Wi-Fi Unsafe? Sebastopol Says So

The city of Sebastopol, Calif., will not offer free wireless service ("Wi-fi"), despite earlier indications that it would do so. At its March 18 meeting, the City Council voted to rescind its agreement with Sonic.net, citing safety concerns. The original contract had been signed in November 2007.

The Council had taken under advisement earlier complaints from a number of residents who feared the radio waves would pose a health hazard to the community, according to reports. Those opposed to Wi-fi often cite "electromagnetic hypersensitivity" and other health issues they associate with the technology; last year, a program broadcast on the BBC gave momentum to those lobbying against Wi-fi.

The World Health Organization does recognize electromagnetic hypersensitivity" or EHS. Although there are recorded symptoms of the ailment, including skin afflictions (e.g., a rash) and dizziness, nausea, heart palpitation, according to a WHO fact sheet, "EHS has no clear diagnostic criteria and there is no scientific basis to link EHS symptoms to EMF exposure. Further, EHS is not a medical diagnosis, nor is it clear that it represents a single medical problem."

On his blog, Sonic CEO Dane Jasper noted that numerous studies have shown that those symptoms are psychosomatic, and are likely a result of fear and stress. In other words, it's the fear of Wi-fi that's most harmful, rather than the technology itself, Jasper wrote.

"Wi-Fi signals are typically 0.1 watt. Compare this to the mobile phone that you keep in your pocket, which is typically three to ten times this power level," he wrote in a March 23 post. "If there was a public network, would less people spend their own money to buy and set up private access points, resulting in less Wi-Fi transmitters? If you fear Wi-Fi, a single public network might be 'better' than hundreds of independent networks!"