DUBAI // Residents of a villa community on the outskirts of Dubai have petitioned against a mobile phone mast that is being built just metres from their homes.
Foundations for an Etisalat transmission tower are being laid over what was once a small children's park in the Cedre Villa community of the Government-owned Dubai Silicon Oasis.
Concerned that it will be an eyesore and a potential health hazard, 99 local residents sent a petition to the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA), which oversees the free zone. They demanded a halt to the project, warning that otherwise many of them will not renew their leases.
The petition claims the mast "will be very dangerous to the health of everybody", adding that it "is clear to everybody that this kind of antenna can be responsible for cancer, especially [in] children".
Some studies have shown that people living near mobile phone masts suffer ailments including nausea, loss of appetite and a greater tendency to depression.
Dr Aladdin Maarraoui, an oncologist at Mafraq Hospital, said little is known about the health effects of mobile phone towers. The World Health Organisation said more research is needed.
The DSOA said municipality inspectors had ruled that the tower was 250 metres from the main children's playground at Cedre Villas. However, several villas are much closer. "This thing will be about 15 metres across from the driveway," said an American resident.
"The kids have been playing in the park for the past few months. Put the thing outside the development. Don't put it in the park, right smack bang in the middle of everything."
The man, a pilot for Emirates Airline, said he would move his family back to the United States if the tower was erected.
"I have a 10-year-old and a seven-year-old. I'm not willing to risk a disease because of this thing.
"My wife is going to take them back home, and I'm going to follow. The airline industry is turning around in the States, and I'll just apply for a job there."
Chrissie Surin, 41, a British primary school teacher who lives in an adjacent villa, said: "It's only about 20 metres away from where I park the car." She said construction on the tower began as soon as most of the residents in the area had paid their landscaping fees - typically around Dh10,000 per villa.
"They've waited for every house to do their gardens and everything, and then they do this. My husband has asked for us to be moved to another location and for them [Dubai Silicon Oasis] to reimburse us our landscaping as well." She said that the DSOA had not responded to their request, made in late April.
Asked to clarify its position about the location of the tower, an official at the DSOA did not comment further. Residents accused the authority of ignoring their concerns.
This month, slogans protesting against the tower were spray-painted on the white construction barriers around the site. One addressed to Dubai Silicon Oasis read: "DSO! Please don't give away our park for a harmful cell phone tower." It was painted over by construction workers the following day.
Another Emirates pilot from the US said the petitioners had attempted to contact the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and Etisalat about their concerns. The names of both entities, as well as the Government of Dubai, are listed on construction documents at the building site.
He said a TRA official "told us that this would never be allowed outside in any of the public areas of Dubai where the TRA is giving authorisation for these towers to be built".
He added: "But because we are in a free zone, he told us it doesn't really fall under their jurisdiction because it's owned by Silicon Oasis."
TRA officials did not respond to inquiries. Ahmed bin Ali, an Etisalat spokesman, said: "Whatever we build, if it's a base station, we have to get the necessary approvals, including from the TRA."
hnaylor@thenational.ae
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Low turnout
Two months before the first round on April 10, the appetite of voters for the election is low.
Mathieu Gallard, account manager with Ipsos, which conducted the most recent poll, said current forecasts suggested only two-thirds were "very likely" to vote in the first round, compared with a 78 per cent turnout in the 2017 presidential elections.
"It depends on how interesting the campaign is on their main concerns," he told The National. "Just now, it's hard to say who, between Macron and the candidates of the right, would be most affected by a low turnout."
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
Results
2pm: Serve U – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Violent Justice, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
2.30pm: Al Shafar Investment – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: Desert Wisdom, Bernardo Pinheiro, Ahmed Al Shemaili
3pm: Commercial Bank of Dubai – Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Fawaareq, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
3.30pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
4pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Rakeez, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
4.30pm: Al Redha Insurance Brokers – Handicap (TB) Dh78,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Capla Crusader, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly
INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Vijay Shankar, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Siraj and Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper)
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
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The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
West Asia Premiership
Dubai Hurricanes 58-10 Dubai Knights Eagles
Dubai Tigers 5-39 Bahrain
Jebel Ali Dragons 16-56 Abu Dhabi Harlequins
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars