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Home My WebLink About1989-02-27; Parks & Recreation Commission; 289-3; View Point ArticlePARK S RECREATION COMMISSION - AGENDA BILL AR« 289-3 MTfi 2/27/89 DPPT. P £ R TITLE: "VIEW POINT" ARTICLE DEPT. HD. CITY ATTY CITY MGR. zo HU Zo RECOMMENDED ACTION: Accept and file. ITEM EXPLANATION; An article regarding the development and use of recreation facilities under transmission lines is attached for information (Exhibit 1). This article was first presented at the Recreational Facility Financing Committee and again at the Administration Office. This is an information item only, at this time staff has no comment. EXHIBIT; 1. View Point Article - January 1989 oU 0016 50 Planning January 1989 We invite Viewpoints from readers on issues of current interest. V E W O N Something new to worry about. Joel B. Goldsteen, AICP, city and regional planning professor and associate director of the Environmental Institute for Technology Transfer at the University of Texas at Arlington, describes the hazards of overhead power lines. I n researching the potential air pollution of overhead high-voltage transmission lines in urban areas, I have become aware of a little known body of scientific research that strongly suggests a correlation between electrical energy distribution, electromagnetic fields, and human health. As a result, I have become convinced of the need to alert plan- ners to a potential public health hazard. The statistics are alarming. Recent articles in international scientific journals describe greatly increased rates of leukemia and other cancers among those living within 150 meters (500 feet) of high-voltage transmission lines. Tumors and birth defects are documented in article after article. Last year, my colleague, George High, and I took some of that information and applied it to the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. After carefully plotting the paths of existing — high-voltage lines in the area and extrapolating from the statistics presented in the re- ,earch, we concluded that some seven percent of the area's residents could at some point be negatively affected by the electromagnetic fields (EMF) of overhead power lines. That figure means that we can conceivably expect to see double the rate of leukemia in children and a higher incidence of cancer in all age groups. No part of the country is immune from the problem, although the Northeast may be particularly vulnerable because of the high numbers of transmission lines in the dense eastern seaboard cities. Moreover, everyone is at risk: casual visitors to EMF-charged homes; children in schools built under power lines; even joggers running along the trails that have been built along transmission line rights-of-way. One hour's worth of exposure to EMF will adversely affect their biological and chemical systems. X^Ironically, planners in recent years have promoted the idea of using power line rights- / of-way as parklike "amenities." They have also perpetuated the myth that a 500-foot right- \ of-way is adequate when current research appears to suggest that 1,000 feet is a safer ^ figure. What planners should be doing is to prepare risk assessment studies for a variety of potential health hazards. That means, for example, chemical tests for water, soil, and air contamination in places like Baton Rouge, site of one of the largest agglomerations of petrochemical manufacturers in the U.S. The implications for practice and research are endless. Planners might, for example, use epidemiological studies correlating electromagnetic fields with incidence of leukemia to help in siting new schools. Planners may also find it necessary to supplement existing zoning and subdivision ordinances with additional regulatory documentsrelating to the newly discovered dangers. Legal research will be needed to clarify issues related to con- demnation of land for wider rights-of-way. Some changes can't wait. Standards for overhead power transmission lines and their rights-of-way must be reexamined immediately. Future studies are likely to show an even more clear and present danger. 0017 APA Board of Directors President James Duncan, AICP President-Elect Stuart Meek, AICP Secretary-Treasurer Ronald Short, AICP Carol D. Barrett. AICP Edward Blakely Carole Bloom Sam Casella, AICP Adrian Freund, AICP John C. McClain, AICP Dwight H. Merriam, AICP Harvey Moskowitz, AICP Janet R. Muchnik Paul Sedway, AICP AICP Commission President Dwight A. Merriam, AICP Immediate Past President Melvin R. Levin, AICP William W. Bowdy, AICP Perry L. Norton, AICP Brian F. O'Connell, AICP Sumner Sharpe, AICP Lester L. Solin, AICP Frank B. Wein. AICP Planning Staff Editor and Associate Publisher Sylvia Lewis Senior Editor Ruth Eckdish Knack Managing Editor Dennis McClendon Art Director Richard Sessions Production Editor Adele Rothblatt AssistanfEditor Jim Schwab Typesetter Lisa Barton Editorial Assistant Grace Williams Contributing Editors William Fulton Robert Guskind Design Consultant John Massey APA Staff Executive Director Israel Stollman, AICP Deputy Executive Director Frank S. So, AICP, Chicago Deputy Executive Director George T. Marcou, AICP, Washington APA General Offices Headquarters and AICP Office 1776 Massachusetts Ave., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 202-872-0611 Planning and Chicago Office 1313 E. 60th St. Chicago, IL 60637 312-955-9100 APA National Advertising Office Raquel L. Lavin (Washington] Advertising Manager 202-872-0611 National Advertising Representatives C. Lynn Coy & Associates, Inc. 55 Forest St. Stamford, CT 06902 203-327-4626