Supervisors initially approved a use permit for the cellular equipment in 1994 after county emergency services workers noted Fire and Sheriff's department radio transmissions cannot reach into some valleys and other areas of West Marin. But a group of people who own property on the Lagunitas mountain opposed the 1994 action and filed a lawsuit against the county. The Mount Barnabe Homeowners Association suit claimed that electromagnetic radiation from the facility could pose a health threat and that the equipment was erected without necessary environmental reviews. A settlement agreement called for a study of potential health effects from the cellular equipment's electromagnetic radiation, and a cash payment to the property owners, according to members of the homeowners association. The settlement also required supervisors to reconsider their 1994 decision at Tuesday's public hearing, officials said.
People are still in danger.
The approval still requires annual monitoring of the facility, noted county planner Brian Crawford. However, that exposure was not from the Cellular One phone facility on the lookout but firefighters' and sheriff's deputies' radio transmissions. Those take 1,000 watts of power and concentrate it into a few inches. The dish antennas take one watt and beam it out towards the horizon. Planner Brian Crawford told the supervisors that county staff recommended they reauthorize the cellular facility and presented a technical analysis showing the cellular project is operating at one percent of the national safety limits.