A PLAN to erect a mobile phone mast near a children?s play area in Yelverton, which has provoked over 100 letters of objection, has been deferred for a report into alternative sites.

Mobile phone company Orange is investigating two sites suggested by residents ? the fire station where a mast already exists and a site further down the A386 towards the Crapstone Junction.

The current application for an eight metre high lamp-post structure on the side of the Yelverton Roundabout replaces a previous proposal for a mast on the edge of the village green which also received fierce opposition.

Local residents, who were backed by the parish council, said a mast being sited near the children?s play park posed a potential health risk. Dartmoor National Park has recommended approval because the information on emission levels provided by Orange was well within the guidelines set by the Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection.

In view of Government and local plan policies to encourage mast sharing, a technical appraisal has been requested by the national park authority into utilising the mast at the fire station.