SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE ON TOXICITY, ECOTOXICITY AND THE ENVIRONMENT (CSTEE) Opinion on

prepare an update of the opinion (1) of the Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) on health effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) dated 25-26 June 1998, which endorsed the guidelines published by the ICNIRP (International Commission on Non Ionising Radiation Protection) and served as a basis for the Council Recommendation of July 5, 1999, which limited the exposure of the general public to EMF. The request derived from the increasing exposure to EMF consequent to the further growth in the use of electricity from the continuous development of the telecommunications industry and to a rapid increase in the installation of transmitter masts used as radiotelephone base stations. These transmitters are frequently sited close to houses, business premises and schools, and therefore an increasing proportion of the public is chronically exposed to ELF fields and RF. Moreover, the visibility of such masts has heightened the public concern about the risks from electromagnetic radiation. This is a complex field from a research viewpoint. EMF cover a wide range of frequencies (0 Hz – 300 GHz) (Annex 1). In a discussion of their sources of exposure, and of their potential harmful effects, it is customary to distinguish between extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF) and radiofrequencies and microwaves. Th