Guest Opinion: Cell Tower Issue At Critical Crossroads

By Cynthia Dilling

“Where ever you stand on this issue, now is the time to let the Planning Commission know what you think.  Most county residents have no idea this discussion is going on and that the cell tower ordinance is about to be radically changed.  We all need to speak up.”

The cell tower issue is with us again. Many of you may remember how controversial this issue was in the early 90’s.  At that time our county had no regulatory ordinance for cell towers. On Orcas, Lopez and San Juan a few property owners were informed that cell towers would be built very close to their property lines, in one case 30 feet from their bedroom.

Through determination, education and a lot of public outrage the tower companies went away and the county placed a moratorium on new applications until a Personal Wireless Facilities (PWF) ordinance could be written.

Much has happened since those early days.  88% of all Americans now use cell phones and many in our community, including some of our emergency services, consider them a necessity.  The reason we do not have more towers or antennas has a lot to do with our low population density.  Fewer people translates to fewer dollars for the telecom companies.  Right now our PWF ordinance would allow any tower company to put up roof- or side-mounted antennae in activity centers, or build towers on 22 or more acres of land with 500-foot setbacks from neighboring property lines or place antennae on telephone poles.

During the last few years there has been a push by the fire departments in the county and the residents for more cell service.  A cell tower task force was formed.  It was chaired by County Councilman Rich Peterson and included County Councilman Richard Fralick from Orcas. The balance of the committee was made up from people who had connections to the telecom industry.  No members of the public who had helped write the current ordinance were included.  No one who had concerns or expertise regarding the health effects of microwave radiation was invited. This task force spent the last year writing a new draft PWF ordinance which if passed will effect all of us and our property values.

Our current PWF ordinance was designed to limit the visual impact of telecommunications facilities on the natural beauty of the islands and to conserve natural open spaces.  Our current ordinance compared with other ordinances around our state is not the most restrictive nor the least. It requires:

1. A reference map detailing potentially suitable locations.
2. 500 foot setbacks from property lines.
3. Notification of all neighbors within 1000 feet.
4. Conditional use permits (public hearings)
5. An annual radiation monitoring protocol.

The Cell Tower Task force draft ordinance is quite different.  To create it, they went to the telecom industry and asked what they didn’t like about our ordinance.  T-Mobile responded that our ordinance was stifling, had draconian limitations on site development and a burdensome land use process.  The draft ordinance reflects the telecom company answers:

1. Get rid of the reference map listing potentially suitable locations. Towers and antennas should be able to be placed anywhere.
2. The only setbacks would be the height of the tower or antenna (50-60 feet)
3. Only neighbors within 300 feet (instead of 1000 feet) will be notified.
4. The permitting system would be streamlined and conditional use permits and public hearings would be eliminated.
5. A radiation monitoring protocol will not be specified.

Once the new draft ordinance was created the next step the task force faced was how to get it passed. The existing PWF ordinance is part of the County Comprehensive Plan and is written as a Subarea Plan.  It can only be revised annually. The Task Force decided that the first step would be to remove the current PWF Ordinance from the Comprehensive Plan and place it in the Uniform Development Code (UDC) where it can be revised three times a year.

And this is where the issue sits at this moment.  The Planning Commission is now considering the issue of whether or not to move the existing PWF ordinance and place it in the UDC. They are not considering the details of the “Draft Ordinance” at this time but this is step one in moving toward adoption of the Draft Ordinance.
There will be a Hearing in Friday Harbor on January 15th in the County Council Chambers at 8:45 a.m. It is a continuation of a December hearing.

In December the Fire Chiefs from the county testified to the Planning Commission that if the PWF Ordinance isn’t moved “people will die.”  They stated that comprehensive cell service is an important part of their communication systems.

Here’s where this issue gets complicated.  If the PWF ordinance is moved to the UDC and the new Draft Ordinance is approved, there is still no guarantee that the tower companies will want to put up towers or antennas.

T-Mobile has said that they would be interested in putting one on Lopez Hill.  Other sites under consideration include Roche Harbor, Rosario Resort and Eastsound.

It has been suggested that reception problems in some of the hilly and isolated areas around the county could be addressed by giving satellite phones to our emergency services providers.  It’ been acknowledged that this might work but it would be costly and would only solve half the problem.  The other half of the problem is that all residents need to be able to use their cell phones from anywhere.

If the consensus is that “people will die” if we don’t have cell service immediately in the rural areas of the county, why not find the money  for satellite phones and solve half of the problem now?

It’s interesting that this movement to weaken and change our ordinance comes at a time when the rest of the world is waking to the fact that cell towers and antennas may actually not be healthy neighbors.  For 13 years the scientific evidence has been building to support the fact that microwave radiation causes biological effects.   This fact is not disputed.  What is disputed is whether or not the biological effects are bad for our health.  The scales are tipping.

Here are three of the latest converts to the health concern debate: The City Council of Portland, Oregon, The Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors are all asking that Section 704 of the Federal Telecom Act of 1996 be revised to allow state and local governments to regulate cell towers and related wireless facilities on the basis of their health and environmental effects.  The debate on health effects is not going away.

So what do we do?  Here’s my suggestions:

1.  Get satellite phones for all county Fire Departments as soon as possible.
2.  Leave the PWF Ordinance in the Comp Plan as a sub area plan. Moving it to the UDC would be step one toward the Task Force Draft Ordinance. Weakening our PWF Ordinance without having a complete alternative in place is extremely risky.  Making changes in a piecemeal fashion without a robust public discussion is not responsible.
3. Start over with the Cell Tower Task Force.  Create a task force representative of the community, not just the telecom industry and minus the two County Council members who will vote on the final ordinance.
4. Follow up on a suggestion made to our county 10 years ago – Hire an independent radio frequency engineer to create  microwave cell tower distribution plan for the county.
5.  Let the public review the plan and be sure they are comfortable with what it would require.  The public could decide if the natural beauty of our county is compromised and if they are comfortable living close to towers or antennas.
6. Work on revising the existing PWF ordinance to reflect the distribution plan and add whatever updates are needed.

This idea also doesn’t guarantee that the tower companies will want to build here, but at least it creates a plan which would address the needs of the fire departments, emergency services and hopefully the public.

This plan would reflect what our county needs and not just what would be the most lucrative spots for the tower companies.  It would protect our property values.  Proximity to towers does decrease property values.  It would not pit neighbor against neighbor as I fear the draft ordinance might do.

It would involve the public and it would retain our setbacks, notification processes and monitoring of radiation.

Action Steps for Now:

Where ever you stand on this issue, now is the time to let the Planning Commission know what you think.  Most county residents have no idea this discussion is going on and that the cell tower ordinance is about to be radically changed.  We all need to speak up.

1.  Go to the Planning Commission hearing on January 15 (County Council Chambers at 8:45 a.m., Friday Harbor) if you can.

2.  Or, write a letter stating your preference – to move the PWF ordinance or not.  Letters or emails can be very brief. Send letters to: Lynda Guernsey, P.O. Box 947, Friday Harbor WA 98250 or LyndaG@sanjuanco.com

3. Spread the word that this topic is being discussed.  It will come before the County Council probably in February but it’s vital to voice your opinion to the Planning Commission first.

Cynthia Dilling lives on Lopez Island.