Alternative Health News

'Don't build schools or homes near pylons', warn experts

by BECKY BARROW and DANIEL MARTIN
Last updated at 23:10pm on 27th April 2007

 

As many as 100,000 homes sit within this 'danger zone' which previous studies have shown can trigger fatal diseases in adults and children alike.

Governments have resisted previous calls for action because expert opinion had been divided on the scale of risk.

But the new report, published by SAGE, a collective of academics, medical charities and representatives of the electricity industry, points to compelling evidence of serious health dangers.

It says that childhood leukaemia is the biggest threat for families living near power lines. A quarter of the 400 children who contract the disease each year die.

The report cites a list of other linked illnesses and conditions including breast and brain cancer, miscarriage and Alzheimer's disease.

It will stoke fears - as yet unproved - about the safety of common electrical devices such as mobile phones and computers.

The concerns focus on the electric and magnetic fields produced wherever electricity is generated, transmitted or used.

SAGE plans to write another report on the health effects of electricity substations which are thought to generate strong electromagnetic fields.

People are thought to be most at risk if they live within 65 yards of a high-voltage power line - although the 'danger zone' can extend up to 160 yards. Smaller wooden pole power lines - a common sight in the countryside - are not a risk, the report says.

No rules prevent homes or schools from being built "right up to and indeed underneath overhead lines", the report warned.

In other countries, including Australia, all new power lines are built underground.

SAGE, which was formed in 2004 with the task of advising the Government, says a ban is the 'best-available option' for cutting the risk.

"We urge Government to make a clear decision on whether to implement this option or not," it concluded.

SAGE did not call for stronger action because there were major differences of opinion between members.

But some campaigners said a blanket ban was a matter of urgency.

Michael Jayne, of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, one of the groups represented, said: "The Government should legislate to avoid any potential health risks from overhead higher voltage power lines."

Alasdair Philips, of the campaign group Powerwatch, said: "The evidence is now overwhelming that building homes near to power lines isn't a clever thing to do."

The charity Children with Leukaemia said a 65-yard ban was "an absolute minimum" and called for a cordon of 220 yards.

Yesterday the Department of Health said: "The Government will need time to consider the implications of the report's conclusions and recommendations."

Denis Henshaw, professor of human radiation effects at the University of Bristol, and another member of the group, said the report should have been more forthright.

He said laboratory studies clearly showed that magnetic fields enhance the effects of cancer-causing agents in humans.

The report also raised concerns about the electric and magnetic fields inside the home caused by radios, televisions and even washing machines and cookers.

It called for the Government to advise householders on reducing risks, for example by moving electrical equipment away from the bedside. Equipment manufacturers should also investigate how to limit electric and magnetic fields, the authors said.

Some of the most dramatic evidence of the dangers of overhead power lines comes from Stoke.

A survey of just 67 households living within 50 yards of high-voltage cables there found one case of childhood leukaemia and 11 of other types of cancer.

No cases of the disease were found in a similar group of homes well away from the power lines.

The 67 homes reported 18 miscarriages, compared with just one in the control group, as well as higher rates of depression, digestive problems and insomnia.

Although the research was not carried out by scientists, the study - undertaken by the Trentham Action Group - formed part of the Sage group's inquiries.

Linda Tatton's son David Smith, 7, died from leukaemia while she was living in the shadow of a pylon in the Trentham area of Stoke in 1979.

Yesterday she said: "Ever since David's death I've been convinced power lines were to blame, and if this report spares other families from going through the pain we did I'll be very pleased."

David's death was one of two cases of childhood leukaemia uncovered by the group's work.

The 67-household survey, carried out in nearby Werrington, also uncovered a series of health problems suffered by the family of shop assistant Angela Gasken. Her family has lived directly under power cables since the 1960s.

Mrs Gasken's brother died of leukaemia aged 18 months shortly after their mother died of kidney failure. Their father died of heart failure ten years ago and Mrs Gasken has suffered two miscarriages.

"It's a strong possibility that the lines caused my miscarriages," she said. "It is very frightening. I have suffered depression too and it wouldn't surprise me if that is linked."