Personal telecommunication radiation safety and the precautionary principle

Abstract

The approach to risk management for RF and microwave radiation has been to establish guidelines for maximum permissible levels of exposure. These guidelines are based on evaluations of the relevant scientific literature and, with safety margins to account for uncertainties and gaps in scientific knowledge, offer a significant level of protection against established hazards of RF and microwave radiation for short-term exposures. One can argue, on this basis, that the precautionary principle - specifically, safety factors -have been used to guide the making and promulgation of existing permissible-exposure standards for RF and microwave radiation. Therefore, discussions on the appropriateness of the precautionary principle for RF radiation may be much ado about nothing. Clearly, this approach to pre caution neither has stifled technological development, nor has it helped to enforce the acceptance of zero risk, but it provided a basis for action when science was unable to give a clear answer.