Feature: Are these masts not killing us?

A decade and half after the popularisation of terrestrial telecommunications to Nigeria, concerns continue to mount about the environmental impact of masts which are a major component of the operation of the telecoms industry OBODO EJIRO  writes.

“I wanted to just go downstairs and shut down the plant that powers the telecoms hub behind my house and face the legal consequences,” says Umeh Ikechukwu, who resides on Fawehinmi Street, Surulere.

 “My two day old baby had just arrived from the hospital, there was power outage, the rooms were hot and fumes from the plant at the telecoms hub were sipping into the room where she was to sleep,” Ikechukwu says, as he tried to hide his rage.

 A university don in the same neighbourhood, says “my wife is asthmatic. Therefore, whenever the generator at the hub comes on, the rooms closest to it are a ‘no no’ for her except the windows are firmly shut.”

 

There are an estimated 29,000 telecoms masts strategically located across Nigeria to boost telephony and data service quality. Some of the masts located in residential areas have been identified as problematic: especially where the generators that power them are old.

 In such cases, residents complain about the noise, smoke or vibration of the generators and are often helpless because lands on which the masts are constructed have              been ceded to mast operators who pay hefty sums for such rights.

 Just down street from where Ikechukwu lives, an old pensioner complains about a mast tucked between his building and another. “I fear the vibration from the generator is responsible for those cracks,” he says, pointing to the wall that demarcates his compound from the mast site.

 “When you touch the walls of my building,” he continues, “you can feel the vibration.”

 Asked about the validity of the claims of those who complain, a major company that operates masts in the country says “we do not have cases of mast generator disturbance at our sites as all our generators are sound proof and replaced in line with standard best practices.”

The company which pleaded anonymity says “we have not had any case of contravening the law. In the instances when there have been disputes with our host community we usually settle amicably.”

In 2013, the Lagos State government’s Urban Furniture Regulator Unit insisted that about 4,000 non standard masts that fail to meet the regulatory standards set by it will be pulled down by January 2014.

Noise, smoking generators or vibration from hubs may not have constituted part of the reasons for this decision, and certainly not all the regulations upon which the decision was made are known to the public but there is no record that the treat was carried out. Neither is there any strong evidence that the hub operators made any major changes that allayed the wrath of the Urban Furniture Regulator Unit.

But there are other concerns which have been raised. “In those days,” says Obukowo Edoja, a residence of an estate owned by the Delta Steel Company, Aladja, “we had NITEL masts and facilities in the outskirts of densely populated areas. These days masts are everywhere. My concern is with the rays emitted by the equipment.” Concerns about the rays have been largely alley by experts.

 Sharif Ibrahim, the Kaduna state Coordinator of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has stated that “People do not know the dangers of having mast near their houses; there are radiations coming down from the mast that do not have immediate effect but a long-term one which affects the skin.

 He pointed to other disadvantages of citing masts too close to residential areas to include – “oil spill from generators which contaminates wells and vibrations which, over time, leads to the collapse of buildings.”

 The law which regulates masts clearly states that “to reduce the visual impact of towers and antennas structure, stealth and/or camouflage design of towers and antennas are encouraged. All masts and towers sited in cities shall conform to the guidelines and standards of the Commission concerning all matters on radio frequency.”

 The law further states that “all towers sited within residential areas must conform to the set back stipulated in the Guidelines to mitigate the effect of heat, smoke and noise pollution arising from generating sets.  Telecommunications towers above 25 metres in height would not be permitted within districts delineated as residential.

 Where towers in excess of 25 metres in height are permitted, they should be placed at a minimum setback of 5 meters distance to the nearest demised property, excluding the fence. Prior permission must be obtained from the Commission. “

 The law threatens that “towers and masts sited in contravention of these guidelines would be removed and the owner of the tower would bear the cost of such removal.”

 And further states that “permissible generator setback, sound level , smoke and vibration. All generators within a base station must be sited 5 meters away from all demised properties excluding the fence. All generating sets must be sound proof.  All generating sets must be installed on good shock absorbers so as to minimize vibrations to the barest minimum. The exhaust of all generators must not be directed towards any demised property.” 

But somewhere along the line, these regulations must have been flouted to the detriment of Ikechukwu and most of those who host large telecoms hubs. To those who are exposed to these hazards, the laws which should protect them are only good on paper.