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Cold War Turkey
Navy's Extremely Low Frequency Transmitters

$60 million

" Project ELF is an ineffective, unnecessary, outdated Cold War relic…" Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) as quoted in the Congressional Record, January 19, 1999.

The Navy's Extremely Low Frequency Transmitters Program, known as Project ELF, is a cold war relic that was part of a communication system designed to launch and wage a submarine-based nuclear attack. Located in Upper Wisconsin and Northern Michigan, Project ELF consists of two transmitters and 84 miles of antenna cables that pump millions of watts of electricity into the earth. The jolts create extremely low frequency radio waves that encircle the Earth and penetrate seawater, sending crude signals to U.S. and British submarines. These signals tell the submarine commanders to bring their "platforms" to shallower depths from which they can receive more detailed commands and fire their missiles. Project ELF contributes to tensions among nuclear nations and produces electromagnetic pollution that threatens human health.

Green Scissors Proposal
With no present need for the project's capacities, the system should be deactivated. The Navy has other means of submarine communication using ground, air and satellite-based systems. Deactivating the system while maintaining the infrastructure for possible future use will save taxpayers $60 million over five years.

Current Status
In fiscal year 1995 and fiscal year 1996 Wisconsin Senators Russ Feingold (D) and Herbert Kohl (D) succeeded in passing an amendment on the floor of the Senate to terminate Project ELF. However, in both years, Representative "Bill" Young (R-FL) and Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) restored funding based on Navy briefings on national security issues regarding a program known as EHF - not ELF. In 1999, Senators Feingold (D-WI) and Kohl (D-WI) introduced the ELF Termination Act (S. 128). At the grassroots level, thousands have participated in anti-ELF protests, and nine editorials have appeared in Wisconsin papers calling for ELF to close. Activists are calling on Senator Feingold to reintroduce the ELF termination act.

Project Hurts Taxpayers

Project ELF is costly and unnecessary. As early as 1979, the General Accounting Office recommended "that the Secretary of Defense terminate any plans to construct an extremely low frequency transmitter system [since it] enhances communications capability only marginally at best."

Project Hurts the Environment

The electromagnetic fields produced by ELF have been shown to create a public health hazard. More than 40 medical studies point to a link between electromagnetic pollution (EMP) and cancer. Several studies suggest links between EMP and brain tumors. In 1984, a U.S. District Court ruling on State of Wisconsin v. Weinberger found enough evidence to close down Project ELF for possible health effects and for violations of the National Environmental Policy Act.

Navy sponsored ecological studies at the Michigan transmitters have shown abnormalities in a variety of plant and animal species.

ELF is a nuisance to neighbors. Metal fences in the surrounding area must be grounded to avoid serious shock from the presence of stray high voltages. The towers also contribute to noise pollution, and several residents have claimed to hear the "Taos Hum," a low, grumbling noise on the threshold of audibility.

Contacts

• Contact: John LaForge, Coalition to Stop Project ELF, Nukewatch, (715) 472-4185.