5G mast plan for village approved despite 53 objections
A 19-metre mast is set to be installed near a village pub to provide 5G coverage for the area despite more than 50 objections to the plans.
Objectors have voiced health and safety fears and said that 5G will not improve telecommunications in the Gnosall area.
There are also concerns the mast – earmarked for land opposite the Royal Oak at Newport Road – will be visually obtrusive and have a detrimental impact on the character of Gnosall.
Stafford Borough Council received 53 objections to the application.
However there were also two comments supporting the plans, on the grounds that they would improve “currently poor mobile connectivity and data speed service” and would be particularly beneficial during the current Covid-19 pandemic while people were working from home.
Council planning officers have granted prior approval for the new 19m monopole supporting six antennas. There will also be a wraparound equipment cabinet at the base of the column and three new equipment cabinets.
But Gnosall resident Will Mockett said objectors’ questions had not been answered.
He added: “Is the public not privy to these discussions? On so many levels, this is wrong.
“Whether any one of us wants it or not, there’s going to be an antenna stuck outside of our homes. We won’t get a say.
“Is this the new face of democracy? Is this the caring society we live in? Are these the councillors with our best interests at heart? Really makes you wonder.
“In the objections residents have asked questions about exclusion zones around the mast and the small cell antennas that follow on in the roll-out across the community, and have not received answers.
"There is so much up to date independent research, thousands of peer reviewed studies, that this technology is unhealthy; a risk to humans as well as the environment."
There is currently a 15m mast and four cabinets on the site where the 19m mast will be installed.
A planning officer’s report said: “The proposed equipment is required for 5G to extend mobile connectivity, in line with the NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework) requirement that planning decisions should support such expansion of the electronic communications networks.
Taking account of the need for the increased height of the tower and the additional equipment, it is not considered that the proposal would warrant a refusal considering the existing visual impact from the current installation. There is no issue having regard to public safety.
“The proposal is therefore considered acceptable.”
