The ability to monitor climate, forecast weather and deliver early warning messages faces critical disruption because the same radio frequencies these systems use are increasingly occupied by some satellites and wireless systems, according to two United Nations agencies.

At a meeting held in Geneva on the 28th of September, the International Telecommunications Union and the World Meteorological Organisation said that such spectrum interference increasingly imperils the study of and the public response to environmental dangers. The frequencies are used to monitor and collect data from the ocean, the atmosphere and the land.

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, secretary-general of the ITU, told the meeting that [quote] "Preventing harmful radio interference is a matter of public safety and can save lives." [endquote] The agencies said that the accuracy of measurements and other data and the ability to prepare for dangers could be seriously compromised.

The appeal by the UN agencies was made just as the two released their handbook offering guidance on the best ways to use and protect radio frequencies. The handbook is called "The Use of Radio Spectrum for Meteorology: Weather, Climate, Water and Related Environmental Applications."