Clearwire LLC proposes 80-foot tall antenna for Mililani recreation center site

MILILANI—Clearwire LLC has submitted a request to the Mililani Town Association for approval to install an 80-foot worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) stealth tree pole antenna at the Recreation Center VII site in Mililani. The proposed antenna would provide a wireless high speed internet data telecommunications network system to Mililani Mauka homeowners. Residents have opposed Clearwire’s request because of the antenna’s height and health concerns.

“Two years back Clearwire, wanted to install the antenna by the elementary school,” said Mililani Mauka/Launani Valley Neighborhood Board chair Dean Hazama on Tuesday. “Originally we were opposed to their application. Our concern was not so much about the location, but the height because they were going up so high.”

State officials, however, have said they are willing hear out Clearwire’s latest proposal.

“The DPP (Department of Planning and Permitting) grants the permits, and they came back recently and said because there is now an existing antenna in the area, they would consider it,” Hazama said.

In an attempt to diminish the 80-foot pole from residents’ view, the company, a subsidiary of Clearwire Corporation, would paint the antenna with green and brown camouflage.

Clearwire covers 800,000 of the 1.2 million people in the state of Hawaii, and that service extends 1,759 square miles over the islands of Oahu, Maui and Lanai.

The Hawaii Independent reported last year that residents of Honokai Hale were strongly opposed to an antenna installation proposed by Clearwire that would have been encased in a fake chimney on the roof of a house on Malahuna Loop to hide three telecommunications antennas and a microwave dish. The equipment would have provided Honokai Hale and Ko Olina with wireless service.

Honokai Hale residents were concerned about noise and potential health hazards from the antennas.

However, the health risks are currently debated, with studies on both sides sides supporting both minimal health risks to humans as well as serious and even fatal effects.

The World Health Organization states on its website: “Considering the very low exposure levels and research results collected to date, there is no convincing scientific evidence that the weak RF signals from base stations and wireless networks cause adverse health effects.”

Many parents and organizations beg to differ.

Wired Child, a non-profit organization raising awareness of the potential radiation exposure risks from mobile phones and other wireless technology, noted on its website a lack of studies on the cumulative exposure to small levels of radiation, citing evidence that long-term chronic exposure to electro-magnetic radiation has a range of health effects—noting that children are more vulnerable than adults and that health effects include various cancer, impaired fertility, immune disfunction, and cardio-vasular diseases.

“My two teenage daughters don’t have cell phones,” said Oahu parent Cheryl Peifer. “We have a house phone with a cord, and they have limited time on the computer. I would not want my family to live right by a wireless communication antenna,” she explained.

Other parents feel differently. “I’ve researched it and it’s not that big of a deal. No health threats have been proven and I doubt we would all be using it if it was really going to hurt us. Plus, whether we allow one more antenna to go up or not, we are still constantly surrounded by wireless signals,” said a Sunset Beach Elementary parent.

According to Compnetworking.about.com, WiMax is the industry term for a long-range wireless networking standard. WiMax technology has the potential to deliver high-speed Internet access to rural areas and other locations not serviced by cable or DSL technology. WiMax also offers an alternative to satellite Internet services and the signals can function over a distance of several miles.

The next Mililani Mauka/Launani Valley Neighborhood Board meeting takes place on Tuesday, June 15 at 7:00 p.m. at Mililani Mauka Elementary School, 95-111 Makaikai Street.