Regulation & Guidance
In Dublin and other Irish cities, the deployment of telecommunications infrastructure such as fibre, 4G and 5G networks is delivered by commercial operators in the telecommunications industry. The City Council is not responsible for rolling out any equipment itself but rather, facilitates access to its assets to support operator-led deployments.
Both the deployment process and equipment is regulated by the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) and other government and industry bodies in Ireland to ensure compliance with safety standards. An online siteviewer map of Ireland can be viewed here and shows the location of every mobile telephone mast, information on the operators and type of mobile services provided.
Dublin City Council is obliged to comply with the new European Electronic Communications Code (EECC), which was supposed to be transposed into national law across all member states in the European Union by the end of 2020. This Directive requires that local authorities work with the telecommunications industry to ensure that Ireland has a robust and fit-for-purpose competitive digital infrastructure.
For example, as part of Article 57 in the legislation, Dublin City Council must provide cost-effective, fair and open access to its assets for the purpose of mobile network infrastructure deployment without the need for individual permits. This reduces the time required to roll out such infrastructure in the city and ensures a healthy and competitive ecosystem of operators can provide high quality services.
The new EECC does not affect however, pre-statutory and legislative processes in relation to planning, road safety and closures.
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The Broadband Cost Reduction Directive (BCRD) is the other legislative piece that is relevant in the context of deploying telecommunications infrastructure in Dublin. This was enacted into Irish Law in July 2016, and it is designed to facilitate and incentivise the deployment of high-speed electronic communications networks through a reduction in costs.
The BCRD includes measures that encourage the sharing and re-use of existing physical infrastructure and, notably, places an onus on utilities (which includes local authorities like Dublin City Council) to make available their infrastructure to aid the deployment of telecommunications networks.
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Mobile operators in Dublin design and build their masts, rooftop antennas and other related infrastructure installations to be compliant with the radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF EMF) exposure guidelines in Ireland that have been developed by and adopted from the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).
It is important to note that these guidelines were prepared following a comprehensive assessment of all the peer-reviewed scientific literature, including the thermal and non-thermal effects of RF EMF exposure. The guidelines are stringent in nature and are based on evaluations of the biological effects that have been established to have health consequences. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that countries adopt the ICNIRP guidelines.
The WHO states that the primary conclusion from its extensive reviews is that RF EMF exposure below the recommended limits specified in the ICNIRP guidelines does not appear to have any known consequence on health.
As part of the ongoing process of obtaining planning consent for new 5G and small cell sites, as well as upgrades to existing deployments, mobile operators continue to ensure compliance with the ICNIRP guidelines.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with carrying out measurements of public exposure to RF EMF in everyday environments in Ireland as part of its monitoring role. The Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg), meanwhile, is responsible for ensuring that non-ionizing radiation (NIR) emissions from licensed masts in Ireland are within the ICNIRP Exposure Limits.
The Dublin City Development Plan 2022 - 2028 came into effect on the 14th December 2022. Please click here to view.
Electromagnetic fields (EMF) are essential for modern telecommunications. The EPA measurements show that the levels of EMF from telecommunications in Ireland are low and do not pose a risk to the public.
Information about EMF, 5G and health produced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and can be downloaded below.