Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

asked the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, upon notice, on 20 July 2012:

Given that during the recent inquiry into the Telecommunications Amendment (Mobile Phone Towers) Bill 2011 it was revealed that the telecommunications regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, does not regulate emissions of radiofrequency radiation from mobile phone base stations, will emissions of radiofrequency radiation from mobile phone base stations be now monitored to ensure they comply with the Australian standard; if so, how; if not, why not.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The answer to the honourable senator's question is as follows:

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) regulates the emission of radiofrequency radiation from mobile phone base stations through the Radiocommunications Licence Conditions (Apparatus Licence) Determination 2003. The Determination obligates licensees of mobile phone base stations in Australia to ensure the operation of their facilities do not exceed the general public exposure limits of the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency radiofrequency standard. The issue the Committee raised during its hearing was not a regulation issue, but a monitoring issue in respect of compliance with the electromagnetic energy limits set out in the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) radiofrequency standard.

In answer to the issue raised at the hearing, the ACMA said that, based on available information, it was not of the view there was a compliance issue. The ACMA also said that it was not aware of any case where subsequent ACMA inquiries and measurements in response to complaints or inquiries received about specific installations resulted in identifying a site operating beyond the limits specified in the radiofrequency standard.

In its subsequent response to a Senate Committee question about site audits, taken on notice, the ACMA explained that it conducts audits of radiocommunications installations on a risk informed basis. The ACMA noted it conducted an audit program between 2006 and 2008 of 474 sets of electromagnetic energy (EME) records held by licensees, and the audit program did not identify any issues with licensees exceeding EME limits at locations accessible by the public.

Notwithstanding this, in light of the Senate Committee report into the Bill, the ACMA has advised that it is taking the views of the Senate Committee into account as it establishes priority compliance areas and compliance programs for radiocommunications transmitter licensing arrangements over the new financial year. The ACMA is also considering strategies to ensure compliance with the electromagnetic energy limits set out in the ARPANSA radiofrequency standard, such as site audits.

Predictive reports show that the predicted level of EME outputs from mobile phone base stations are a low percentage of the EME exposure limits set out in the radiofrequency standard. Measurements of EME exposures from mobile phone base stations conducted or commissioned by ARPANSA have found that actual exposures from mobile phone base stations are a small fraction of the EME public exposure limits.