FCC rules require action on the part of a "communications tower owner" or
wireless
carrier if they plan to build a new tower or
install a “significant modification” of an existing one. This has long been in
the rules, which the FCC has recently updated. The owner of the new tower may
be required to detune the tower at the broadcast frequency so that it doesn't
alter the BC station's radiation pattern.
For non-directional AM stations, the coordination distance is defined as
“within one wavelength”, so this would rarely apply to ham towers. HOWEVER, for
directional stations, the distance may extend out as far as 3 kilometres. It
doesn't seem so unusual that a ham putting up a new tower might happen to live
within a radius of 3 km of the directional AM array of a local AM broadcast
station.
The key word seems to be "communications tower". Do they only mean by this
definition commercial communications towers, or does it include amateur radio
towers and antennas? Part 97 includes specific requirements regarding tower
height and FAA rules, but I see no mention of AM BC towers or the necessity for
hams to take measures to protect the radiation patterns of AM broadcast
directional arrays, but I wonder if these rules might apply if a ham decides
to put up a tower of significant height, say, 100 ft or more, in the vicinity
of a broadcast installation.
Has anyone here ever looked into this, or been approached by a station owner
claiming that a tower needs to be detuned from a broadcast frequency ?
http://www.radioworld.com/article/new-am-protection-rules-%E2%80%94-what%E2%80%99s-the-impact/274648
Don k4kyv
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