Answer to Question #2143 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"

Q

Two of my townhouse neighbors have home satellite dishes on the ground that I must walk right in front of to get to my mailbox. (Less than 1 foot). The children also play walking directly in front of these, all because the owners don't want to pay the condominium association a $250 deposit to put them on the roof. I figure I pass in front of them 8 to 10 times a day as I have to go to my car and drive in front of them too. What are the latest statistics on dangers of this?

A

Satellite dishes are used both for transmitting and receiving signals. Most of the dishes you see near houses do not transmit radiation but are only for receiving broadcasts (Radio frequency—RF—signals) from satellites. If they were transmitting, they would have an antenna on the rooftop or on a tower. Therefore, there is no more RF radiation in the vicinity of the dish than anywhere else in your neighborhood. RF radiation is not the same as x rays. RF radiation is nonionizing, and it does not cause birth defects, cancers, or genetic damage, even at higher exposures. Most of the satellite dishes are low-powered units and the RF signals are well below limits established by agencies like the FCC (Federal Communications Commission). I would not be concerned about walking or driving in front of the satellite dish, or even if the children were to play near it. If you need more information, you can go to the COMAR website, which has a report on RF exposures from cell base stations (which operate in a similar frequency range as satellite dishes).

Ninni Jacobs, CHP
Environmental Health and Safety
Brown University