By Alesha Capone
More than 150 people have signed a petition calling on Wyndham council to reject a proposal to install a 30 metre-high phone tower in a residential area of Hoppers Crossing.
A company has applied to the council, seeking permission to lease part of a reserve at 238 Morris Road, to install the tower.
The council has received 13 objections to the proposal. A Change.org petition against the tower’s installation, which began in November, has attracted 157 signatures. The petition states the proposed tower would be just five metres from the nearest house.
It also states studies have indicated that high power radio waves emitted by phone towers may cause health issues such as cancer, heart attacks, sleep disturbance and depression.
Hoppers Crossing resident Kate Egan told Star Weekly she was against the tower.
“It’s surrounded by thousands of homes and I’m worried about the impact of radiation,” she said.
“I’ve been living here for more than 25 years and I didn’t move into the area thinking there would be a phone tower installed.”
Ms Egan said more community consultation was needed on the proposal.
However, Wyndham council’s chief financial officer Binda Gokhale said the council published public notices on its website and in Star Weekly during August, asking for community feedback on the proposal.
“Given that a planning permit is required to construct the proposed tower, the telecommunications provider now needs to decide if they would like to proceed with the proposal and lodge a town planning permit application,” Ms Gokhale said.
“If the permit was to be granted, council will then be required to make a final decision on granting a lease.”
Ms Gokhale said if the telecommunications provider did submit a planning permit application, the council would install notification signs at the reserve and also contact nearby residents.
