Felpham resident says she will have to move house as 5G mast is approved

Mobile network provider ‘Three’ wants to build a 5G mast close to the junction of Middleton Road and Park Drive, in Felpham.

The chairman of ADC’s planning committee, Terence Chapman (Con, East Preston), allowed the application to be ‘called in’ because it received more than 60 objections.

This followed a request by Paul English (Con, Felpham East) for it to be decided by the committee and not by officers.

Most of the objectors were concerned that the 15 metre-tall mast would be ‘overbearing’ and would be ‘too close to properties’.

Among them is Bognor Regis and Littlehampton MP Nick Gibb, who said a number of his constituents had written to him about the mast.

One Felpham resident also spoke of her health fears during the planning meeting.

“This proposed mast will be beaming microwaves straight into people’s bedrooms, including my own,” she claimed. “My only choice will be to move house or try to make my house radiation proof.”

The woman also said that her family home does not have a smart meter, cordless phone, or a wireless internet connection ‘because of the radiation they all give off’.

But planning officers explained that applications for new telecommunications equipment have to be accompanied by safety certificates, adding that one had already been provided in this case.

Government guidance says full planning permission is not necessarily required for new telecoms infrastructure, like 5G masts, but councils can have a say on where it is placed and how it looks.

The committee ultimately decided to approve the 15 metre-tall mast on Wednesday (August 24).

More details can be found on the council’s planning portal using the search reference: FP/114/22/TEL.

Why are people concerned about 5G?

Most of those who object to 5G technology are concerned with the effects of radiation on their health.

5G networks rely on signals carried by radio waves – a type of radiation – and concerns centre around the fact that 5G uses higher frequency waves to allow faster internet speeds for an increasing number of users.

This kind of radiation also comes from television and radio signals, mobile phones, and sunlight and 5G has been declared safe by the World Health Organisation.

A BT spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that mobile phone technology has ‘no established health risks’.

“It is important that the facts are explained and that the public is informed and not misled,” they said.

“No health risks have been established from [the] use of mobile phone technology and exposure to the low-level radio signals used for it – even though mobile networks have existed since the 1980s and the radio technology used is fundamentally the same.

“This has been the repeated result from a number of studies conducted over several years.”

The spokesperson added that technologies like 5G are ‘rolled out under strict government guidelines’ and are ‘essential’ to the UK’s economy and supporting emergency services.