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Electric and magnetic fields and health

index/glossary | EMFs At A Glance | EMF The Facts (pdf)
  • What are EMFs
    • Terminology – an introduction
    • Electric fields
    • Magnetic fields
    • Units for measuring EMFs
    • Measuring and calculating EMFs
      • “EMF Commercial”
    • Adding fields together
    • Radiofrequencies
    • Screening EMFs
  • Sources
    • Overhead power lines
      • Fields from specific power lines
        • 400 kV
        • 400 kV – specific cases
        • 275 kV
        • 132 kV
        • 66 kV
        • 33 kV
        • 11 kV
        • 400 V/230 V
        • Replacing a 132 kV line with a 400 kV line
      • Summaries of fields from all power lines
      • Factors affecting the field from a power line
        • Voltage
        • Current
        • Clearance
        • Height above ground
        • Conductor bundle
        • Phasing
        • Balance between circuits
        • Balance within circuit
        • Ground resistivity
        • Two parallel lines
      • Calculating and measuring fields from power lines
        • Geometries of power lines
        • Raw data
        • On-line calculator
      • Fields from power lines – more detail on the physics
        • Field lines from a power line
        • The direction of the field from a power line
        • Power law variations in the field from a power line
      • Statistics of power line fields
    • Underground power cables
      • Different types of underground cable
      • Fields from cables in tunnels
      • Gas Insulated Lines (GIL)
      • Underground cables with multiple conductors
      • Effect of height on fields from underground cables
      • Screening fields from underground cables
    • Low-voltage distribution
      • UK distribution wiring
      • USA distribution wiring
    • House wiring
    • Substations
      • National Grid substations
        • Static Var Compensators
      • Sealing-end compounds
      • Distribution substations
      • Final distribution substations
        • Indoor substations
    • Transport
      • EMFs from electric trains (UK)
      • EMFs from cars
    • Appliances
    • Electricity meters
      • Smart meters
      • Traditional meters
    • Occupational exposures
      • Live-line work
      • Static Var Compensators
      • Occupational exposures on pylons
    • Field levels and exposures
      • Personal exposure
      • Other factors that vary with magnetic fields
      • Fields greater than 0.2 or 0.4 µT
    • Screening EMFs
      • Screening fields from underground cables
      • EMF Reduction Devices
  • Known effects
    • Induced currents and fields
    • Microshocks
      • Control of microshocks in the UK
      • Microshocks from bicycles
      • Bees and microshocks
    • EMFs and medical devices
      • Standards relating to pacemakers and other AIMDs
    • Effects of EMFs on equipment
  • Research
    • Types of research
    • Epidemiology
    • Animal and laboratory experiments
    • Mechanisms
    • Specific studies
      • UKCCS
      • CCRG
      • French Geocap study
      • CEGB cohort
      • Imperial College study
  • Current evidence on health
    • Childhood leukaemia
      • Survival from childhood leukaemia
      • Childhood leukaemia and Downs
      • Childhood leukaemia and night-time exposure
      • The “contact current” hypothesis
    • Other health effects
    • Scientific review bodies
      • WHO
      • IARC
    • Electric fields and ions
    • Comparing EMFs to other issues
  • Exposure limits for people
    • Limits in the UK
    • Limits in the EU
    • Limits in the USA
    • Limits in the rest of the world
    • Limits from specific organisations
      • ICNIRP 1998
      • ICNIRP 2010
      • NRPB 1993
      • NRPB 2004
      • EU 2004
      • EU 2013
  • Policy
    • UK policy
      • Power lines and property – UK
    • Compliance with exposure limits
    • European EMF policy
    • Precaution
    • SAGE
      • SAGE First Interim Assessment
        • Government response to SAGE First Interim Assessment
      • SAGE Second Interim Assessment
        • Government response to SAGE Second Interim Assessment
        • SAGE Second Interim Assessment – the full list of recommendations
  • Finding out more
    • EMF measurement and commercial services
    • Links
    • Literature
    • Contact us
  • Static fields
    • Static fields – the expert view
You are here: Home / Policy / SAGE / SAGE Second Interim Assessment / SAGE Second Interim Assessment – the full list of recommendations

SAGE Second Interim Assessment – the full list of recommendations

The recommendations in the SAGE Second Interim Assessment are from one of the following:

"Should"

  • existing best practice which should continue with a recognition that EMFs are an extra reason for doing them
  • new measures that should be introduced

"Could"

  • further investigation needed before a recommendation is made
  • "consumer choice": not recommended generally but available if an interested party does not mind bearing the cost

"Don't"

  • because the option is not effective
  • because the cost would be disproportionate
  • because there would be adverse safety consequences

SAGE groups the options by the different parts of the distribution system and we list the recommendations here:

Options relating to net currents in distribution circuits

more on what net currents are and how they arise

Should (reinforce and endorse existing practice):

  • DNOs make reasonably practicable efforts to balance loads on three-phase final distribution circuits
  • DNOs assist customers with three-phase supplies to balance loads to the extent reasonably practicable
  • DNOs investigate and repair broken neutrals
  • Disconnect redundant cables
  • Use plastic gas and water pipes for new build
  • Insert plastic sections in metal gas and water pipes when work is being done anyway

Could (consumer choice)

  • Consumer chooses to use TT system (local earth)
  • Retrofit plastic sections in existing gas and water pipes where work is not otherwise being done

Could (further investigation needed)

  • Replace some or all neutral links with inductive links
  • Routine measurememts to identify broken neutrals
  • Inductors on service cables

Don't

  • Improve balance of loads where this involves remaking joints
  • Legally require balanced loads
  • Abandon protective multiple earthing for new build
  • Abandon protective multiple earthing for existing networks
  • Alter pme regulations to require fewer earths
  • Remove some or all neutral links in link boxes
  • Remove bonds from lightning conductors to electrical earths
  • Change regulations to stop steelwork bonds
  • Larger neutral conductors

Options relating to wiring in multi-occupancy buildings

Should (reinforce and endorse existing practice)

  • Site plant rooms away from occupied areas (new build)
  • Risers to use SNE cables (new build)
  • Risers to use compact design

Could (available as consumer choice)

  • Site plant rooms away from occupied areas (retrofit)
  • Risers to use SNE cables (retrofit)
  • Risers to use compact design (retrofit)
  • Screen the fields

Options relating to intermediate voltage circuits

Should (new measure)

  • Heavily loaded double-circuit intermediate-voltage lines to have optimal phasing and balanced loads to the extent reasonably practicable

Could (further investigation needed)

  • Restrictions on routing new heavily loaded intermediate-voltage lines close to homes, schools and other public places

Options relating to final distribution substations

more on substations and the fields they produce

Should (endorse and reinforce existing practice)

  • Comply with relevant exposure limits
  • Reasonably practicable efforts to site substations distant from homes etc
  • New substations to have compact design where reasonably practicable
  • Use compact designs for refurbishment where reasonably practicable

Should (new measure)

  • Arrange components in the substation in the lowest-exposure layout reasonably practicable if compact design not possible
  • DNOs to consider instances of substations producing elevated exposures when requested and offer options for reducing the exposures at the consumer's choice and cost
  • DNOs to record instances of substations producing particularly high exposures so that EMF issues can be factored in to future investment and maintenance decisions for that substation

Could (consumer's choice)

  • Relocate the substation
  • Retrofit whole substation with compact design
  • Retrofit LV Board with compact design
  • Bundle the cables between substation and LV Board to produce more compact design
  • Screen the fields

Could (further investigation needed)

  • Possible limits on fields produced in homes etc by new substations

Don't

  • Substation perimeter fence to include larger area
  • Univeral retrofit of field reduction measures

Options relating to Training and Response

Should (new measure)

  • Information for the public
  • DNOs to investigate EMF issues when notified of them
  • Develop awareness within DNOs, by training of relevant staff, of how elevated exposures can be an indication of system problems

See also:

More on SAGE generally and the Second Interim Assessment in particular, or Download the Assessment itself.

Latest news

  • New publication on cancer incidence from the UK electricity industry Cohort Study August 27, 2019
  • How has the reported risk for childhood leukaemia changed over time? February 11, 2019
  • Media stories about microshocks in children’s playground September 10, 2018
  • New studies on leukaemia and distance from power lines June 1, 2018
older news

Contact Us

To contact the electricity industry’s EMF Unit Public Information Line (UK only):
telephone 0845 7023270 or email [email protected].

See Contact us for more contact details including our privacy policy.

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Navigation
  • What are EMFs
    • Terminology – an introduction
    • Electric fields
    • Magnetic fields
    • Units for measuring EMFs
    • Measuring and calculating EMFs
      • “EMF Commercial”
    • Adding fields together
    • Radiofrequencies
    • Screening EMFs
  • Sources
    • Overhead power lines
      • Fields from specific power lines
        • 400 kV
        • 400 kV – specific cases
        • 275 kV
        • 132 kV
        • 66 kV
        • 33 kV
        • 11 kV
        • 400 V/230 V
        • Replacing a 132 kV line with a 400 kV line
      • Summaries of fields from all power lines
      • Factors affecting the field from a power line
        • Voltage
        • Current
        • Clearance
        • Height above ground
        • Conductor bundle
        • Phasing
        • Balance between circuits
        • Balance within circuit
        • Ground resistivity
        • Two parallel lines
      • Calculating and measuring fields from power lines
        • Geometries of power lines
        • Raw data
        • On-line calculator
      • Fields from power lines – more detail on the physics
        • Field lines from a power line
        • The direction of the field from a power line
        • Power law variations in the field from a power line
      • Statistics of power line fields
    • Underground power cables
      • Different types of underground cable
      • Fields from cables in tunnels
      • Gas Insulated Lines (GIL)
      • Underground cables with multiple conductors
      • Effect of height on fields from underground cables
      • Screening fields from underground cables
    • Low-voltage distribution
      • UK distribution wiring
      • USA distribution wiring
    • House wiring
    • Substations
      • National Grid substations
        • Static Var Compensators
      • Sealing-end compounds
      • Distribution substations
      • Final distribution substations
        • Indoor substations
    • Transport
      • EMFs from electric trains (UK)
      • EMFs from cars
    • Appliances
    • Electricity meters
      • Smart meters
      • Traditional meters
    • Occupational exposures
      • Live-line work
      • Static Var Compensators
      • Occupational exposures on pylons
    • Field levels and exposures
      • Personal exposure
      • Other factors that vary with magnetic fields
      • Fields greater than 0.2 or 0.4 µT
    • Screening EMFs
      • Screening fields from underground cables
      • EMF Reduction Devices
  • Known effects
    • Induced currents and fields
    • Microshocks
      • Control of microshocks in the UK
      • Microshocks from bicycles
      • Bees and microshocks
    • EMFs and medical devices
      • Standards relating to pacemakers and other AIMDs
    • Effects of EMFs on equipment
  • Research
    • Types of research
    • Epidemiology
    • Animal and laboratory experiments
    • Mechanisms
    • Specific studies
      • UKCCS
      • CCRG
      • French Geocap study
      • CEGB cohort
      • Imperial College study
  • Current evidence on health
    • Childhood leukaemia
      • Survival from childhood leukaemia
      • Childhood leukaemia and Downs
      • Childhood leukaemia and night-time exposure
      • The “contact current” hypothesis
    • Other health effects
    • Scientific review bodies
      • WHO
      • IARC
    • Electric fields and ions
    • Comparing EMFs to other issues
  • Exposure limits for people
    • Limits in the UK
    • Limits in the EU
    • Limits in the USA
    • Limits in the rest of the world
    • Limits from specific organisations
      • ICNIRP 1998
      • ICNIRP 2010
      • NRPB 1993
      • NRPB 2004
      • EU 2004
      • EU 2013
  • Policy
    • UK policy
      • Power lines and property – UK
    • Compliance with exposure limits
    • European EMF policy
    • Precaution
    • SAGE
      • SAGE First Interim Assessment
        • Government response to SAGE First Interim Assessment
      • SAGE Second Interim Assessment
        • Government response to SAGE Second Interim Assessment
        • SAGE Second Interim Assessment – the full list of recommendations
  • Finding out more
    • EMF measurement and commercial services
    • Links
    • Literature
    • Contact us
  • Static fields
    • Static fields – the expert view