Residents fight phone tower
CLIFTON Beach residents have vowed to bombard Cairns Regional Council with submissions in their fight against Telstra's plan to build a new mobile telephone tower in a residential area.
And northern beaches councillor Julia Leu yesterday said she intended to vote against the proposal.
Combined Beaches Community Association vice president Warren Herkess said his group had collected about 270 signed submissions against the 24m tower proposed on Telstra land near the Clifton Beach Shopping Centre.
"My estimation is we will have 300-400 signed submissions lodged with Cairns Regional Council before this closes on Friday," he said.
Telstra has applied to the council to change the zoning on its land to allow the tower, which will be more than 27m high when an antennae array is put in place, to be built.
Cr Leu said she was against mobile phone towers in residential areas because it had not been fully established they did not cause health problems.
"The weight of evidence about the health effect of these types of electromagnetic waves indicate that council should be taking a precautionary approach and on that basis my preference would be that this be relocated away from a residential area," she said.
Asked if she would vote against Telstra’s application when it came up at council Cr Leu said "at the moment I would have to be convinced to vote otherwise".
Far Northern Telstra boss Wally Donaldson met concerned residents and Cr Leu yesterday. He said the Clifton Beach site had been identified as the best one possible for a base station to improve coverage in the northern beaches.
Meanwhile, the council will decide on Thursday whether to allow Optus access across public land to build a tower near Lower Freshwater Rd at Kamerunga.
Share this article
Hung up: Cr Julia Leu holds a protest sign as residents gather in front of the proposed mobile phone tower site in Elford St, Clifton Beach.
New Jetstar flights between Cairns and Osaka
THE re-introduction of Jetstar's four weekly direct services to Osaka in Japan and a doubling of flights to Melbourne from April 1 next year are the first significant announcements today by the airline as the result of a new agreement with Cairns Airport.
Kate earns National Pride Medal
INSPIRING young leader and cancer survivor Kate Smith could hardly believe she won a national Pride of Australia medal last night.
Abbott wins in leadership spill
BREAKING NEWS: Tony Abbott is the new Opposition Leader.
Escapee back in custody
BREAKING NEWS: Police have found a man who escaped from police custody at Ravenshoe on Sunday night.
Woman watched boyfriend bash, strip tourist
THE girlfriend of a man accused of raping and attempting to rape two foreign tourists at a Cairns caravan park says she watched him bash and strip one of them then chase after her.





















