Environmental radio frequency radiation (RFR) safety assessment at the vicinity of telecommunication structures in Malaysia

Abstract

Radio Frequency Radiation (RFR) from the existing and newly erected telecommunication structures has turned out to be a major public health concern in many countries of the world including Malaysia. The public in general are not only apprehensive about the growing weight of scientific evidence associating health effects to mobile phone use, nevertheless they are also increasingly concerned about the chronic, low-level RFR exposure from the stated structures. The paper highlights the study on the RFR emanated from the antennas installed on the telecommunication structures in Malaysia. The objectives of the study are to determine the level of RFR present and to assess the potential exposure received by the general public at the vicinity of the telecommunication structures. The study encompassed on the assessment of the RFR emitted by the antennas which displayed the results in the power density unit measured in microwatts per square centimeter (μW/cm2) at each identified locations. The results obtained from the study showed that the RFR level present in the area assessed were well below and less than 1% of the reference level for exposure stated in the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Mandatory Standard and International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).