What is 5g? Questions, Concerns and Solutions

(These notes are from Derrick Broze’s first presentation of “What is 5g? Questions, Concerns, and Solutions” in Houston, Texas on June 28, 2019)

1. Introduction to EMF and how it relates to cell phones, wifi, blue tooth
We are going to to talk about Electromagnetic frequency or EMF, a measure of how many times the peak of a wave passes a particular point each second. It is measured in Hertz. The range of possible frequencies makes up something known as the electromagnetic spectrum.

The electromagnetic spectrum is divided into separate bands, and the electromagnetic waves within each frequency band are called by different names; radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, X-rays, and gamma rays at the high-frequency (short wavelength) end.

Gamma rays, X-rays, and high ultraviolet are classified as ionizing radiation as they have enough energy to ionize atoms, causing chemical reactions. Exposure to these rays can be a health hazard, causing radiation sickness, DNA damage and cancer. Radiation of visible light wavelengths and lower are called nonionizing radiation as they cannot cause these effects. Or so we are told…

Cellphones, Wifi, bluetooth, and 5g operate on microwaves band of the spectrum. They each have different frequencies but all are considered radio waves.

2. Intro to FCC Regulations

The 1996 Telecommunications Act was passed as an effort to update the law around communications technology as the internet was beginning to come into mass public use and to limit the growing ATT monopoly. Unfortunately, it was the beginning of further consolidation of communications companies and a huge step towards eroding local power.

The act prohibits local jurisdictions from considering perceived health effects when taking an action on a proposed facility. Instead, cities and towns can only regulate cell sites based on the aesthetics and placement of the devices.

Section 704 of The Telecommunications Act of 1996 states:

“No State or local government or instrumentality thereof may regulate the placement, construction, and modification of personal wireless service facilities on the basis of the environmental effects of radio frequency emissions to the extent that such facilities comply with the Commission’s regulations concerning such emissions.”

As we will get into shortly, there are studies which show health effects even at the levels allowed by the 1996 Telecommunications Act, not to mention the fact that the standards are 23 years old based on old technology.

This loss of local power was only made worse in September 2018, when the FCC passed a new rule putting the federal government in complete control of the 5G rollout. In April, President Trump issued an executive order stating that local and state bodies must now approve new 5G infrastructure within 90 days. The Trump administration also initiated a cap on the fees local governments can charge telecom companies wanting to install 5G technology.

3. What is 5g? 
1st Generation – analog wireless, 1979, 1980’s

2nd Generation – cell phones with texting, pictures

3rd Generation – smart phones, some internet, video, and images, 1998

4th Generation – instant streaming, apps, 2008

5th Generation – Internet of Things, 4k movie downloads, interconnectivity

5G—or 5th generation cellular technology—is the name for the latest telecom technology upgrade. The new technology is expected to herald the beginning of Smart Cities, where driverless cars, pollution sensors, cell phones, traffic lights, and thousands of other devices interact in what is known as “The Internet of Things.”

The switch from 4g to 5g is nothing like the changes from previous generations. The differences include the type of frequencies (5G technology uses much higher frequencies (10-300 GHZ)), and the infrastructure. It should be noted that studies have found harmful health effects from the previous generations as well.  Also, 5g is using millimeter waves which are easily blocked and do not travel far. This will necessitate the installation of hundreds of thousands of new cell sites, towers, and add ons to existing infrastructure.

4. Concerns:

– Health 

Hundreds of scientists from around the world have signed a statement calling on a moratorium on 5g. https://www.5gappeal.eu/

“We the undersigned, scientists and doctors, recommend a moratorium on the roll-out of the fifth generation, 5G, for telecommunication until potential hazards for human health and the environment have been fully investigated by scientists independent from industry. 5G will substantially increase exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) on top of the 2G, 3G, 4G, Wi-Fi, etc. for telecommunications already in place. RF-EMF has been proven to be harmful for humans and the environment. “

There are also groups like Physicians for Safe Technology calling for common sense on 5g.

NTP Study

In early November 2018 the National Toxicoloy Program released data concluding there is clear evidence radio-frequency radiation (RFR) can cause brain and heart tumors and male lab rats. The $30 million study took more than ten years to complete as researchers examined the effects of prolonged exposure to high levels of RFR, the type of radiation emitted via 2G and 3G cellular networks.

“There was also some evidence of tumors in the brain and adrenal gland of exposed male rats,” the researchers write. “For female rats, and male and female mice, the evidence was equivocal as to whether cancers observed were associated with exposure to RFR.”

Some of the team says it should not be compared to humans. The FDA also said that they do not support the conclusions and other government agencies have said they do not apply to 5g.

“The exposures used in the studies cannot be compared directly to the exposure that humans experience when using a cell phone,” said John Bucher, Ph.D., NTP senior scientist. “In our studies, rats and mice received radio frequency radiation across their whole bodies.” The researchers also note that, “The lowest exposure level used in the studies was equal to the maximum local tissue exposure currently allowed for cell phone users.”

However, the final report notes that it represents the consensus of NTP and a panel of external scientific experts. The NTP seems to suggest the only way to avoid the health concerns is to avoid using a cell phone. In a health advisory, the NTP recommends those concerned about the potential health risks from RFR should, “Use speaker mode or a headset to place more distance between your head and the cell phone,” or “reduce the amount of time spent using your cell phone.” 

Ronald Melnick PhD, the former senior toxicologist and director of special programs in the Environmental Toxicology Program who designed the exposure systems used in the study, stated the following in response to the FDA:

“Simply claiming that conclusions about human risk cannot be drawn from animal studies runs counter to standard practices of evaluating human cancer risks by public health agencies including the U.S. EPA, NTP, IARC and even the FDA,” Melnick wrote in an opinion piece published by The Hill. “Every chemical known to cause cancer in humans is also carcinogenic in animals when adequately tested.”

Melnick notes that, “Dr. Shuren neglects to note that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a part of the World Health Organization, classified radio-frequency radiation from wireless devices as a “possible human carcinogen” based largely on findings of increased risks of gliomas and Schwann cell tumors in the brain near the ear in humans after long term use of cellphones.”

“5G is an emerging technology that hasn’t really been defined yet. From what we currently understand, it likely differs dramatically from what we studied. Consequently, I believe that new wireless technologies, including 5G, should be adequately tested before their implementation leads to unacceptable levels of human exposures and increased health risks.”

Dr. Martin Pall, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences at Washington State University, a published and widely cited scientist on the biological effects of electromagnetic fields, an expert in how wireless radiation impacts the electrical systems in our bodies. He has published 7 studies showing there exists exquisite sensitivity to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) in the voltage sensor in each cell, including Wi-Fi is an important threat to human health published in the journal of Environmental Health. Pall notes that the effects of EMF’s were documented 46 years ago in the U.S. Office of Naval Medical Research report, published in 1971.

According to Dr. Pall there are at least 15 different ways EMFs harm humans:

1) Various neurological/neuropsychiatric effects, including changes in brain structure and function, changes in various types of psychological responses and changes in behavior. 
2) At least eight different endocrine (hormonal) effects. 
3) Cardiac effects influencing the electrical control of the heart, including changes in ECGs, producing arrhythmias, changes that can be life threatening. 
4) Chromosome breaks and other changes in chromosome structure. 
5) Histological changes in the testes. 
6) Cell death 
7) Lowered male fertility including lowered sperm quality and function and also lowered female fertility (less studied). 
8) Oxidative stress.
9) Changes in calcium fluxes and calcium signaling. 
10) Cellular DNA damage including single strand breaks and double strand breaks in cellular DNA 
11) Cancer which is likely to involve these DNA changes but also increased rates of tumor promotion-like events. 12) Therapeutic effects including stimulation of bone growth.
13) Cataract formation (previously thought to be thermal, now known not to be).
14) Breakdown of the blood-brain barrier.
15) Melatonin depletion and sleep disruption.

Sharon Goldberg, practiced medicine for 21 years, focused on internal medicine, testifying in front of the Michigan House Energy Policy Committee in October 2018:

“Wireless radiation has biological effects. Period. This is no longer a subject for debate when you look at PubMed and the peer-review literature. These effects are seen in all life forms; plants, animals, insects, microbes. In humans we have clear evidence of cancer now; there is no question. We have evidence of DNA damage, cardiomyopathy, which is the precursor of congestive heart failure, neuropsychiatric effects. 5G is an untested application of a technology that we know is harmful; we know it from the science. In academics this is called human subjects research.”

Dr. Devra Davis founded non-profit Environmental Health Trust in 2007 in Teton County, Wyoming to provide basic research and education about environmental health hazards and promote constructive policies locally, nationally and internationally. Currently Visiting Professor of Medicine at The Hebrew University Hadassah Medical School. She has also authored more than 200 publications in books and journals ranging from the Lancet and Journal of the American Medical Association to Scientific American. 

“Russian’s 50 years of research on electromagnetic radiation since the Cold War has led to their clear understanding that this exposure does have biological effects. The Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection issued a 2011 Resolution recommending persons under 18 not use a cell phone.”
https://medium.com/swlh/5g-the-unreported-global-threat-717c98c9c37d

Theodora Scarato, Executive Director of Environmental Health Trust (EHT). As a policy analyst Scarato maintains the comprehensive EHT database on international policy that documents the 20+ nations that have protective policies in place to reduce public exposure to cell phone and wireless radiation. She raised the wireless and health issue to the the Maryland State Advisory Council on Children’s Environmental Health Protection which moved to issue first ever state advisory recommendations to the Department of Education to reduce radiofrequency exposures in the school setting.

Cellular technology itself: – Kaiser Permanente Study on Miscarriages for women near cell towers

A study of hundreds of pregnant women in the Bay Area found that those who were more exposed to the type of radiation produced by cell phones, wireless networks and power lines — radiation that grows more and more common — were nearly three times as likely to miscarry.     The Kaiser Permanente study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, did not show definitively what was causing the higher rate of pregnancy loss, nor did it isolate the potential impact of cell phones or other producers of electromagnetic fields, or EMFs. But the authors said the results underscore the need for more research.

Politicians Speaking Out

Michigan State Senator Patrick Colbert recently spoke out against the unprecedented roll out this new, untested technology

“The health of our public is supposed to be a matter of primary public concern,” said Colbeck. “We are now seeing that the adverse health impacts associated with wireless radiation are severe and include cancer as well as DNA damage, fertility degradation, and cardiac issues. SB 637 subordinates health concerns to those of convenience and economic potential.”

New York Congressman Thomas Suozzi sent a letter to the FCC seeking answers about the technology. 

“Small cell towers are being installed in residential neighborhoods in close proximity to houses throughout my district,” said Rep. Suozzi in his letter. “I have heard instances of these antennae being installed on light poles directly outside the window of a young child’s bedroom. Rightly so, my constituents are worried that should this technology be proven hazardous in the future, the health of their families and value of their properties would be at serious risk.”

New Jersey Congressman Andy Kim also sent a letter, noting that:

“Current regulations governing radiofrequency (RF) safety were put in place in 1996 and have not yet been reassessed for newer generation technologies. Despite the close proximity to sensitive areas where these high-band cells will be installed, little research has been conducted to examine 5G safety.” 

Oregon Representative Peter A. DeFazio, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman, wrote a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and acting FDA Commissioner Sharpless regarding the status of the government’s research into the potential health effects of RF radiation and its relation to the FCC’s guidelines for safe human RF exposure levels.

– Privacy

The American Civil Liberties Union released a guide for cities, “How to Prevent Smart Cities from Turning to Surveillance Cities”, written by Matt Cagle, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California. According to Cagle, 5g “This Could be a Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing.”

Quayside is a smart city located on 12 acres of waterfront property southeast of downtown Toronto, Canada. The city represents a joint effort by the Canadian government agency Waterfront Toronto and Sidewalk Labs, which is owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc. Sidewalk Labs claims Quayside will solve the problems of traffic congestion, rising home prices and environmental pollution.

There are even plans for housing developments and a school within the smart city. However, Quayside has consistently faced pushback due to a failure to build-in the necessary privacy protections.

At least two officials involved in the project have also resigned. Saadia Muzaffar resigned from Waterfront Toronto, the advisory panel responsible for Quayside, after the board showed “apathy and a lack of leadership regarding shaky public trust.”

Recently, Ann Cavoukian, one of Canada’s leading privacy experts and Ontario’s former privacy commissioner, became the latest person to resign from the project. Cavoukian was brought on by Sidewalk Toronto as a consultant to help install a “privacy by design” framework. She was initially told that all data collected from residents would be deleted and rendered unidentifiable. She later learned that third parties would be able to access identifiable information gathered at Quayside and decided to resign.

“I imagined us creating a Smart City of Privacy, as opposed to a Smart City of Surveillance,” Cavoukian wrote in her resignation letter.

– Local Control

In October 2018 the move towards the smart grid was expanded when the FCC approved a rule limits the role of local authorities regarding the building of 5G networks, specifically the amount city officials can charge telecommunication companies.

The Hill reported on the new rule:

“All four commissioners offered support for the rule, with Democrat Jessica Rosenworcel dissenting over only part of the proposal. When the new rules take effect, local officials will have 60 to 90 days to review installation requests.

Republicans on the commission say that limiting what they see as exorbitant fees in major cities will free up capital for companies like Verizon and AT&T to invest in building out their networks in underserved rural areas. The commission estimated that the rule will save wireless providers $2 billion.”

“This is extraordinary federal overreach,” Rosenworcel said of the rule. “I do not believe the law permits Washington to run roughshod over state and local authority like this and I worry the litigation that follows will only slow our 5G future.”

The move was resisted by Mayors and other officials around the nation.. The mayors of Los Angeles and Philadelphia opposed the rule and accused the FCC of overriding local authority to regulate the new technology. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti sent a letter to the FCC stating that the rules would override previous agreements established by local authorities and Verizon and AT&T. In addition, before the vote a group of House Democrats wrote to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai asking him to cancel the vote.

The Washington DC Advisory Neighborhood Commissions issued a resolution regarding 5g health concerns.

On March 6, the Danville Town Council voted four to one to block a permit for an upcoming small cell wireless installation by Verizon. During the meeting, Danville Mayor Robert Storer stated that the vote was an effort to stand up to the federal government and telecommunications companies, like Verizon. The Danville Town Council’s decision to deny the land use-permit for the small cell opens the town to possible lawsuits from Verizon.

“We’ve made a lot of difficult decisions over the years, and this one is right up there in my top three. But that is exactly why somebody elects us to do the right things,” Mayor Robert Storer said during the council meeting. “We’ve lost local control and this says: ‘You know what? We are sick of this and we’re not going to just sit here and be bulled over.’ We say no; we play our cards out. We’ve been in lawsuits before.”

Danville city attorney Robert Ewing “While potential health concerns are a huge concern, if that was the basis on which you were making a decision I would be fairly confident to tell you that you would lose, because that’s about as clear as the law can get,” Ewing said at the meeting. “As much as I understand the concern folks have over safety, what I can tell you is that if you make a finding based on potential health impacts of RF, then I will tell you that my opinion is you would lose.”

Dozens of cities including Eugene, Portland, Olympia, and others have passed resolutions to either sue the FCC or require the agency to do more testing before they implement 5g.

– Environmental – studies showing damage to trees and animals, as well as cutting down trees to implement the 5g network

– FCC Corruption

On January 24, Frank Pallone, Chairman of the U.S. House Commerce Committee, sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission asking for copies of communications between the FCC and the corporations involved in the current roll out of 5th Generation (5g) cellular technology. The UK Register reports that Pallone’s letter seems to indicate that the Commerce Committee has spoken with a whistleblower.

“It has come to our attention that certain individuals at the FCC may have urged companies to challenge the order the Commission adopted in order to game the judicial lottery procedure and intimated the agency would look unfavorably towards entities that were not helpful,” the letter reads.

In 2015 the Harvard Edmund J. Safra Center for Ethics published an expose by investigative journalist Norm Alster on the financial ties between the US federal government’s Federal communications Commission (FCC) and how, as a result, the wireless industry has bought inordinate access to—and power over—a major US regulatory agency

“Captured Agency: How the Federal Communications Commission is Dominated by the Industries it Presumably Regulates” by Norm Alster. Harvard Edmund J. Safra Center for Ethics (2015) Captured Agency

The Federal Communications Commission, an independent government agency created in 1934 to regulate interstate communications by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable, has become a captured agency with telecommunications leaders predictably filling the government seats in a revolving door fashion similar to other agencies.

“Industry control, in the case of wireless health issues, extends beyond Congress and regulators to basic scientific research. And in an obvious echo of the hardball tactics of the tobacco industry, the wireless industry has backed up its economic and political power by stonewalling on public relations and bullying potential threats into submission with its huge standing army of lawyers. In this way, a coddled wireless industry intimidated and silenced the City of San Francisco, while running roughshod over local opponents of its expansionary infrastructure.”

Motorola War Gaming

Biochemist Jerry Phillips was hired by Motorola to study the effects of the RF Radiation emitted by cell phones. The relationship between himself and his employer was great in the initial stages, but it started to sour as soon as he started submitting the research data to Motorola. The negative results were not to Motorola’s liking, and they started to discuss what spin they could put on it, before progressing to tactics such as telling him what to do, how to write, what to say, and finally how to do the work.

Dr Henry Lai at the University of Washington published a study in 1995 about DNA and memory damage in rats exposed to EMR from radar equipment – until a whistle blower leaked an internal Motorola memo about their plan to institute “war games” to get him fired and cut of his grant funding. 

In this leaked Motorola memo in the words of Motorola executives, they claimed to have succeed in “War-Gaming ” the Lai-Singh Experiments proving DNA damage at below so-called safe exposure levels – the smoking-gun reveals itself as legitimate researchers are constantly countered by wireless industry propagandist. Numerous attempts to discredit peer-reviewed research indicating consumer health risk have failed, but often they succeed in confusing the public’s perception of wireless health risk in general.
https://www.seattlemag.com/article/uw-scientist-henry-lai-makes-waves-cell-phone-industry

– Self Ownership
The decision to roll out 5g from the federal, state, and down to the local level is taking place regardless of whether you want it or not. This is simply the government deciding you will be blanketed with a digital smog, health, privacy, and local power concerns be damned.

5. Solutions:

– Personal – Don’t use bluetooth headphones/ Only use speakerphone/ DefenderShield products/ Don’t Use bluetooth in the car/ Use airplane mode when not using your phone/ Dont sleep with your phone

– Home – Rewire Your house with ethernet/ Unplug the wifi at night/ Work to remove the Smart Meter/ Graphite Paint Indoors

– In Public – People have talked about devices that protect you in public, either repelling or absorbing the EMF. others have suggested clothing that can protect you. I don’t endorse these ideas at the moment.

– Community – Lawsuits, Organize with the HOA, Neighborhood groups, Community center

—

The Situation in Houston

In July 2018, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner stood side by side with Verizon Wireless officials to announce plans to roll out 5g technology in the city of Houston. The Mayor said 5G will turn Houston into a “smart city”, with better control of traffic flow, money-saving smart street lights, and driverless cars.

By late September, Mayor Turner was awarded the “5g Wireless Champion Award” by the CTIA, the wireless industry association, aka “Big Wireless”. The CTIA stated that, “Under Mayor Turner’s leadership, Houston has streamlined the permitting process by not requiring a license or attachment agreement for new poles or small cells, and completes review ahead of deadlines. “

On October 1st, Mayor Turner once again held a press event with officials from Verizon wireless. This time, the Mayor and Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg were on location at a Houston couples home as they installed 5G equipment and helped the young couple become “the world’s first 5g customer”. At this event Mayor Turner and Mr. Vestberg were both questioned about the health and privacy concerns which have been raised by scientists, doctors, journalists, activists, and security experts. Both Turner and Vestberg stated they were not aware of any health or privacy concerns.

Protect Tanglewood is fighting with potential lawsuits in Houston. There is an online FB group called Houstonians Concerned with 5g.