, seizures, immune system disorders, and more. These emissions are a safety hazard to every living being – humans, animals, wildlife, and insects alike, according to non-industry scientists working on wireless effects. Don't let the city of La Mesa's apparently naive city council and mayor and the city staff destroy the health and beauty of our town by subjecting everyone who lives, works, or visits here to 4G and 5G small cells that are strong, close range, 24/7 sources of microwave and millimeter microwave radiation.
From the City Council Agenda for Oct. 22, 2019:
"7. REPORT REGARDING THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION'S (FCC) REGULATION OF SMALL CELL WIRELESS COMMUNICATION FACILITIES (5G); AND, CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ADOPTION OF A 1) RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING AN INTERIM POLICY FOR THE REGULATION OF SMALL WIRELESS FACILITIES AND OTHER INFRASTRUCTURE DEPLOYMENTS IN THE PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY AND 2) RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A PROCESS TO REVIEW AND ISSUE ENCROACHMENT PERMITS FOR REGULATION OF SMALL WIRELESS FACILITIES AND OTHER INFRASTRUCTURE DEPLOYMENTS IN THE PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY AND ESTABLISHING APPROPRIATE FEES RELATED TO THE SAME
Staff recommends the Council (1) receive the report and presentation by staff and Telecom Law Firm, Wireless Facilities Special Legal Counsel; (2) adopt a Resolution adopting an interim policy for the regulation of small wireless facilities and other infrastructure deployments in the public rights-of-way; and (3) adopt a Resolution authorizing the establishment of a process to review and issue encroachment permits for regulation of small wireless facilities and other infrastructure deployments in the public rights-of-way and establishing appropriate fees related to the same.
Staff Reference: Mr. Firsht
Documents:
- ITEM 7.PDF" [THE PDF AT LEFT IS THE ACTUAL INTERIM SMALL CELLS POLICY TO BE ADOPTED IF VOTED FOR]
The city of La Mesa's planning department and city staff have been secretly been working with a consultant known to produce industry-friendly wireless ordinances and small cell policies, resulting in very upset communities once the small cells start showing up. This has happened recently in Coronado and Encinitas (with a temporary ordinance). I say secretly because after many of this author's inquiries in person, by phone, and email, from April through Sept., 2019, the city staff and elected officials would not reveal its consultation status on this topic and would not give out any information about its plans until last minute, on Oct. 18th, just days before its Council meeting. They've made these plans even in the face of research sent to them since this past spring by our nonprofit, Center for Electrosmog Prevention, based in La Mesa, CA.
Photo, left: Small cell by homes in San Diego
Our nonprofit volunteers have been reading the small cells policy that the City Staff recommends the Council approve and it is the worst we've seen out of scores of them evaluated in the past year. Visit Center for Electrosmog Prevention at www.electrosmogprevention.org (see Stop 5G with Protective Ordinances) and Stop 5G California (CEP) for more info, or email director@electrosmogprevention.org.
Take action immediately to address this important threat to our city!
Additional resources:
Susan Brinchman is the Director of the Center for Electrosmog Prevention, a 501c3 nonprofit based in La Mesa: PO Box 655, La Mesa, CA, USA 91944-0655; www.electrosmogprevention.org, www.facebook.com/stop5gca, director@electrosmogprevention.org.
The opinions in this editorial reflect the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of East County Magazine. To submit an editorial for consideration, contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org.