Monitoring shows that mobile communications is safe

It is hard to imagine our lives without television, radio and mobile phones. Legislation controls the safe limits of the high-frequency electromagnetic fields these devices create. Despite the present boom on the mobile phone market, electromagnetic field values remain 1000 times below the legal limit.

Few other countries measure electromagnetic fields (EMF) as thoroughly as Germany. The federal government has appointed the Federal Network Agency for Electricity, Gas, Telecommunications, Post and Railway (Bundesnetzagentur) to carry out monitoring and regular control measurements of mobile network installations. Additional measurements are commissioned by individual federal states, local authorities and the mobile network operators themselves.

Values always far below the limit

The results of these measurements are all similar and straightforward; even though the number of mobile phone contracts has increased to about 110 million, measured values remain well below the prescribed limit. In fact, measurements reached only a few hundredths of the limit and in many cases values reached only a few thousandths of the permissible strength.

Since 2004 the Federal Network Agency has been publishing measurement results for mobile network installations in a public database on its website. In addition to data such as the strength of emissions from specific mobile network or transmission installations, the website also offers information about mobile network installation sites and the safe distance of each corresponding installation.