Evening Post S Wales

10:00 - 05 September 2005

Almost 400 people are fighting plans to site a mobile phone mast in Sketty. And they look like being successful as the plans are set to be turned down by councillors tomorrow.

The mast is planned for the footway alongside Gower Road, opposite the junction with Eversley Road, Sketty. Several investigations are underway into the possible health hazards associated with such masts.

In a report to tomorrow's planning committee, council officers refer to the Stewart report on Mobile Phones and base stations.

It states: "Science can never provide a guarantee of zero risk."

The mast, put forward by Vodaphone, would be 12 metres high, with three antennae and a ground-based cabinet.

Council planning officers are recommending that the plan is turned down.

But the recommendation is due to the fact it would loom over the rear garden of a house in Masefield Way. A spokesman for the 381 objectors said: "The proposal poses unknown risks. The council will have to balance the likelihood of harm against the severity of injury that could be caused by the proposal.

"In the short term, the risk may be low but in the long term the risk could be very high, causing serious harm."