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Pittsfield, MA Expert Forum on Cell Tower Radiation and the Verizon Cell Tower Cease and Desist Vote by The Board of Health 

Mar 9, 2022

Pittsfield, MA Expert Forum on Wireless Harm and the Verizon Cell Tower Cease and Desist Vote by The Board of Health 
February 28th, 2022

This expert forum covers the health effects of cell tower radiation, the government policy and legal issues involved.

Featuring

  • Senator Denise Ricciardi, NH
  • Dr. Paul Héroux,
  • Dr. Magda Havas,
  • Dr. Kent Chamberlin,
  • Dr. Sharon Goldberg, ,
  • Environmental Health Trust  Director Theodora Scarato,
  • Attorney Robert Berg,
  • Attorney Scott McCollough

In February, the Pittsfield, MA Board of Health unanimously voted to issue a cease and desist order to Verizon to shut down its tower located at 877 South Street. Families living in the neighborhood near the tower reported wireless radiation-related health issues soon after the tower became operational in 2020 and since then, have been working tirelessly to turn the transmissions off. This action is the first known vote for a cease and desist by a Board of Health in the United States.

Watch Theodora Scarato present on the National Cancer Institute, WHO and lack of accountability at the federal level.

Over the past few months, the Board of Health held two meetings with Verizon Wireless to discuss the possibility of having Verizon relocate the tower away from the neighborhood to an alternative, less intrusive site. In the last meeting, Verizon stated that it would not move the tower and it would not power it down. At the Board of Health meeting last night, the Board reviewed the issue and determined that it has the duty to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the City of Pittsfield. According to the Board, the tower has caused at least one medically-documented case of electromagnetic sensitivity, with two additional likely cases in the same household.

Throughout the year, Verizon has contended that the tower radiation emissions were  “compliant with FCC cell tower radiation limits.” However community advocates and experts repeatedly presented evidence that compliance with FCC limits did not mean safety was assured.  In August 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in the historic case EHT et al. v. the FCC that the FCC had violated the Administrative Procedures Act when the agency decided not to update its 1996 wireless radiation limits. Specifically the Court found the FCC had ignored submitted evidence of people injured by wireless radiation, health effects from long term exposure and children’s unique vulnerability.

To share information about Pittsfield please use the following resources 

 

Pittsfield Massachusetts Cell Tower Community Links 

Myth: There is a scientific consensus that there are no known adverse health risks from 5G and wireless networks. The scientific consensus is that wireless networks are safe. 

Fact:There is not a scientific consensus for safety. There are thousands of scientists, doctors and medical professionals cautioning that wireless technology can cause harm. Numerous expert reports recommend more accountability by governments to protect the public. Hundreds of researchers who have published research in the field of bioelectromagnetics are calling for urgent policy action due to the mounting scientific evidence confirming adverse effects. 

  • 255 scientists who have published in the field signed the EMF Scientists Appeal which states “numerous recent scientific publications have shown that EMF affects living organisms at levels well below most international and national guidelines. Effects include increased cancer risk, cellular stress, increase in harmful free radicals, genetic damages, structural and functional changes of the reproductive system, learning and memory deficits, neurological disorders, and negative impacts on general well-being in humans. Damage goes well beyond the human race, as there is growing evidence of harmful effects to both plant and animal life.” 

There have been appeals and position statements for decades. Read a full list here.