Children found at risk of “Electronic Smog”
Posted on Tuesday, 8 May, 2007 | 7 comments
Columnist: Stephen King
There is scientific knowledge that cell phones can cause cancer and many other biological problems, but Wi-Fi networks? The United Kingdom has released to the media that there are major concerns of the wireless networks used by the students and teachers in their school systems. Britain’s Health Protection Agency is asking that pupils be monitored for ill effects from these networks. They state that these wireless networks emit radiation and are being installed in classrooms across the nation. This is the first time they have pressed to have a formal investigation into the hazards of using this technology.Sir William Stewart, chairman of the HPA, who is former chief scientific advisor to the government and who has chaired two official inquiries into the hazards of mobile phones is pressuring similar action on these investigations.
Several European provincial governments are already taken action to ban or limit use in its classrooms. Stowe School has partially removed their network after a teacher became ill.This week, 35,000 staff representing the Professional Association of Teachers, will write to Alan Johnson, Secretary of State for Education, to demand an official investigation into these concerns.Professor Olle Johansson, of Sweden’s prestigious Karolinska Institute, who is deeply concerned about the increased usage of Wi-Fi says there are thousands of articles in scientific literature demonstrating adverse health effects. He is quoted, “Do we not know enough already to say, Stop!?”Salzburg, Austria’s government has been advising schools to not install the Wi-Fi networks and is considering to fully ban them altogether calling the technology, “dangerous”.
Mike Bell, Chairman of the Electromagnetic Radiation Research Trust, says that he has been very supportive of having Wi-Fi investigated and doing something about those investigations.Going along with normal reactions, the United States school systems have never spent any time wondering about cell phones or wi-fi networks. The U.S. schools get information on these matters from the United States National Academy of Sciences, who relay to all governmental groups that there is no concern or dangers from either technology while the rest of the world is finding problems, creating solutions, and addressing one of the larger issues we face in our day and age. Americans are still awaiting the day that US officials and policies directly represent the international opinions and actions taken so far on this issue.