Plans for 26 new phone masts in Redbridge

Mobile phone companies want to erect 26 new communication masts in the borough in 2012, plans show.

More than half of the masts will be located within 400m of a primary school, and will be built by the operators O2 and Vodafone.

Councillors will meet on Thursday to discuss the impact of the masts.

Wanstead and Snaresbrook are the only areas to avoid any new mast building under the plans, while area four, Aldborough, Barkingside and Clayhall, will see the highest concentration.

There are currently more than 135 transmitters already built across Redbridge.

Council bosses will meet with phone companies in March to discuss further details about the plans for the new ones.

The Department of Health advises that: “There is no immediate need for concern when using mobile phones or having a base station in your area.

“This is because, despite much research, there is no convincing evidence that either will cause harm.

“However, we have only been using mobile phones widely for the last decade or so and we need more research to look at the situation, particularly in the long term.”

A spokesman for the Mobile Operators Association (MOA) said: “All mobile phones and base stations in use in the UK comply with the international health and safety public exposure guidelines recommended by the International Commission on non-ionizing radiation protection, set by an independent body of scientific experts.

“The guidelines are endorsed by the World Health Organisation, the European Union and UK Government.”