The York (ME) Water District (YWD) Board of Trustees will revive an AT&T antenna discussion at an upcoming meeting on June 16, reported Seacoastonline.com. In October 2020, the trustees voted 4-1 to “pause and study” the project, which is intended for an existing water tower, after residents voiced concerns over health and environmental impacts.
According to AT&T and Smartlink, the project will provide better service to more than 1,400 customers and eliminate dead zones. In addition, the York Village Fire Department Chief Chris Balentine penned a letter to the board noting that the antenna will support FirstNet.
To complete its due diligence, the board asked Smartlink to fund an independent study of the project’s impacts. Smartlink agreed, and neither the company nor AT&T will have any control over the contents of the study, according to the YWD.
In March, YWD put out an RFP and chose Isotrope LLC “because much of their work consisted of completing peer reviews for municipalities of proposed installations.” The initial estimate exceeded the intended budget, so Isotrope LLC revised the scope of work. The consultant will omit “any additional pertinent scientific RF exposure information and interpretation of potential negative health effects as it applies to the proposed 4G installation as well as the possibility of 5G equipment expansion on the tower.” Seacoastonline.com reported that the study would cost $7,500.
Isotrope is expected to present study findings during YWD’s July 21 meeting. Upon review of Isotrope’s report and the input of other experts, the board will determine whether to move forward with the project.
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