The Future of Forty Metres
Will the broadcasters finally vacate the upper part of
the Amateur 40 metre band after WRC 2007,
- or will we lose the range from 7200 to 7300 kHz ?
Background
There
are over 3 million licensed Amateur Radio operators around the world,
and the 7000 kHz band is one of the most heavily used.
In
Region 2 (the Americas) the band 7000 to 7300 kHz is allocated to the Amateur and
Amateur Satellite services on a primary basis. Until 1938, this was a
worldwide allocation.
Beginning
in 1938 and at successive World Radio Conferences, the upper portion of the band has
been gradually transferred to the HF Broadcasting service in Regions 1
and 3 (the rest of the world) , so that since 1979, only the band 7000 to 7100 kHz
has been available
for Amateur use worldwide.
Status
going into the Conference
At the present time, short wave broadcast stations in Europe, Africa and Asia are licensed to transmit in the frequency range from 7100-7300 kHz. Furthermore, amateurs operating in the 40-metre band in the Americas must accept any interference caused by the broadcasters. Outside the Americas, most amateurs have only 7000-7100 kHz, although since 2003, some are allowed to use 7100-7200 with limited power, on a non-interfering basis.
In 2003 after a lot of hard work by the IARU, strongly supported by Radio Amateurs of Canada, we succeeded in getting a ruling from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) to remove broadcast stations from 7100 to 7200 kHz beginning in 2009, and to allow amateurs in those countries to increase the size of their 40 metre band from 100 kHz to 200 kHz.
What's Next?
This fall, in October 2007, we have another chance to finish the job. The range from 7200 to 7300 kHz is still subject to change. The gains made at 7100-7200 kHz by the amateur service at WRC-2003 are not a part of the overall review, but because of the claimed needs of other radio services around 7 MHz, there is a very real danger that the amateur service in Canada could lose or at least be forced to share 7200-7300 kHz.
Through all the studies between 2003 and now, the IARU has maintained its objective of a world wide exclusive allocation to amateurs for the full range from 7000 to 7300 kHz.
RAC has followed the IARU lead, but other spectrum users in Canada such as the department of National Defence do not agree. Industry Canada therefore supports no change to the existing 40 metre band. Although we already have the full 300 kHz, moving broadcasters out of the top 100 kHz in other regions is not popular amongst two groups in our country.
Of course we have the rest of the world to convince too. Prospects do not look good at this time. In spite of strong lobbying by the ARRL, in 2003 the fixed and broadcast interests ensured that the US did not support an expansion of the 40 metre amateur band in other parts of the world.
Most countries in Asia strongly resisted any expansion of their 40 metre amateur bands in 2003, with India and Korea taking the lead. In a contribution to the conference, the Asian Broadcasting union has opposed any gain for the amateur services, and has once again emphasized their need for more spectrum in the vicinity of 7 MHz. Although the Asia Pacific countries have not yet confirmed a common proposal on this issue, a draft proposal favours no change at 40 metres.
Europe is proposing an increase to the broadcast spectrum between 4 and 10 MHz, but none of the proposed increases affect 40 metres. On the down side, there is as yet no common proposal from Europe on a possible new 60 metre band.
In 2003, we were able to enlist the support of the majority of Central and South American countries. However, given strong fixed interests and some broadcast interests, they will not support a further increase to the worldwide amateur allocation in 2007. There is, however, strong support for protection of the existing amateur spectrum between7200 and 7300 kHz.
That leaves the African and the Arab countries. The Arab group has issued a common proposal opposing any changes to the spectrum between 4 and 10 MHz. Although the African countries as a group have yet to take a stand on 7200 to7300, a most likely position seems to be "no change".
Reading the above would certainly convince most amateurs that our chances at WRC 2007 are almost negligible. Only representatives of countries have a say in the outcome of a World Radio Conference. Organizations like the IARU can twist arms, but are not permitted to argue from the floor during conference meetings. So, we certainly have our work cut out for us. Our best hope is to come up with strong convincing arguments for why we need the full 300 kHz worldwide. Both RAC and the IARU are hard at work preparing to meet the challenge.
RAC played a strong role in the negotiations at WRC-03, and had a major impact on the outcome. Thanks to the support of DARF donors, Jim Dean, VE3IQ, was a key player for the entire duration of the WRC. Jim has once again been chosen by the RAC Board to be the Canadian Amateur Radio representative at WRC 2007.
Unfortunately, attending a WRC can cost up to $10,000 per person, even with "seat- sale" airfare, and minimal hotel and meal expenses.
RAC does not have the resources to pay for Jim's attendance at a WRC, and so he has to depend on the generosity of Canadian donors to the DARF fund to cover his costs. Please consider donating.
Donations may be made by cheque
or credit card.
Cheques should be made out to "The Defence of Amateur
Radio Fund", and may be sent by mail to:
Defence of Amateur Radio Fund
720 Belfast Road, Suite 217
Ottawa Canada, K1G 0Z5