Spatial and temporal variability of Rf-Emf exposure levels in urban environments in Flanders, Belgium

2019 · Unclear · Low evidence

← Research stream

UnclearLow evidencePaper 1812

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2019

Study typeexposure_assessment

Reported directionUnclear

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Spatial and temporal variability of Rf-Emf exposure levels in urban environments in Flanders, Belgium Velghe M, Wout J, Debouvere S , Aminzadeh R, Martens L, Thielens A. Characterisation of spatial and temporal variability of Rf-Emf exposure levels in urban environments in Flanders, Belgium. Environmental Research. Published online May 22, 2019.doi.org rights and content Highlights • Comparison of population exposure to RF-EMF in 5 densely populated cities with similar characteristics within Flanders, Belgium. • The first findings that indicate the effects of regulations on exposure levels. • Repeatability and representativeness of the used method are shown, which is important for future research. • Application of this method outside of office hours renders new insights in daily behaviour of exposure. • On-body calibration of the measurement device allowed us to, in contrast to most other similar studies, quantify the on-body measurement uncertainty. Abstract Personal exposure to Radio-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields (RF-EMFs) was studied using personal measurements in five different microenvironments in each of five cities (Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges and Hasselt) in Flanders, Belgium. These measurements were carried out by two researchers using on-body calibrated personal exposimeters. In three out of the five studied cities (Brussels, Ghent and Bruges), temporal aspects of personal exposure to RF-EMFs were studied as well. Measurements during and outside of rush hours (7:00-9:15 and 16:30-19:00) were compared. Likewise, measurements were executed during night time and compared to the ones measured during working hours. Representativeness and repeatability of the measurement method was studied as well. The highest mean total exposure was found in Brussels (2.63 mW/m2), the most densely populated city in this study. However, we measured higher downlink exposure in Antwerp than in Brussels, which might be an effect of the stronger legislation on base stations in Brussels. The measurements and used protocol were found to be both repeatable over time (r = 0.95 for median total exposure) and representative for the studied microenvironments in terms of path selection (r = 0.88 for median total exposure). Finally, in 10 out of the 13 on-body calibrated frequency bands we found that the measurement devices underestimate the intensity of the incident RF-EMFs with median underestimations up to 68%. Conclusions Personal exposure to RF-EMFs was studied using microenvironmental measurements in five cities in Flanders and the Brussels Capital Region. Highest total exposure values were found in Brussels (2.63 mW/m2 averaged over five microenvironments). Our analysis showed that the amount of RF-EMF radiation in a certain environment was dependent on the population density within that environment. A higher average downlink exposure was measured in Antwerp in comparison to Brussels whilst having a lower population density. This might be an effect of the stronger legislation on base stations in Brussels. Downlink was the largest contributor to total exposure. The total RF-EMF exposure was significantly higher during rush than during non-rush hours. Furthermore, the total exposure was highest at night compared to other timeslots. The selected paths showed to be representative for exposure in their respective microenvironments. The results were also found to be repeatable. The used measurement devices were calibrated on the body of the researchers that wore them during measurements. These calibrations showed that the devices underestimate the personal exposure since median underestimations were measured in a majority of the studied frequency bands on the bodies of the two individual researchers, respectively. sciencedirect.com

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 directionunclear

PopulationTwo researchers conducting personal measurements across microenvironments in five cities in Flanders, Belgium (including Brussels Capital Region)

Sample size2

ExposureRF · Measurements during and outside rush hours (7:00–9:15; 16:30–19:00), during night time vs working hours

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Personal RF-EMF exposure was measured with on-body calibrated exposimeters across five microenvironments in each of five cities. Highest mean total exposure was reported in Brussels (2.63 mW/m²), while higher downlink exposure was measured in Antwerp than Brussels, which the authors note might relate to stronger base-station legislation in Brussels. Total exposure was higher during rush vs non-rush hours and highest at night compared with other timeslots; the protocol was reported repeatable (r=0.95 for median total exposure) and representative for path selection (r=0.88), and calibration indicated median underestimation by devices in 10/13 bands (up to 68%).

Outcomes measured

Personal RF-EMF exposure levels (mW/m²) across cities and microenvironments
Temporal variability (rush vs non-rush; night vs working hours)
Contribution of downlink to total exposure
Repeatability and representativeness of measurement protocol (correlations r)
On-body calibration/measurement uncertainty and underestimation by exposimeters

Limitations

Frequency range/bands (exact frequencies) not specified in the provided abstract
Personal measurements were conducted by two researchers (limited number of carriers)
Temporal analyses were performed in only three of the five cities (Brussels, Ghent, Bruges)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "exposure_assessment",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "urban environment (multiple sources; downlink noted as largest contributor)",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "Measurements during and outside rush hours (7:00–9:15; 16:30–19:00), during night time vs working hours"
  },
  "population": "Two researchers conducting personal measurements across microenvironments in five cities in Flanders, Belgium (including Brussels Capital Region)",
  "sample_size": 2,
  "outcomes": [
    "Personal RF-EMF exposure levels (mW/m²) across cities and microenvironments",
    "Temporal variability (rush vs non-rush; night vs working hours)",
    "Contribution of downlink to total exposure",
    "Repeatability and representativeness of measurement protocol (correlations r)",
    "On-body calibration/measurement uncertainty and underestimation by exposimeters"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Personal RF-EMF exposure was measured with on-body calibrated exposimeters across five microenvironments in each of five cities. Highest mean total exposure was reported in Brussels (2.63 mW/m²), while higher downlink exposure was measured in Antwerp than Brussels, which the authors note might relate to stronger base-station legislation in Brussels. Total exposure was higher during rush vs non-rush hours and highest at night compared with other timeslots; the protocol was reported repeatable (r=0.95 for median total exposure) and representative for path selection (r=0.88), and calibration indicated median underestimation by devices in 10/13 bands (up to 68%).",
  "effect_direction": "unclear",
  "limitations": [
    "Frequency range/bands (exact frequencies) not specified in the provided abstract",
    "Personal measurements were conducted by two researchers (limited number of carriers)",
    "Temporal analyses were performed in only three of the five cities (Brussels, Ghent, Bruges)"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "RF-EMF",
    "personal exposure",
    "exposimeter",
    "on-body calibration",
    "urban environment",
    "microenvironments",
    "temporal variability",
    "rush hour",
    "night time",
    "downlink",
    "population density",
    "Belgium",
    "Flanders",
    "Brussels",
    "Antwerp",
    "Ghent",
    "Bruges",
    "Hasselt"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.2,
      "reason": "Mentions effects of base-station legislation/regulation on measured exposure levels."
    }
  ]
}

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: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.05.027get
PubMed: Not supplied

Read the original paper →

Related papers

← Back to the Research Library