Peter Douglas, whose 13-year-old son Liam has been using the park since he was a toddler, is one of the 500 residents who have signed a petition opposing the infrastructure.

The telecommunications company’s application for the 30-metre tower was approved, subject to community consultation, by the Moorabool Shire Council in its annual meeting on August 3. The council is set to receive a rent of $12,000 a year for the tower.

But Mr Douglas said locals were against the plan.

He said investigations around the world had revealed exposure to the towers could increase a person’s risk to different types of cancer.

“People are concerned about the health and safety of their children,” Mr Douglas said. “From the age of pre-school to senior footy, my son has been playing junior footy, cricket and socialising with his friends.That’s potentially 20 years of exposure right underneath these towers.”

Optus Mobile has billed the infrastructure as part of its expansion within the Darley and Bacchus Marsh areas. It proposes to swap an existing council floodlight tower at Darley Recreation Reserve for a tower and pole as well as build an equipment shelter on a 50-square-metre site near the scoreboard.

Moorabool Mayor Pat Griffin said the council was prepared to knock back the proposal if their was opposition from residents. The plan, he said, had received approval from the Darley Park committee of management after it was approached by Optus in July.

An Optus spokesperson said electromagnetic energy levels for all residents would be well below those set by the Australian Standard.