Abstract
Background: Spatial and temporal distribution of radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) levels in the environment is highly heterogeneous. The aim of this study was to conduct measurements in different microenvironments in Nepal with portable devices using a high sampling to monitor RF-EMF exposure levels in a representative and efficient manner. Method: Using the portable ExpoM-RF devices that measures frequency bands between 87.5 and 5,875 MHz, we conducted RF-EMF microenvironmental measurements twice in 12 different microenvironments from Kathmandu valley, Nepal. The ExpoM-RF was carried in a bag pack by trained personnel at the height of the head. The measurements were taken for about 30 minutes in each microenvironment with a sampling rate of 4 seconds. Results: Mean total RF-EMF exposure in Kathmandu valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur) was 0.65 V/m in city centers, 0.55 V/m in tourist centers, 0.44 V/m in residential areas and 0.40 V/m in industrial areas. For outdoor areas major exposure contribution was from mobile phone base station. The mobile phone base stations contributed about 84% in tourist areas, 80% in city centers and industrial areas, and 67% in residential areas. In terms of reproducibility, Pearson correlation between the first and the second measurements (arithmetic mean values) was 0.95 for total RF-EMF, 0.96 for mobile phone downlink bands combined, 0.82 for all uplink bands combined and 0.87 for broadcasting in Kathmandu valley. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that microenvironmental surveys yield highly reproducible measurements which allow monitoring time trends in RF-EMF exposure over an extended time period of several years. Collecting data for about 30 minutes with a sampling rate of 4 seconds by trained personnel provides data which is roughly representative for the corresponding microenvironment. The levels in Nepal are similar with the results from 51 different microenvironments in Switzerland conducted in 2014.
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