The influence of bioactive mobile telephony radiation at the level of a plant community – Possible mechanisms and indicators of the effects

Environmental exposure to radiofrequency electromagneticfields (RF-EMFs) from mobile telephony has rapidlyincreased in the last two decades and this trend is expected to continue. The effects of this exposure at plantcommunity level are unknown and difficult to assess in a scientifically appropriate manner. Such an assessmentcan be scientifically adequate if a studied plant community is completely new and control-impact radiationtreatment is used.In this review we aimed to predict ecological effects and identify indicators of the impact of bioactive RF-EMFs at the mobile telephony frequency range on plant communities. We considered the scenario where a plantcommunity was exposed to radiation generated by a base transmitting station antenna mounted on a nearbymast. This plant community can be represented by mesic meadow, ruderal or arable weed community, or otherherbaceous, moderately productive vegetation type. We concentrated primarily on radiation effects that can berecorded for a year since the exposure started. To predict them we used physical theories of radiowave pro-pagation in vegetation and the knowledge on plants physiological responses to RF-EMF. Our indicators can beused for the detection of the impact of RF-EMFs on vegetation in a control-impact experiment.The identified indicators can be classified into the following groups: (1) canopy parameters; (2) plant char-acteristics to be measured in thefield or laboratory in a number of individuals that represent the populations ofselected species; (3) community weighted means/medians (CWMs) of plant traits and strategies; (4) the abun-dance of other organisms that interact with plants and can influence theirfitness or population size. The group ofcanopy parameters includes mean height, vertical vegetation structure and dry weight of above-ground standingphytomass. Plant characteristics requiring biometric sampling in thefield are plant height, the number of fruitsand seeds, as well as seed viability. The group of plant traits that are calculated as CWMs covers seed releasingheight, seed dispersal mode, SLA, leaf orientation, month of germination andflowering, Ellenberg’s light in-dicator value, and the proportion of individuals in the classes of competitors and stress tolerators according toGrime's CSR strategy scheme. The group of“non-plant”indicators includes primarily the frequency offlowervisits by beetles, wasps, hoverflies, and bees that have their nests over ground. To detect ecological responsesthat occur for thefirst year since a herbaceous community has been exposed to potentially bioactive RF-EMF, thefirst two indicators groups should be used.