Three Mobile have put it up without planning permission – but it turns out that none is needed
THREE Mobile have faced fierce criticism from the Lisvane community after they ‘upgraded’ a small 3G tower to a 20 meter 5G tower, without planning permission.
Conservative Councillor for Lisvane and Thornhill, John Lancaster, expressed his frustration over the new tower, on Lisvane Road close to the reservoir, as more than 20 people attended the councillor surgery on Saturday morning to complain.
He said: “We generally don’t know about these kinds of things until there are spades in the ground.
“The problem is the companies in charge of building these towers no longer need planning permission. They can alert residents if they like, but this isn’t enforced.”
The benefit of a 5G mast is that nearby residents will have faster data speeds. The government announced earlier this year that companies will no longer need planning permission so that the roll out of 5G is quicker.
However, residents are more concerned about the appearance of the tower.
Resident Rosa Morgan, who lives near two masts in Lisvane, said: “I just don’t get it. What’s the need for two? My data speeds have still been rubbish and they’re hideous.”
Asked if Cllr Lancaster had been in touch with Three Mobile over the mast, he said: “We had over 50 residents sign the petition, and we tried reaching out to Three but have had no response.
“They also gave us and residents the wrong address to send our concerns to, I hope that was a genuine mistake.”
Cllr Lancaster also mentioned how some residents voiced concerns over the safety of 5G towers, but the World Health Organization has dismissed those claims, saying: “To date, and after much research performed, no adverse health effect has been causally linked with exposure to wireless technologies.”
Three Mobile were contacted by The Cardiffian on Thursday, Nov 17, but had not responded at the time of publication.
