A ROW has erupted after a communications aerial was put up without permission on the roof of an Eastleigh business.

Staff at Dek Graphics in Monks Brook Industrial Estate, Chandler's Ford are worried their health could be at risk because of the mast which was erected on the roof of nearby South Midland Communications.

Eastleigh Borough Council has launched an investigation as the aerial, installed for use in emergencies by Hampshire Police, was put up without planning permission.

Dek partner Roger Gough told the Daily Echo that when he approached South Midland Communications he was simply told his health was not at risk because of the mast.

He said: "There are a lot of health concerns about communications aerials. Whether they are founded or unfounded I don't know, but you can't help worrying."

Spokesman for MMO2 Airwaves Peter Fitch said the mast was temporary and would be taken down after 28 days.

He said the aerial, being used to test the new emergency services communications network, was perfectly legal as temporary masts can be installed by law without planning permission in emergencies.

He said that while health risks would probably never be ruled out completely, no one had yet conclusively proved communications aerials endanger people in any way.

He further stated the emissions from his company's masts were "hundreds of thousands of times lower" than levels recommended in a government report of May 1999.

He added: "This system is going to make people's lives and the lives of police officers safer by dramatically improving the quality of communications police have access to."

Mark Cooper, Hampshire Constabulary's project manager for Airwave, said: "Although our current analogue system is very efficient with near maximum coverage, it is more than 16 years old and therefore limited in its functionality.

"Airwave will provide newer technology for Hampshire Constabulary to aid our communications and to potentially improve public and officer safety."

With the new system officers will be able to summon assistance without speaking over airwaves and access national crime databases on location instead of having to return to the station.

Colin Thomas, business development manager of SMC, said: "We are leasing the land to MMO2 Airwaves. There are no proven health risks. A lot of what's being published on the Internet is put there by irresponsible people who are scaremongering."