Industry trade organization GSMA has taken an aggressive stance in attempting to tamp down what it describes are “false claims” that are threatening the future of 5G. The group’s ire was particularly directed at claims that 5G systems using millimeter wave spectrum (mmWave) will harm weather forecasting services – a claim it described as “ludicrous and simply untrue.”

Brett Tarnutzer, head of spectrum at the GSMA, said 5G and weather forecasts can and will co-exist. “To suggest that our seven-day forecast will go away with 5G is simply fake news. We cannot allow these scare tactics to prevent us from reaping the huge societal and economic benefits of 5G networks. We urge everyone to simply look at the facts and not get drawn in by misleading rhetoric.”

According to the GSMA, the weather sensing community “is basing its doomsday scenario on a decade-old scrapped program of weather sensors that were never deployed.” It added that their arguments fail to take into account how 5G actually works and ignores “tried and tested approaches to managing interference issues without adopting overly restrictive protections.”

The GSMA pointed out that the mobile industry is expected to add $565 billion to global gross domestic product and $152 billion in tax revenue tied to the use of mmWave spectrum between 2020 and 2034. “Countries risk losing out on these gains if mobile operators don’t get access to this vital spectrum,” it said.

“We are asking Europe and other countries around the world not to let a campaign of misinformation close the door on a new world of possibilities that 5G will bring,” Tarnutzer said. “Making decisions on 5G that aren’t based on the facts will seriously undermine the potential impact of 5G on communities and economies.”

The GSMA did not, in this particular instance, address other health concerns linked to 5G deployments, although it’s fair to say that reports about links between cellular mobile services and health issues are far from new. The association does regularly publish information on the health effects of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) as part of its public policy work, including a booklet in 2017 that was titled “What do the new uses of wireless technologies mean for radio frequency exposure?”

The topic has nevertheless gained significant momentum over recent months as the pace of 5G rollouts increases and has even led to calls for 5G services to be scrapped.

Switzerland has been particularly nervous about authorizing new antennas needed to support 5G services, and a government report said just over half of Swiss citizens fear that radiation from mobile antennas may be dangerous. Nevertheless, Swiss regulator ComCom has already awarded spectrum licenses for new 5G services to operators Salt, Sunrise, and Swisscom, and the first commercial 5G services have already been launched.