"We are working to expand our cell environment there because it is such a dense population," said Nextel spokeswoman Courtney Wells. "We are just trying to build more to have more capacity. A lot of wireless is going data so you need to have a strong signal."

The antennas will be placed on the rooftop of the six-story library annex building in the upper/central part of the campus. They will be mounted to four sides of the exterior of the machine room. The height of the antennas will remain within the building's existing roofline height, according to the environmental assessment.

UH spokeswoman Carolyn Tanaka said the annex building is one of three library buildings and was the least damaged when floodwaters damaged 35 buildings on campus Oct. 30.

Besides coverage for the entire area, better coverage is needed inside the thick concrete buildings on campus, Wells said.

PCS, or personal communication systems,, are being used to transmit data allowing callers to communicate with other telephones, computers, faxes and pagers worldwide and the volume has greatly increased demand for efficient coverage, according to the assessment.

Some lawsuits allege that exposure to cellular phone, or radio frequency, radiation leads to an increased risk of cancer, and the Federal Communications Commission says it is a factor that must be considered before a facility, operation or transmitter can be authorized.

With the increased use of cellular phones, companies have been placing antennas statewide to provide service.

According to the assessment, the Effective Radiated Power of the antennas will be no more than 200 watts, within FCC guidelines, and will not result in increased radiation hazard to building occupants.

The project will be regulated by the FCC and requires additional zoning and building permits as well as what is known as a conditional use permit i minor.

"Our capacity level there is really huge," Wells said. "If you've got a lot of volume on one cell site, it really helps to put in another component there to relieve that."

Nextel has transmission facilities south of the UH campus on the King Terrace and at the Manoa Market Place.

Construction is expected to take between four and six weeks once all approvals and permits have been obtained.