ARLA/CLUSTER: A potencia para a nova banda dos 5 MHz pode chegar ao 25W (PIRE) na América Central

[João Costa > CT1FBF]

The new 60m allocation at WRC-15

The World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-15) in Geneva has agreed
on a secondary allocation of 5351.5-5366.5 kHz for the Amateur
Service, with regional power limits of 15 watts to 25 Watts measured
in effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP).

Dale Hughes VK1DSH said that on November 18, 2015, during the plenary
meeting, regulatory text for a new secondary allocation to the amateur
was approved without comment.

He said: “This was the outcome of many meetings during the current
WRC-15 conference, regular ITU-R Working Party 5A meetings and
regional Asia-Pacific Telecommunity meetings, which started in early
2012.

“Some estimates of success for this WRC-15 agenda item (on the 5 MHz
issue) were as low as 20 per cent. “So achieving this successful
outcome was very much a team effort and the result of a great deal of
work by individual national delegates, national amateur societies, the
IARU and supportive national administrations.”

The new regulatory text part of the updated ITU Radio Regulations is
expected to come into force in January 2017.

“If and when Australian radio amateurs might get access to the new 60m
band remains unknown, as there will need to be WIA discussions with
the Australian Communications and Media Authority to address local
issues.

“It has been a privilege to be part of this work; the efforts and
support of the WIA, the ACMA, Australian Department of Defence
representatives and other Australian WRC-15 delegates must be
positively acknowledged,” Dale VK1DSH.

Generally 15 Watts EIRP is permitted in the ITU Regions 1 and 3,
however Region 2 has 15 Watts for the USA, 20 Watts for Mexico, and 25
Watts in Central America, South America and most of the Caribbean
area. USA has channelised access for radio amateurs on 5 MHz, and this
is to change to the normal frequency agility.

The breakthrough for the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) on
the 5 MHz issue came as the result of years of preparation, trials and
talks.

The IARU team went to the WRC-15 not at all confident on getting a new
60 metre band allocation. The 18 member IARU-team, co-lead by
President Tim Ellam VE6SH and Vice-President Ole Garpestad LA2RR,
includes Dale Hughes VK1DSH partly funded by the WIA and IARU, and
about 10 others with their country-based delegation. It also engaged
on a number of agenda items that may impact the amateur and amateur
satellite services – and is keeping a watch on future proposals.

The IARU-team faced firm opposition against a wide sharing spectrum
slice at 5 MHz.

The IARU had pressed its case at the spectrum marathon, but through a
considered strategy, with careful listening, compromise and
negotiation, found a way. The first big hurdle came from major
countries including Canada, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United
States of America, who felt such an allocation was too generous.

To persuade some to abandon their no-allocation position, a 15
kHz-wide slice compromise was agreed.

The other hurdle was the power limit, with it being lower than originally
proposed, and now has measurement at EIRP, or Effective Isotropic
Radiated Power, rather than transmitter output in watts. The limit
sought by some was designed to protect existing in-band and adjacent
band services at 5 MHz from perceived harmful interference, and that
compromise gained even more support.

On the next WRC-19 agenda are proposals for 50-54 MHz, the amateur
service and amateur satellite service band at 47-47.2 GHz, and small
non-amateur, non-geostationary satellites that are looking for VHF and
UHF allocations, possible threats to the 144 MHz and 430 MHz
allocations.

A proposed agenda item to align the 160 metre allocation throughout
the world is no longer on the table.

Jim Linton VK3PC

Wireless Institute of Australia