Cambuslang rejects phone mast proposal
EDEL KENEALY
Greenlees road must be removed from a list of potential sites for a mobile phone mast, Cambuslang Community Council has warned.
The council has demanded that Hastie Bakery be removed from a list of eight possible mast sites in the town until an investigation is carried out into the impact such a mast would have on children at nearby St Bride’s Primary School.
Vodafone UK and Telefonica UK confirmed in December that a number of locations were being considered to install a telephone mast after previous plans to erect one at the junction of East Greenlees Road and Murdoch Avenue fell through.
John Bachtler, chairman of Cambuslang Community Council, said a directive from the UK Government states schools and parents have a right to know the level of radiation which pupils are currently, or could later be exposed to.
In a letter to Mono consultants, the firm surveying potential sites for the mast on behalf of the phone companies, Mr Bachtler said: “Our concern relates to the very close proximity of one of the proposed base stations to St Bride’s Primary School in Tabernacle Street just off Greenlees Road.
“We would be grateful if you would kindly provide us with the details of any audit that may have been done of radiation from that base station, in particular radiation levels that are likely to be experienced at St Bride’s Primary School. If no such audit has been undertaken, could you advise us on when this will be done.
“In the absence of such an audit, we object to any proposal for the siting of a base station in the area, and especially in the vicinity of St Bride’s Primary School, being taken forward.”
Mr Bachtler also urged Telefonica and Vodafone to host a public meeting and further consult the community before submitting a planning application for any of the eight sites currently under consideration.
This includes: Hillhouse Industrial Estate, Atlas Industrial Estate, Cambuslang Rangers, The Brae Public House, South West Paint Suppliers Ltd, Hastie Bakery, Bute Tower and Benmore Tower.
A spokesman for Mono Consultants said the mast was needed to improve 3G and 4G coverage in the area.
He said: “All Vodafone and Telefónica installations are designed to be fully compliant with the public exposure guidelines established by the International Commission on NonIonizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). These guidelines have the support of UK Government, the European Union and they also have the formal backing of the World Health Organisation. A certificate of ICNIRP compliance will be included within the planning submissions.”
Telefonica and Vodafone UK first announced plans to erect a mobile phone mast in the Cambuslang area in the spring of 2017. However, it later emerged that the land on which they hoped to build the mast was not actually owned by the person with whom they had struck an agreement. The news followed weeks of opposition from local residents and a petition which garnered hundreds of signatures. Residents stated they had concerns about the impact radiation would have on their physical and mental health.