Perspective by Cindy Sage: The misguided program of mandatory ‘smart wireless meters’ has done more to undercut the gains in public support for energy conservation in this country than any other single factor. The national shift to embrace energy conservation in the face of climate change has been derailed by mandatory ‘wireless smart meter’ programs. And judging by the public outrage against the National Security Agency (NSA) spying program revealed by Edward Snowden last summer, Americans have come to understand that government mandates for smart meters is likely one more ‘deep drilling project’ on their personal habits, preferences, life styles and medical conditions.
The smart meter program is widely seen as a spying, snooping, expensive, potentially hazardous, involuntary and entirely unnecessary burden for which energy conservation is a mirage. It is unlikely that Americans will stand for public utilities spying on their homes using energy use and conservation as the ruse, and make money on these data by selling their personal information to third party information brokers for profit.
How could one bad idea so completely galvanize such enormous and widespread public resistance? And lead to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) review of radiofrequency radiation (RFR) wireless safety standards and general distrust for government ideas about energy conservation? And undercut public support for some national environmental groups? It is really quite stunning how a single failed corporate/governmental strategy could backfire so rapidly and so completely.
Read full perspctive column at EMF Safety Network
Cindy lets us know in the article that fewer than 10% of households with HAN, or Home Area Network technology, that will let your appliances communicate with your “smart” meter and allow you to track energy usage, use it!
I wasn’t 100% sure how HAN worked, just had a vague notion, so I looked it up.
You can see from the diagram at the bottom of this article, use of the Home Area Network would result in you and your family being exposed to even more cancer-causing radiation than you’re getting from a “Spy and Fry” meter alone! http://www.emeter.com/smart-grid-watch/2010/han-smart-meter-interface-what-can-we-expect/. Just another reason to get rid of your digital meter – you can save just as much energy, I believe, by unplugging devices you’re not using and turning off the light when you leave a room!
On a slightly different note, I’d like to make people aware that the largest electric provider in Georgia is now offering an opt out for $19 a month. I’ve been getting heartbreaking reports of people that are suffering, or who are deathly afraid for the health of their children, because they have a “smart” meter on the side of their home. They are extremely relieved to have this option.
It’s nowhere near an ideal solution. Ideally, they would never have put these not-tested-for-human-safety electric meters up in the first place! But we are going to keep working to get them all down. In the meantime, anyone who has Georgia Power can call their Residential Solutions Center at 800-642-5172. They say that they can replace them with a safe analog meter in about two weeks.
I would warn people to be aware that some areas in the country are putting up “Trojan horse” meters – electtic meters that still have a radiofrequency emitting transmitter in them. Here’s a link to see if you have one: http://www.eiwellspring.org/smartmeter/StealthMeters.htm. If you are in Georgia and you get one of these when you ask for your analog back, please let me know. That is TOTALLY unacceptable.
Thanks, StopSmartMeters.Org, for the forum, and thanks, Cindy, for another amazing, catalyzing article! You all specialize in that. 🙂
Terri Keller, M. A.
http://www.StopSmartMetersGeorgia.Org
Btw, if anyone would like to comment about why someone should get the “smart” meter off their home ASAP, please visit this link: http://savannahnow.com/exchange/2014-01-22/price-georgia-power-customers-can-opt-out-smart-meters. The electric company is saying they don’t think people will want to get rid of their “Spy and Fry” meters. That’s because they don’t know just how dangerous digital electric meters are!