Everyone wants better mobile phone coverage but telcos are finding it increasingly hard to convince residents that building a giant phone tower near their home or school is a good idea.
The latest brawls to break out are in Ballarat in Victoria and Griffith in New South Wales.
Both involve plans for Optus mobile towers and protestors are arguing the potential health risk to children as their main gripe.
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The site in Ballarat is at sporting reserve, used by school students and athletes.
“This is a piece of technology that we’re not sure about yet so don’t place it near kids,” said protestor Garry Anderson.
Griffith resident are so infuriated, they’re threatening to form a human blockade at the site of a 31-metre tower proposed by Optus.
“We have three young children with developing brains and the science still isn’t conclusive about whether … phone towers can cause health problems,” said Griffith campaigner, Nigel Ippoliti.
Click the photo to see the gallery of protests
A spokesman for Optus told both The Courier and The Area News the sites were chosen to give optimal coverage to phone users.
He also revealed another two towers are planned for Griffith.
Another stoush between telco and residents over a tower is also yet to be resolved near Bendigo in Victoria.
Pam Robinson went to her local paper The Bendigo Advertiser with concerns over a plan by Telstra to build a phone tower at nearby Tarnagulla.
She raised concerns that parents and students at a nearby school weren’t contacted about it.
Health concerns were top of the agenda in the border town of Wodonga, when Telstra vetted plans for a mobile phone tower at a leafy reserve.
It caused up to 100 people to rally at the site, calling for the tower to be abandoned on the basis of unknown health risks and its potential to decrease property values.
Telstra eventually backed down and withdrew its application with council and residents claimed the victory.
