Exposure to electromagnetic fields in operators of broadcast radio stations emitting at 737 kHz to 1602 kHz.

In Poland, 28 AM radio stations operate at frequencies from 738 kHz to 1602 kHz with output powers ranging from 1 kW to 750 kW. Altogether 384 workers are employed at those radio stations. Levels of exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) were identified at 5 of those radio stations, separately for 3 groups of workers, i.e. operation, maintenance, and administration. Electric and magnetic field intensities: E (in V/m) and H (in A/m), and the effective time of individual worker's exposure to EMF were assessed. The assessments were carried out independently by the conventional (MEH-1 plus stop-watch) and computer-aided (Holaday Programmable Recorder) methods. The study provided reliable data on the actual time of worker's exposure to EMF of exactly determined intensities. The study indicated a wide range of different exposure levels between individual groups of workers, which depended rather on a particular AM broadcast station and the type of job performed by individual groups of workers' than on the transmitter power or the type of protective zones in the vicinity of transmitters.