WRC-07: All Over but the Signing

The final working session of the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07) drew to a close Thursday afternoon, November 15. The signing ceremony for the Final Acts will take place Friday.

For the amateur services, the principal achievements and disappointments of the conference are:

Achievements

1.      Maintenance all existing amateur allocations, including the 7.200-7.300 MHz allocation in Region 2 that had been somewhat at risk in connection with consideration of additional allocations for HF broadcasting (see below)

2.      A new worldwide secondary allocation at 135.7-137.8 kHz with a maximum radiated power limit of 1 W e.i.r.p. (given the low efficiency of practical antennas for this frequency range, this limit is not as severe as it may sound)

3.      Inclusion of an item, “to consider an allocation of about 15 kHz in parts of the band 415-526.5 kHz to the amateur service on a secondary basis, taking into account the need to protect existing services” on the provisional agenda for WRC-11

4.      Avoidance of future agenda items that pose serious threats to key amateur allocations
5.      Some improvement in the so-called “country footnotes” that provide for different allocations by country in all or part of the 1.8, 3.5, 50 and 430 MHz amateur bands

Disappointments

1.      No new allocation for the amateur service in the vicinity of 5 MHz, and no agenda item to consider such an allocation at a future conference

2.      No future agenda item to consider an amateur allocation at 50 MHz in Region 1

The amateur issues were of course a minor part of the WRC-07 agenda, but we were involved in one of the most contentious agenda items dealing with allocations between 4 and 10 MHz. A series of European Common Proposals had proposed changes to allow for an increase of 350 kHz in HF broadcasting allocations, with a footnote for administrations to allow the amateur service to use 5.260-5.410 MHz on a secondary basis and with a radiated power limit of 250 W. However, HF broadcasting had no support from the other regional organizations and no compromise acceptable to all parties could be found. Ultimately the European administrations had to accept “no change” for broadcasting which effectively scuttled our chances for a 5-MHz allocation.

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) had hoped that if an allocation could not be achieved at WRC-07, an appropriate agenda item could be included for WRC-11. However, the conference had little interest in taking up HF issues at the next conference, having little to show for a great deal of effort expended on HF in preparing for WRC-07. The only HF issues on the provisional WRC-11 agenda have to do with oceanographic radar applications and the implementation of new digital technologies for the maritime mobile service.

The ITU’s planning for the next WRC begins on Monday, with the convening in Geneva of a two-day Conference Preparatory Meeting for WRC-11. Paul Rinaldo will attend on behalf of the IARU.

Dave Sumner, K1ZZ