If the FCC has its way, we'll soon see vastly speeded up construction of cell towers across America. It’s part of the agency’s “Build America: Eliminating Barriers to Wireless Deployments” plan. Cell towers are needed for AI expansion. But it’s far from without controversy. 

Theodora Scarato heads up the Wireless and EMF Program at Environmental Health Sciences, a nonprofit focused on preventable health issues.

“Right now, the FCC is fast tracking cell towers, even though the regulations that we have are completely out of date. We allow among the highest levels of radiation compared to many other countries, and we haven't even reviewed those regulations in years properly with a full review of the science,” Scarato says. 

“The U.S. government allows levels that are 10 to 100 times more than many other countries. They are set far too high to protect against biological effects, according to hundreds of scientists.”

Scarato says scientific research has documented cancer's impact on the immune system, genetic damage, and reproductive impacts, as well as headaches, sleep issues and numerous biochemical changes in people who live near cell towers.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr unveiled the fast-track proposal in July of last year. Supporters of the plan – which as of August was still in the federal rulemaking process – say it aims to help more Americans connect to better, faster, service by cutting local red tape and fees that delay or block new towers and upgrades.

Regardless of whether the fast track cell tower plan, backed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, becomes final, cell towers aren’t going away. 

And concern over EMFs, Electromagnetic Fields, has been growing. EMFs are the invisible energy – a form of radiation – from cell towers and anything carrying electricity or sending wireless signals. They enable us to use our phone, WiFi and other devices without plugging into the wall.

Scarato says there are actions people can take individually to try to limit their exposure.

“There's a lot that people can do," she says. "Night time is the best time to reduce exposure. Have wireless devices off, don't sleep with that cell phone near your body. 

"We can use hardwired connections more often. Not everything has to be wireless. And also, there's a lot of research being done on safer, lower-emitting technologies. But that needs to be supported and promoted and prioritized, which I believe will happen when the people, the consumers, ask for it."

For more on this story, watch "Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson” Sunday. Attkisson's most recent bestseller is "Follow the $cience: How Big Pharma Misleads, Obscures, and Prevails."