Redondo to Test for Magnetic Fields : Health: The measurements, to begin in spring, are prompted by possible links to cancer. Areas near power lines will get special emphasis.

Concerned about studies suggesting that electric and magnetic fields can cause cancer in humans, Redondo Beach officials are launching a survey to find out where in their city the fields are strongest.

City officials plan to begin by measuring magnetic fields at selected sites this spring, with emphasis on property near power lines. They have ordered a $2,000 gauge for the project.

The moves were prompted by health studies that found increased cancer rates in people exposed to strong electric and magnetic fields, which are emitted by everything from electric blankets to high-current power lines. Scientists disagree sharply on the reliability of the research, but Redondo Beach officials want measurements taken in case the findings prove true.

“We just want to develop a good sound data base so if scientists do prove a connection, we can do something about it,” said Ken Montgomery, Redondo Beach’s city engineer.

That approach gets guarded approval from George Hersh, environmental program manager for the California Public Utilities Commission. Hersh said cities such as Redondo Beach should make clear to residents that it is unknown what level of electromagnetic exposure, if any, is harmful.

“It certainly can’t hurt to know where the fields are strong as long as you are not inducing a public panic,” Hersh said. “You have to make clear to the public you are not drawing the line between life and death.”

Stirring most of the concern about electric and magnetic fields was a 1979 study in Denver that found a greater rate of childhood cancer in homes near high-current power lines, which carry 4,000 to 220,000 volts. A second study done in Denver in 1988 confirmed the findings, suggesting that cancer rates were 1 1/2 to 2 times above average for children living near such lines.

A preliminary USC study released this month found that children who lived nearest to high-current lines developed leukemia at 2 1/2 times the average rate. Numerous occupational studies, meanwhile, have found above-average cancer rates among workers in electrical jobs such as power plant operators, motion picture projectionists and utility linemen.

There has been little systematic testing of electric and magnetic field levels in Redondo Beach. In the most recent effort, Edison took measurements of magnetic fields at city parks and buildings in November and January.

Since there is no consensus on what exposure level, if any, is unsafe, the readings are no guide in weighing potential risks, officials say. But the results demonstrate how the strength of the fields, measured in units called milligauss, varies with proximity to electrical sources.

In City Hall, for instance, the readings were 1.1 milligauss at the keyboard of a secretary’s computer, 7.8 milligauss one inch from the screen and 360 milligauss one foot from a portable electric heater running on its highest setting.

Outdoors, the magnetic fields ranged from zero at the memorial in Veterans Park to 67 milligauss under the Edison power transmission lines in Dominguez Park.

While many experts argue that it is premature to draw conclusions from such readings, there are signs that concern about electric and magnetic fields may be a factor in city policy-making.

The most immediate example concerns parks--in particular, a proposal to develop an L-shaped corridor under Edison power lines in north Redondo Beach so it can be used for recreation.

Endorsed by the city’s Recreation and Parks Commission Wednesday night, the proposal calls for a variety of activities in the mile-long, 150-foot-wide strip. Among them are bicycling, walking, play lots with swings, monkey bars and other play equipment and possibly half-court basketball.

The approval came despite speeches by several Redondo Beach residents who expressed concern that the power lines might pose a health risk to people using the property.

Montgomery, the city engineer, believes such worries may prompt the city to modify the plan. “I think the basketball courts, the playgrounds, the things that make people gather for a while should maybe be put on hold,” he said.

However, Montgomery said he would be reluctant to close existing areas of heavy recreational activity near power lines, such as the basketball court in Dominguez Park. “Maybe we could post signs saying that we don’t know what it means, but that this is an area of high readings,” he said.

Montgomery said he is not certain whether the city will take readings in homes in its survey of magnetic field strengths. Edison, he pointed out, already does so for customers who request it.

Kandi Lancaster, chairperson of the Recreation and Parks Commission, said there was avid interest in the service when an Edison official informed residents about it at Wednesday night’s meeting.

“There was quite a lot of noise in the lobby after he made that offer,” she said. “He was awfully busy taking names.”

The official, Edison regional affairs manager Walt Dougher, said he received half a dozen requests at the meeting and that the company has taken readings in a dozen Redondo Beach homes so far.

“It’s media-driven,” Dougher said. “You get news reports about a new study and you get another bunch of requests.”