Mapping of RF EMF exposure levels in outdoor environment and comparing with reference levels for general public health

2016 · No effect · Low evidence

← Research stream

No effectLow evidencePaper 1428

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2016

Study typeexposure_assessment

Reported directionNo effect

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Mapping of RF EMF exposure levels in outdoor environment and comparing with reference levels for general public health Cansiz M, Abbasov T, Kurt MB, Celik AR. Mapping of radio frequency electromagnetic field exposure levels in outdoor environment and comparing with reference levels for general public health. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2016 Nov 2. doi: 10.1038/jes.2016.64. . Abstract In this study, radio frequency electromagnetic field exposure levels were measured on the main streets in the city center of Diyarbakır, Turkey. Measured electric field levels were plotted on satellite imagery of Diyarbakır and were compared with exposure guidelines published by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP). Exposure measurements were performed in dense urban, urban and suburban areas each day for 7 consecutive days. The measurement system consisted of high precision and portable spectrum analyzer, three-axis electric field antenna, connection cable and a laptop which was used to record the measurement samples as a data logger. The highest exposure levels were detected for two places, which are called Diclekent and Batıkent. It was observed that the highest instantaneous electric field strength value for Batıkent was 7.18 V/m and for Diclekent was 5.81 V/m. It was statistically determined that the main contributor band to the total exposure levels was Universal Mobile Telecommunications System band. Finally, it was concluded that all measured exposure levels were lower than the reference levels recommended by ICNIRP for general public health. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov Excerpt There are several reasons for why these two places have the highest exposure levels. Each place has a base station for mobile phone and these two base stations have common features. They have both GSM and UMTS antennas, which were installed on the first floor level. Moreover, these base stations are very close to the main streets. As seen in Figure 2, one base station is 115 m far away from Batıkent point and the other one is 165 m far away from Diclekent point. Therefore, exposure levels around these places were measured high. On the contrary, FM and terrestrial TV transmitters were far away from the streets where mobile measurements were taken. The RF EMF exposure levels on the main streets in the city center of Diyarbakır were shown on the satellite map and then two highest RF EMF exposure levels were detected. By means of this method, considering these thematic maps for public health, RF planning engineers who work for mobile network operators may avoid the installation of new base stations in locations where existing RF exposure levels are already very high.

Machine Enhanced Logic

AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typeexposure_assessment

Effect directionno_effect

PopulationNot supplied

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureRF · 7 consecutive days (daily measurements)

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

RF EMF electric field levels were measured on main streets in Diyarbakır, Turkey across dense urban, urban, and suburban areas for 7 consecutive days and mapped on satellite imagery. The highest instantaneous electric field strengths were 7.18 V/m (Batıkent) and 5.81 V/m (Diclekent), and the main contributor band to total exposure was statistically determined to be UMTS. All measured exposure levels were reported to be below ICNIRP reference levels for the general public.

Outcomes measured

Outdoor electric field strength (V/m)
Spatial mapping of RF EMF exposure on streets
Comparison to ICNIRP general public reference levels
Identification of main contributing frequency band (UMTS)

Limitations

No frequencies or measurement bands (in MHz) are specified in the abstract
No details provided on sampling density/number of measurement points or time-of-day distribution
Results are from one city and may not generalize to other settings

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "exposure_assessment",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "mobile phone base stations (GSM/UMTS)",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "7 consecutive days (daily measurements)"
  },
  "population": null,
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Outdoor electric field strength (V/m)",
    "Spatial mapping of RF EMF exposure on streets",
    "Comparison to ICNIRP general public reference levels",
    "Identification of main contributing frequency band (UMTS)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "RF EMF electric field levels were measured on main streets in Diyarbakır, Turkey across dense urban, urban, and suburban areas for 7 consecutive days and mapped on satellite imagery. The highest instantaneous electric field strengths were 7.18 V/m (Batıkent) and 5.81 V/m (Diclekent), and the main contributor band to total exposure was statistically determined to be UMTS. All measured exposure levels were reported to be below ICNIRP reference levels for the general public.",
  "effect_direction": "no_effect",
  "limitations": [
    "No frequencies or measurement bands (in MHz) are specified in the abstract",
    "No details provided on sampling density/number of measurement points or time-of-day distribution",
    "Results are from one city and may not generalize to other settings"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "RF EMF",
    "radiofrequency electromagnetic fields",
    "outdoor exposure",
    "electric field strength",
    "V/m",
    "mapping",
    "spectrum analyzer",
    "three-axis antenna",
    "GSM",
    "UMTS",
    "base station",
    "ICNIRP",
    "Diyarbakır",
    "Turkey"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Exposure levels were compared with ICNIRP reference levels for the general public."
    }
  ]
}

AI can be wrong. Always verify against the paper.

AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1038/jes.2016.64
PubMed: Not supplied

Read the original paper →

Related papers

← Back to the Research Library