WRC-19 to Get Under Way Later This Month; IARU Keeping Tabs

The 2019 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-19) will soon be under way in Egypt. The four-week gathering of telecommunication officials from around the world begins on October 28 and will set International Telecommunication Union (ITU) policy and determine international frequency allocations for the next four years. 
 

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) has observers at the conference and is keeping tabs on several agenda items directly impacting amateur radio. Those include a proposal for greater access to the 6-meter band in Europe and Africa, protecting existing amateur radio bands and setting the agenda for the next WRC, scheduled for 2023.

The IARU's Administrative Council met in late September to finalize plans for WRC-19 and to discuss additional issues, primarily working with standards organizations to try to minimize "spectrum pollution" resulting from non-radio noise sources such as wireless power transfer for charging electric vehicles.