It is fair to say that some parts of Vermont, where substations, power lines, or right of ways were totally demolished by flash flooding caused by TS Irene, sections of the grid will be brand new and, presumably, as “smart” as possible.

From what I’ve read, Vermont is the only state in which every utility has received matching federal funds to install Smart Meters. Utilities will always want to equate Smart Meter installations with making the whole grid smarter, even if that’s a bit of a stretch.

One utility, Vermont Electric Coop, has already employed Smart Meters, although they use the powerlines for data transmission. Here’s an op-ed from the CEO of the utility:

“We have found that the cellular network is not reliable enough for the demands of the smart grid and VEC is aggressively collaborating with telecommunications providers to replace that communications medium with fiber optic lines. In other words, cellular networks can be used as part of the smart grid, but they are not the only option. In fact, they are not necessarily the preferred option. … While the rest of Vermont’s utilities have not yet chosen their smart grid technologies, I suspect that they will mainly use pre-existing or pre-planned networks. In this case, there would not be additional radio-frequency penetration for the smart grid beyond what will be occurring with the ubiquitous rollout of the cell phone network.” (1/18/2011) – http://www.vermontelectric.coop/news-center/197-hazards-of-the-smart-grid

“Though smart grid technology has been introduced in California and other states, Vermont’s largest utilities will be the first to rely on a “wireless canopy” to implement the system.” (7/21/2011) – http://vtdigger.org/2011/07/21/gmp-vtel-and-cvps-pledge-support-for-broadband-expansion/

So much for employing existing and tested methods….

Nobody in this country has a smart power grid, but do you have the so called “smart” meters in Vermont ?
If so, they will not help your recovery at all, or make you power grid “smart”.
The upgrading of the power grids in this country are something that is in the works and will cost at least $300 billion dollars, and take at least 10 years to complete, once they get started, and they have not yet started.

Here in Vermont, while we’re struggling to recover from a serious natural disaster, few people have the time or energy to worry about “smart grid”. In fact, some have already suggested that we’d be recovering more quickly if we had Smart Meters.

http://smartermeters.blogspot.com/2011/09/may-31-2011.html

The denial runs deep.

That really is the solution. Perhaps Santa Cruz County will elect a new sheriff who will jail the corporate criminals. Then we’d see things changing around here.

The truth is lots of people are already addicted to their cell phones. Remember nicotene? And the convenience and power of immediate data. Wow. How can we live without it? Easy, I say, and I worked as a librarian for two decades. I am no luddite, but when a technology creates health risks, and everyone is forced to be exposed involuntarily, it is time to fight. Our backs are against the wall.

Secondhand cigarette smoke was nothing compared to ambient rf because it did not go through walls for miles. I am a person who generally likes to live and let live, and people have their fun stuff, but that does not work when the fun stuff holds serious health risks and actually makes some of us immediately ill.

Keep up the good fight!

I was just told my gym cannot turn the wifi off when I come, despite a letter from my doctor. They said their computer system would not allow wifi to be off.