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| MERA Questions & Answers |
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1. What is MERA?
MERA, the Marin Emergency Radio Authority, is a countywide public agency consisting of the county, all
cities and towns, fire districts and other special districts like MMWD, that joined together to replace the
aging and obsolete public safety communications system.
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2. Why is it necessary?
Efforts to build a new system were started when it became known that replacement parts for the
existing system would no longer be available, making the system obsolete and inoperable.
The new system will be a state-of-the-art digital emergency communications system.
MERA allows all of the fire, paramedic, police and public works employees within the County to
communicate with each other. Many narrow canyon neighborhoods will gain critical emergency radio linkage
for the first time, as will all the unincorporated areas of the County. The expanded system capacity
will eliminate a repeat of the "disaster within a disaster" that occurred in the 1995 Mt. Vision fire, \
when the radio system overloaded to the point that many firefighters lost contact with central command.
Another example is the tragic case of Polly Klaas, when a policeman released a suspect because the
police had no way of receiving the urgent warning from a neighboring police department. Closer to home,
this past year Sausalito police were hampered in their efforts to apprehend a suspect who had gunned
down one of their officers.
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3. What agencies belong to MERA?
The following agencies comprise MERA: City of Belvedere, Bolinas Fire Protection District, Town of Corte
Madera, Town of Fairfax, Inverness Public Utility District, Kentfield Fire Protection District, City of
Larkspur, County of Marin, Marin Community College District, Marinwood Community Services District, City of
Mill Valley, Novato Fire Protection District, City of Novato, Town of Ross, Ross Valley Fire Department,
Town of San Anselmo, City of San Rafael, City of Sausalito, Southern Marin Fire District, Town of Tiburon,
Tiburon Fire Protection District, Twin Cities Police, Marin County Transit District, Marin Municipal Water
District, Stinson Beach Fire District.
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4. What is the technology for this system?
There are 17 sites in the Authority's system, insuring complete coverage to the incorporated and
unincorporated areas of the County. Each site in the system contributes coverage to the local area, along
with other surrounding areas, which allows communication with one another through a main processing site
located at the Marin Civic Center. The antennas and equipment located at each site provide a radio
communication link between the system and its members, as well as each remote site and the central
processing site.
The transmit antennas send the transmissions to mobile and portable radios. The whip antenna receives the
transmissions from mobile and portable radios. The microwave system provides a site-to-site link, or
backbone, which connects the remote sites to the central processing site. The system technology allows
agencies to share the backbone but retain their individual autonomy as required for day-to-day operations.
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5. What does a typical MERA facility look like?
Generally, there is a shelter housing the electronics equipment; a 45 kw generator; 500 gallon propane fuel
tank; a 20 to 60 foot monopole or lattice tower with one or two microwave dish antennas; two transmit
antennas and a 12 foot whip on top. Some of these specs will change depending on the location of the tower.
All transmissions use RF (radio frequency) energy.
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6. What are Radio Frequency Emissions and who determines the safety standards?
Radio frequency emissions, widely used for telecommunication purposes from cell phones to microwaves, is
closely regulated by the Federal Communication Commission. In October, 1997, the FCC adopted the human
exposure limits for field strength and power density recommended in Report No. 86. "Biological Effects and
Exposure Criteria for Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields," published in 1986 by the National Council on
Radiation Protection and Measurements ("NCRP"). More recently, the American National Standards Institute
("ANSI") reviews the exposure limited in 1992. The FCC mandates that all communication facilities meet
strict exposure guidelines that have been established by leading scientific and medical research associations.
The RF energy measurement is based upon the type of transmitter emissions, power of the transmission,
duration of the transmission, the angle and direction of the transmission antennae and distance to the site
being measured. RF energy drops dramatically as distance grows. The radio emissions from a typical MERA
transmission site will be well below federal standards, less even than what could be received when using a
cellular phone for a prolonged period of time.
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7. When did this project start and how is it funded?
The project description was approved and the Authority was created in 1998 and financing was approved in
1999, with a total price tag of $27 million.
The contract was awarded to Motorola in 1998 and given authority to proceed in early 1999 with a completion
date of December, 2002. The Motorola system uses the most current narrow band digital technology available
for Public Safety operations, based on standards developed by the Association of Public Safety
Communications Officials (APCO). This same technology is being used by many agencies similar to MERA,
including the City and County of San Francisco, the County of San Diego, Orange County along with many
cities and agencies within.
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8. Where are the towers located?
The prime site is located at Marin Civic Center with remote antenna sites at Mt. Burdell, Pt. Reyes, Big
Rock, Mt. Barnabe, Dollar Hill, Forbes Hill, Tiburon, San Pedro, Bay Hill, Mill Valley, Sonoma, Bolinas and
Mt. Tam. Each site is extensively researched for maximum coverage and fiscal responsibility. A system-wide
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was done which included all sites.
Click here to view a map of the MERA system as planned but not yet completed.
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