ArticlePDF AvailableLiterature Review

Electrosmog and species conservation

August 2014
The Science of The Total Environment 496:314-316

DOI:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.07.061

Authors:

Despite the widespread use of wireless telephone networks around the world, authorities and researchers have paid little attention to the potential harmful effects of mobile phone radiation on wildlife. This paper briefly reviews the available scientific information on this topic and recommends further studies and specific lines of research to confirm or refute the experimental results to date. Controls must be introduced and technology rendered safe for the environment, particularly, threatened species.

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Electrosmog and species conservation

Alfonso Balmori

Consejería de Medio Ambiente, Junta de Castilla y León, C/Rigoberto Cortejoso, 14, 47071 Valladolid, Spain

HIGHLIGHTS

•Studies have shown effects in both animals and plants.

•Two thirds of the studies reported ecological effects.

•There is little research in this area and further research is needed.

•The technology must be safe.

•Controls should be introduced to mitigate the possible effects.

abstractarticle info

Article history:

Received 5 May 2014

Received in revised form 14 July 2014

Accepted 16 July 2014

Available online xxxx

Editor: P. Kassomenos

Keywords:

Electrom agnetic radiation

Phone masts

Non thermal effects

Despite the widespread use of wireless telephone networks around the world, authorities and researchers have

paid little attention to the potential harmful effects of mobile phone radiation on wildlife. This paper brieﬂy

reviews the available scientiﬁc information on this topic and recommends further studies and speciﬁc lines of

research to conﬁrm or refute the experimental results to date. Controls must be introduced and technology

rendered safe for the environment, particularly, threatened species.

1. Introduction

Since the introduction of wireless telecommunication in the 1990s,

the roll-out of mobile phone networks has led to a massive increase in

environmental exposure to electromagnetic radiation (Levitt and Lai,

2010). The existing standards of public health protection only consider

the effects of short-term thermal exposure; however, biological effects

resulting from electromagnetic radiation might depend on dosage,

including long-term chronic effects, and there is considerable experi-

mental evidence for non-thermal biological effects (Hyland, 2000).

Researchers have also paid little attention to the potential harmful

effects of microwaves from mobile phone mast radiation on wildlife.

In about two thirds of the reviewed studies ecological effects of

RF-EMF were reported, at high as well as at low dosages, linking

the hazards with different modes and extents of exposure (Cucurachi

et al., 2013). Although the species conservation implications are

unclear, current evidence indicates that chronic exposure to electro-

magnetic radiation, at levels that are found in the environment, may

particularly affect the immune, nervous, cardiovascular and reproduc-

tive systems (Balmori, 2009). Animals exposed to radiation emissions

from nearby antennas may suffer changes in the enzyme activities

that disappear when they are moved away from the source (Hässig

et al., 2014), and underlying plausible explanations at the cellular level

have been proposed in the ﬁndings (Pall, 2013).

There are now calls for action from government agencies, both in the

U.S. and Europe. In the U.S. the Director of the Ofﬁce of Environmental

Policy and Compliance of the United States Department of the Interior

sent a letter (Feb, 2014) to the National Telecommunications and

Information Administration in the Department of Commerce which

addressed the Interior Department's concern about the negative impact

of cell tower radiation on the health of migratory birds and other

wildlife. The Interior Department accused the Federal government of

employing outdated radiation standards set by theFederal Communica-

tions Commission (FCC) (United States Department of the Interior,

2014). The European Environment Agency states: «Independent

research into the many unknowns about the biological and ecological

effects of RF are urgently needed, given the global exposure of over

5 billion people and many other species, especially those, like bees

and some birds whose navigation systems are possibly being affected

Science of the Total Environment 496 (2014) 314–316

E-mail addresses: abalmorimartinez@gmail.com,balmaral@jcyl.es.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.07.061

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Science of the Total Environment

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/scitotenv

by such radiations and effects on breeding of wild birds» (European

Environment Agency, 2013).

The following are some of the potential effects of anthropogenic

electromagnetic radiation on wildlife:

1.1. Effects on behaviour and navigation

Insects and birds are extremely sensitive to electromagnetic ﬁelds.

Insects use several senses to forage, detecting visual cues such as colour,

shape, etc., but also ﬂoral electric ﬁelds can be discriminated by bumble-

bees and this sensory modality may facilitate rapid and dynamic com-

munication between ﬂowers and their pollinators (Clarke et al., 2013).

In an electric ﬁeld of about 1 V/m, the microwaves may have a disas-

trous impact on a wide range of insects using olfactory and/or visual

memory (i.e., on bees and ants). This experimentally generated electro-

magnetic ﬁeld had a realistic (and even lower) power intensity than

those usually encountered by living organisms near phone masts

(Cammaerts et al., 2012), and, for this reason, the insects can be used

as bioindicators to reveal biological effects from some wireless appara-

tus (Cammaerts and Johansson, 2013). The audiograms and spectro-

grams revealed that active mobile phone handsets had a dramatic

impact on the behaviour of the bees, namely, by inducing the worker

piping signal (in natural conditions, worker piping either announces

the swarming process of the bee colony or is a signal of a disturbed

bee colony) (Favre, 2011). The migratory birds (Erithacus rubecula)

are also unable to use their magnetic compass in the presence of

urban electromagnetic noise and fully double-blinded tests document

a reproducible effect of anthropogenic electromagnetic noise on birds

(Engels et al., 2014).

1.2. Effects on distribution and habitat loss

A possible effect of long-term exposure to low-intensity electromag-

netic radiation from mobile phone base stations on the number of house

sparrows (Passer domesticus) was studied in Belgium and Spain and

both studies reached the same conclusion: fewer house sparrows

were seen at locations where electric ﬁelds were stronger (Everaert

and Bauwens, 2007; Balmori and Hallberg, 2007). In large cities, such

as London, a huge decline in some house sparrow populations has

been found in the last 15–20 years (De Laet and Summers-Smith,

2007), so thepossible relationship between this decrease and the prolif-

eration and increase in electromagnetic radiation as one of several fac-

tors at play should be thoroughly investigated. In a study looking at

factors associated with extirpation of sage-grouse (Centrocercus sp.), of

the ﬁve variables most associated with extirpated and occupied ranges,

one was the distance to base stations, and this strong association was an

especially interesting result (Wisdom et al., 2011). Bat activity is also

signiﬁcantly reduced in habitats exposed to electromagnetic radiation,

which elicit an aversive behavioural response and can be used as a

possible method of discouraging bats from approaching wind turbines

to prevent fatalities (Nicholls and Racey, 2007, 2009).

1.3. Reproduction effects and recruitment reduction

In several research conducted with different animal groups, the

exposure to microwave radiations from mobile phone (GSM) base

stations caused sperm head abnormalities in mammals, and the radia-

tion from a mobile phone decreased the ovarian development in insects,

the amino acid composition changed and the DNA was damaged

(Otitoloju et al., 2010; Lu et al., 2010; Panagopoulos, 2012). However,

other studies have not found effects on the reproductive capacity of

invertebrates exposed to such radiation (Vijver et al., 2013). There are

some scientiﬁc views that deny any evidence or possibility of effects

on human reproduction (Lerchl, 2013), which goes against most of

what has been published on this topic (Adams et al., 2014).

In the vicinity of mobile phone base stations, it is possible that micro-

waves are interfering with the reproduction of birds such as storks and

may affect the development and increase the mortality rate of exposed

amphibians (Balmori, 2005, 2010). For instance, in chicken eggs

exposed over the entire incubation period in laboratory, a signiﬁcantly

higher percentage of embryo mortality was observed (Batellier et al.,

2008), although other studies have shown lack of adverse effects of

this radiation on rat foetuses (Takahashi et al., 2009).

1.4. Adverse inﬂuence of radio-frequency background on trees and plants

A very limited number of studies have addressed the effects of elec-

tromagnetic radiation on plants. The ﬁndings of these studies indicate

that the effects depend on the plant family, growth stage involved and

the radiation characteristics, among other factors (Jayasanka and

Asaeda, 2013). High-frequency electromagnetic ﬁelds alter the chloro-

phyll in black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) seedlings and in duckweeds

(Lemna minor) exposed (Sandu et al., 2005; Jayasanka et al., 2013). In

tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum), which were exposed to

low-level (5 V/m) electromagnetic ﬁelds for a short period (10 min),

changes were found in the abundance of three speciﬁc mRNAs after

exposure, strongly suggesting that they were the direct consequence

of application of radio-frequency ﬁelds (Roux et al., 2007). The similar-

ities of the changes to wound responses suggest that this radiation is

perceived by plants asan injurious stimulus and causes them cell stress

in the vicinity of radio-frequency irradiating antennas (Monselise

et al., 2011). On 18 February, 2011, the ﬁrst symposium on this

topic, ¨The effect of electromagnetic radiation on trees¨, which presented

results showing disturbing effects on trees, was held in the Netherlands

(http://www.boomaantastingen.nl/).

2. Conclusion

At the present time, there are reasonable grounds for believing that

microwave radiation constitutes an environmental and health hazard. It

is necessary to open speciﬁc lines of research to conﬁrm or refute the

experimental results cited above, since similar ﬁndings were obtained

in studies with cattle (Hässig et al., 2014) and humans (Khurana et al.,

2010; Dode et al., 2011; Gómez-Perretta et al., 2013), although

some governmental reports denied that electromagnetic radiation

has adverse effects on human health (e.g. ARPANSA, 2014).

Electromagnetic radiation is among the potential pollutants with an

ability to affect wildlife adversely. It is therefore a new area of enquiry

deserving of immediate funding and research (Levitt and Lai, 2010).

Despite its remarkable expansion in the last twenty years, the rate

of scientiﬁc activity on the effects of phone masts on wildlife has

been very small compared with topics like roads, power lines or

wind turbines. The few studies that have been conducted address

the impact of collisions (Longcore et al., 2012, 2013), but not the

second signiﬁcant issue associated with phone masts that involves

the effects from non-ionising electromagnetic radiation (United

States Department of the Interior, 2014). Concerning the exposure

to electromagnetic ﬁelds, the precautionary principle is needed and

should be applied to protect species from environmental non-

thermal effects (Zinelis, 2010). Controls must be introduced and

technology renderedsafe to the environment, since thisnew ubiquitous

and invisible pollutant could deplete the efforts devoted to species

conservation.

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to J.L. Tellería, D.O. Carpenter, R. Carbonell,

S. Wright and two anonymous reviewers for their help and advice.

315A. Balmori / Science of the Total Environment 496 (2014) 314–316

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Jan 2024

The paper published by Nath et al. (Urban Ecosystems 25:1279–1295, 2022) analyzes the influence of different ecological factors and covariates on House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) abundance but criticizes previous research without explaining in depth the scientific reasons for it and reaches conclusions not supported by the authors’ own data nor by existing knowledge and scientific evidence. They state that studies on the impacts of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) on birds outside laboratory conditions carried out in the past did not consider other ecological factors that could also influence the life history needs of the species. However, precisely the opposite is true; the studies carried out so far, taking into account most of the possible factors to consider, including urbanization, have not been able to solve the enigma of the House Sparrow decline in many of the world's cities. Thus, it is necessary to propose new possible causes not considered so far. Among the few that remain to be tested is the electromagnetic radiation hypothesis, which was proposed by two independent research teams in two different countries. This paper is a reply of the work developed by Nath et al. (Urban Ecosystems 25:1279–1295, 2022) that highlight their inconclusive results and methodological flaws due to the correlation observed between radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) and urbanization, complement their results showing negative correlations when testing House Sparrow abundance with electromagnetic radiation levels correcting for the percentage of builtup, and clarify some statements and misconceptions (importance of non-thermal effects).

Electromagnetic pollution: Another risk factor for infertility, or a red herring?

Article

Full-text available

Sep 2012

Alexander Lerchl

Humans are exposed to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF) from various sources (e.g., mobile and cordless phones, base stations, TV and radio transmitters, wifi adapters). So far, there is no evidence that would indicate that RF-EMF exposure is causing adverse health effects with respect to cancer, sleep disorder, headache, etc. Some results of in vitro and in vivo experiments revealed negative effects on male fertility. When looking at those studies in detail, many problems are identified with respect to correct dosimetry and proper experimental design. This field of research is notoriously difficult for various reasons, and experiments should be planned and performed with experts from the respective areas. The increasing use of devices for wireless communication has given rise to fears that the radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs) emitted by such devices (e.g., mobile and wireless phones, wifi adapters) and by their respective base stations cause various adverse health effects.1,2 The list of such alleged effects is virtually endless, including sleep disturbances, headaches, tinnitus, high blood pressure, endocrine disorders, DNA damage, Alzheimer's disease and cancer. The vast majority of the many studies in cells, animals and humans, however, have provided no evidence whatsoever for such connections, even when the maximum allowed exposure levels were exceeded considerably. The discussion about possible health effects by exposure to RF-EMF recently has shifted towards infertility, mainly focusing on males.3 The alleged decline in sperm counts—which is addressed in other contributions in this issue—is believed by some to be caused by RF-EMF emitting devices. Research in this area of research is notoriously difficult and prone to errors. In this paper, some common misunderstandings are addressed; limitations and technical problems are described as well.

Factors Associated with Extirpation of Sage-Grouse

Article

Full-text available

May 2011

Geographic ranges of Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and Gunnison Sage-Grouse (C. minimus) have contracted across large areas in response to habitat loss and detrimental land uses. However, quantitative analyses of the environmental factors most closely associated with range contraction have been lacking, results of which could be highly relevant to conservation planning. This study analyzed differences in twenty-two environmental variables between areas of former range (extirpated range), and areas still occupied by the two species (occupied range). Fifteen of the twenty-two variables, representing a broad spectrum of biotic, abiotic, and anthropogenic conditions, had mean values that were significantly different between extirpated and occupied ranges. Best discrimination between extirpated and occupied ranges, using discriminant function analysis (DFA), was provided by five of these variables: sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) area, elevation, distance to transmission lines, distance to cellular towers, and land ownership. The DFA model was used to estimate the similarity between areas of occupied range with areas where extirpation has occurred. These results have direct relevance to conservation planning.

Influence of non ionizing radiation of base stations on the activity of redox proteins in bovines

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2014
BMC Vet Res

Background The influence of electromagnetic fields on the health of humans and animals is still an intensively discussed and scientifically investigated issue (Prakt Tierarzt 11:15-20, 2003; Umwelt Medizin Gesellschaft 17:326-332, 2004; J Toxicol Environment Health, Part B 12:572–597, 2009). We are surrounded by numerous electromagnetic fields of variable strength, coming from electronic equipment and its power cords, from high-voltage power lines and from antennas for radio, television and mobile communication. Particularly the latter cause’s controversy, as everyone likes to have good mobile reception at anytime and anywhere, whereas nobody wants to have such a basestation antenna in their proximity. Results In this experiment, the NIR has resulted in changes in the enzyme activities. Certain enzymes were disabled, others enabled by NIR. Furthermore, individual behavior patterns were observed. While certain cows reacted to NIR, others did not react at all, or even inversely. Conclusion The present results coincide with the information from the literature, according to which NIR leads to changes in redox proteins, and that there are individuals who are sensitive to radiation and others that are not. However, the latter could not be distinctly attributed – there are cows that react clearly with one enzyme while they do not react with another enzyme at all, or even the inverse. The study approach of testing ten cows each ten times during three phases has proven to be appropriate. Future studies should however set the post-exposure phase later on.

Effect of mobile telephones on sperm quality: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2014
ENVIRON INT

Mobile phones are owned by most of the adult population worldwide. Radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation (RF-EMR) from these devices could potentially affect sperm development and function. Around 14% of couples in high- and middle-income countries have difficulty conceiving, and there are unexplained declines in semen quality reported in several countries. Given the ubiquity of mobile phone use, the potential role of this environmental exposure needs to be clarified. A systematic review was therefore conducted, followed by meta-analysis using random effects models, to determine whether exposure to RF-EMR emitted from mobile phones affects human sperm quality. Participants were from fertility clinic and research centres. The sperm quality outcome measures were motility, viability and concentration, which are the parameters most frequently used in clinical settings to assess fertility. We used ten studies in the meta-analysis, including 1492 samples. Exposure to mobile phones was associated with reduced sperm motility (mean difference − 8.1% (95% CI − 13.1, − 3.2)) and viability (mean difference − 9.1% (95% CI − 18.4, 0.2)), but the effects on concentration were more equivocal. The results were consistent across experimental in vitro and observational in vivo studies. We conclude that pooled results from in vitro and in vivo studies suggest that mobile phone exposure negatively affects sperm quality. Further study is required to determine the full clinical implications for both sub-fertile men and the general population.

Subjective symptoms related to GSM radiation from mobile phone base stations: A cross-sectional study

Article

Full-text available

Dec 2013

We performed a re-analysis of the data from Navarro et al (2003) in which health symptoms related to microwave exposure from mobile phone base stations (BSs) were explored, including data obtained in a retrospective inquiry about fear of exposure from BSs. Cross-sectional study. La Ñora (Murcia), Spain. Participants with known illness in 2003 were subsequently disregarded: 88 participants instead of 101 (in 2003) were analysed. Since weather circumstances can influence exposure, we restricted data to measurements made under similar weather conditions. A statistical method indifferent to the assumption of normality was employed: namely, binary logistic regression for modelling a binary response (eg, suffering fatigue (1) or not (0)), and so exposure was introduced as a predictor variable. This analysis was carried out on a regular basis and bootstrapping (95% percentile method) was used to provide more accurate CIs. The symptoms most related to exposure were lack of appetite (OR=1.58, 95% CI 1.23 to 2.03); lack of concentration (OR=1.54, 95% CI 1.25 to 1.89); irritability (OR=1.51, 95% CI 1.23 to 1.85); and trouble sleeping (OR=1.49, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.84). Changes in -2 log likelihood showed similar results. Concerns about the BSs were strongly related with trouble sleeping (OR =3.12, 95% CI 1.10 to 8.86). The exposure variable remained statistically significant in the multivariate analysis. The bootstrapped values were similar to asymptotic CIs. This study confirms our preliminary results. We observed that the incidence of most of the symptoms was related to exposure levels-independently of the demographic variables and some possible risk factors. Concerns about adverse effects from exposure, despite being strongly related with sleep disturbances, do not influence the direct association between exposure and sleep.

Ants can be used as bio-indicators to reveal biological effects of electromagnetic waves from some wireless apparatus

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2013
ELECTROMAGN BIOL MED

Abstract Society is confronted with an increasing number of applications making use of wireless communication. We also notice an increasing awareness about potentially harmful effects of the related electromagnetic fields on living organisms. At present, it is not realistic to expect that wireless communication will decrease or disappear within the near future. That is why we currently are investigating the mechanisms behind these effects and the effectiveness of possible solutions. In order to be efficient and effective, we designed and validated a fast and easy test on ants - these insects being used as a biological model - for revealing the effect of wireless equipments like mobile phones, smartphones, digital enhanced cordless telephone (DECT) phones, WiFi routers and so on. This test includes quantification of ants' locomotion under natural conditions, then in the vicinity of such wireless equipments. Observations, numerical results and statistical results allow detecting any effect of a radiating source on these living organisms.

Effects of low-intensity microwave radiation on Tribolium castaneum physiological and biochemical characteristics and survival

Article

Mar 2010

The significance of microwaves in the environment and its effect on plants

Article

Dec 2013

Wireless technologies are becoming popular due to convenient lower implementation costs and operational costs compared with wired technologies. Various wireless internet and communication technologies, such as worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) and long-term evolution (LTE), are expanding rapidly. As with mobile phones, all of these technologies operate using high-frequency electromagnetic waves in the microwave category (3 × 102 – 3 × 106 MHz). An increasing number of operators within a geographical area is resulting in high microwave densities in the environment. At the same time, wireless technologies are now utilizing radio frequency electromagnetic radiation of up to 5500 MHz, and frequency spectrum allocation tables indicate that countries have allocated additional high frequencies for broadcasting purposes. Scientists have widely investigated the effects of microwaves on humans and animals, and some findings confirm that such effects exist. In comparison, a very limited number of published studies have addressed the effects of microwaves on plants. The findings of these studies indicate that the effects of microwaves on plants depend on the plant family and growth stage involved as well as the exposure duration, frequency, and power density, among other factors. However, the number of published studies is not yet sufficient to support drawing strong conclusions regarding the effects of microwaves on whole plant communities. Therefore, further studies are necessary to support present findings and uncover new findings.

Anthropogenic electromagnetic noise disrupts magnetic compass orientation in a migratory bird

Article

May 2014
NATURE

Electromagnetic noise is emitted everywhere humans use electronic devices. For decades, it has been hotly debated whether man-made electric and magnetic fields affect biological processes, including human health. So far, no putative effect of anthropogenic electromagnetic noise at intensities below the guidelines adopted by the World Health Organization has withstood the test of independent replication under truly blinded experimental conditions. No effect has therefore been widely accepted as scientifically proven. Here we show that migratory birds are unable to use their magnetic compass in the presence of urban electromagnetic noise. When European robins, Erithacus rubecula, were exposed to the background electromagnetic noise present in unscreened wooden huts at the University of Oldenburg campus, they could not orient using their magnetic compass. Their magnetic orientation capabilities reappeared in electrically grounded, aluminium-screened huts, which attenuated electromagnetic noise in the frequency range from 50 kHz to 5 MHz by approximately two orders of magnitude. When the grounding was removed or when broadband electromagnetic noise was deliberately generated inside the screened and grounded huts, the birds again lost their magnetic orientation capabilities. The disruptive effect of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields is not confined to a narrow frequency band and birds tested far from sources of electromagnetic noise required no screening to orient with their magnetic compass. These fully double-blinded tests document a reproducible effect of anthropogenic electromagnetic noise on the behaviour of an intact vertebrate.

Short-duration exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation alters the chlorophyll fluorescence of duckweeds (Lemna minor)

Article

Oct 2013
ELECTROMAGN BIOL MED

Abstract Plants growing in natural environments are exposed to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted by various communication network base stations. The environmental concentration of this radiation is increasing rapidly with the congested deployment of base stations. Although numerous scientific studies have been conducted to investigate the effects of EMR on the physiology of humans and animals, there have been few attempts to investigate the effects of EMR on plants. In this study, we attempted to evaluate the effects of EMR on photosynthesis by investigating the chlorophyll fluorescence (ChF) parameters of duckweed fronds. During the experiment, the fronds were tested with 2, 2.5, 3.5, 5.5 and 8 GHz EMR frequencies, which are not widely studied even though there is a potentially large concentration of these frequencies in the environment. The duckweed fronds were exposed to EMR for 30 min, 1 h and 24 h durations with electric field strength of 45-50 V/m for each frequency. The results indicated that exposure to EMR causes a change in the non-photochemical quenching of the duckweeds. The changes varied with the frequency of the EMR and were time-varying within a particular frequency. The temperature remained unchanged in the duckweed fronds upon exposure to EMR, which confirms that the effect is non-thermal.

Electrosmog and species conservation

Abstract

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