Assessment of Electric Field Distribution from main Radio Frequency Transmissions in the Urban Area of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil: a Case Study.
KEYWORDS: Non- Ionizing Radiation, Electric Field Intensity; TV Broadcasting Radio Frequency Radiation; Urban Areas.
The massive increase of Wireless Communications in the world calls for responsible actions by governments in order to prevent possible health hazards. In spite of the Cellular Towers overcrowding in urban areas, it is also important to consider others Radio Frequency Radiations from different sources. The Electric Field Intensity is one of the fundamentals parameters to assess the exposure of human beings due to Non-Ionizing Radiations. In this study, all main non-ionizing radiation sources in the urban area of Natal, Brazil (a city with about 800.000 inhabitants) were located and characterized in respect to band frequency, service and power. Measurements of Far Electric Field Intensity with frequency ranging from 30 MHz to 3 GHz were made in a survey of 130 outdoor points spread across all 167.26 km2 area of the city. The results obtained have made it possible to draw a map of the regions of the city according to different Electric Field Intensities. In 77.7 % of the sampled outdoors points, the highest Electric Field Intensity measured were from TV broadcasting services, 19% from Cellular Towers and 3.3% from Frequency Modulated Broadcasting Transmissions. The lowest and the highest Electric Field Intensities were 1.68 x 10 -5 and 3.29 V/m, respectively. Comparing the measured values with the safety standards established by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICINRP) [1] and ANATEL [2], the Electric Field Intensity is yet relatively low and considered safe for the general public.