PEOPLE AGAINST THE TVA EXPANSION

The Health Risk of High Voltage Power Lines:  What the TVA Does Not Want You to Know

Anyone who does not acknowledge the health risks of high voltage power transmission (extremely low frequency electromagnetic field, ELF EMF) is either not aware of the current medical literature or not in touch with the truth. Anyone who says that there is controversy in the field and thereby dismisses the risk does not understand the scientific process.

There is now consensus that exposure to these static electromagnetic fields increases the risk of childhood acute leukemia by two fold.  This has been demonstrated at the 95% statistical confidence level in many studies around the world.

Other diseases for which there is strong evidence of a link but may not reach the 95% statistical confidence level include:  adult chronic leukemia, adult brain tumors (especially gliomas), spontaneous abortion, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.  It is very important to understand that not reaching the 95% confidence level does not mean that there is no link.  What it usually means is that ELF EMF is not the only factor in acquiring these diseases or not all people are equally sensitive to these effects.  Although the mechanism(s) of this increased risk is not known, most cancers and many other diseases are “multi-hit”.  That is to say two, three (or more) conditions must be fulfilled before the initiation of malignancy.  Thus it is likely that more than one factor is involved.  In a similar vein, the mechanism may not be direct.  One might speculate, for instance, that these fields “activate” an environmental pollutant that, in turn, is the carcinogenic agent. The US government has designated this risk as “possibly carcinogenic”.  Thus, if you could see, smell, touch, feel these electric fields, TVA would be required to advertise these risks as is done for other hazardous “materials”.

On the basis of less than perfect statistical data, the Los Angeles school district (the largest in the world) has greatly decreased the use of pesticides in its schools.  Similarly, the State of Connecticut requires that any high voltage power line that is to come close to a school, church, residential area, etc. must be routed underground.  The American Welding Society has issued precautionary advice regarding the ELF EMF hazards of welding equipment.  This simple idea of “precaution” has been given the dignified name of the “The Precautionary Principle” in the epidemiology and public health.  The central components of this principle are (1) taking preventive action in the face of uncertainty; (2) shifting the burden of proof to the proponents of an activity; (3) employing a wide range of alternatives to possibly harmful actions; and (4) increasing public participation in public decision making (see Kriebel D and Tickner J below).  This is what we should require of the TVA and any other agency making similar proposals.

Below is a short bibliography of essential articles from the medical literature.  These articles, in abstract form, are available (free) from the National Library of Medicine (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi).  Another very useful web site in this regard is (http://www.powerlinefacts.com/).

1.  Ahlbom A et al., “Review of the Epidemiologic Literature on EMF and Health”, Environmental Health Perspectives 109(Suppl 6): 911-933, 2001.

2.  Feychting M et al., “EMF and Health”, Annual Review of Public Health 26:165-189, 2005, PMID 15760285.

3.  Draper G et al., “Childhood Cancer in Relation to Distance from High Voltage Power Lines in England and Wales: A Case-control Study”, British Medical Journal 330:1290-1299, 2005, PMID 15933351.

4.  Wartenberg D,  “The Potential Impact of Bias in Studies of Residential Exposure to Magnetic Fields and Childhood Leukemia”, Bioelectromagnetics 25(4)(Suppl 5):S32-47, 2001, PMID 11170116.

5.  Kriebel D and Tichner J, “Reenergizing Public Health Through Precaution”, American Journal of Public Health, 91(9):1351-1355, 2001, PMID 11527753.

6.  Jamieson D and Wartenberg D, “The Precautionary Principle and Electric and Magnetic Fields” American Journal of Public Health 91(9):1355-1358, 2001, PMID 11527754.

7.  Goldstein B, “The Precautionary Principle Also Applies to Public Health Actions” American Journal of Public Health 91(9):1358-1361, 2001, PMID 11527755.

8.  Ahlbom A and Feychting M, “A Bayesian Approach to Hazard Identification: The Case of Electromagnetic Fields and Cancer” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 895:27-33, 1999, PMID 10676407.

This information provided by:

David T. Miller, M.D.

Eagleville, TN

26 April, 2006