THE Evening Press can today reveal at least 45 mobile phone masts are currently operating in the centre of York.

The figure is drawn from detailed maps handed to the Evening Press by City of York Council, and relates to masts within the inner ring road. A further 37 masts are situated further afield, including in the villages of Elvington, Wheldrake and Stamford Bridge.

But the true number of masts could be far higher, because phone operators are not obliged to list all transmission equipment, such as booster kits. In addition, some of the maps need updating, and no figures were available from O2, one of the UK's biggest phone companies.

Of all 82 masts, Orange has 59, Vodafone has 12 and T-mobile, formerly one2one, has 11. Of those inside the ring road, eight are T-mobile, seven Vodafone and 30 Orange.

At least 32 more masts are planned for the York area, including 28 from new phone company Hutchison 3G. Protests from residents' groups have sprung up across York over the proposed sites of mobile masts.

But residents may not realise companies only have to apply for planning permission if a mast is more than 15m high. Otherwise, the council must be notified but can only object to the structure on grounds of visual impact.

Residents are given 21 days to object to a mast, whether it was subject to a planning application or the notification process.

York Green Party spokesman Bill Shaw said he was "deeply shocked" by the figure.

He said: "I really had no idea there were that many. It is going to affect an awful lot of people.

Mr Shaw called on the companies to share their masts instead of automatically building a new one.

"It has not yet been proven whether the microwaves that come from these towers affect people or not, and until it is I think we should be extremely cautious about where these masts go and how many we allow to be built in our communities."

A Vodafone spokeswoman said the company tried to attach its equipment to an existing structure, such as a pylon, before building a mast.

It always tried to share a mast with other companies, she said, and complied with UK and worldwide guidelines on radiation.

An Orange spokeswoman said the company worked hard to reduce visual impact of its masts, and that its transmitters operated at levels hundreds of times below national and international guidelines.

A T-mobile spokeswoman said the company was confident its masts were safe. It had a firm commitment to the environment and tried to add its masts to existing structures

"If a new mast is required we seek to use sensitive siting, innovative designs and, where appropriate, landscaping," she said.

Updated: 11:56 Monday, October 28, 2002