Are Smart Meters Safe?

Posted by Nina Beety


Wireless Smart Meters are rolling out on the Central Coast, replacing all gas and electric meters (eventually water meters are planned as well).



Billed as green, they are not. They don’t conserve electricity; they simply monitor energy usage. And they may in fact use more energy. Privacy of personal energy usage, hacking concerns along with the security of our electrical grid, interference, the ability for our utility company to remotely disconnect our power, skyrocketing bills, and unreliability are all problems with these meters.



However, the health and environmental impacts may eclipse them all.



These wireless meters on every home and building will emit huge pulses of microwave radio frequency radiation as often as every few seconds throughout the day and night, seven days a week. The scientific evidence for biological impacts from microwave radiation, known for decades (remember the Moscow embassy) continues to grow with impacts such as DNA damage, increased risk of cancers and tumors, cellular stress, decreased melatonin, decreased sperm, cognitive difficulties and brain-wave alteration, heart rhythm disturbances, red blood cell clumping, and impacts on wildlife including to bees. Our FCC exposure standards only cover short-term thermal (heating) effects; they do not cover long-term or cumulative exposure, nor do they cover biological impacts (http://www.emrpolicy.org/litigation/case_law/docs/noi_epa_response.pdf )

People are getting sick from these meters. Reports from those who have had meters installed include heart palpitations, dizziness, inability to fall asleep, memory problems and cognitive disturbances, flu-like symptoms, worsening of existing health problems, abrupt depression, agitation, headaches, hearing problems. This is hardly surprising given what is known about microwave radiation. Michael Herz of PG&E has even said that people have called him not feeling well after the meters are installed.



A growing number of towns, cities and counties are calling for a moratorium or ban on these meters, including the City and County of San Francisco, all the cities in Santa Cruz County, Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors, the County of Marin, Sausalito, Novato, Fairfax, Sebastopol, Richmond, and Berkeley. Fairfax approved an ordinance August 4 banning Smart Meters, and Watsonville voted unanimously on Aug. 10 to take any and all legal action to stop meters being installed and adopted an emergency ordinance banning the meters on Aug. 24. Councilmember Bersamin said, “We need to protect vulnerable, low income citizens, and developing children…we will get our friends in Sacramento to do something about this. We will write letters to our representatives in state government, to the PUC, to anyone who will listen and we encourage other cities and counties to do the same.” Mayor Alejo said, “PG&E failed to carry out adequate testing before rolling out the smart meter program….communities can stand together and send a message….cities will continue to sign on to these petitions….this will continue throughout the state unless PG&E begins to respect the wishes of local governments and halts further deployment.”



EMF Safety Network (www.emfsafetynetwork.org) has a great deal of information on Smart Meters, actions cities are taking, and actions the public can take. Other websites include the Utility Reform Network (www.turn.org), www.electricalpollution.com, http://smartmeters.transbay.net, and www.yourownhealthandfitness.org (Smart Meter page). There are signs that individuals can put on their gas and electric meters to stop Smart Meters being installed.



The meters are being actively deployed in Santa Cruz County, and they arrive in the Salinas area in the next few weeks.



I urge you to learn about the meters and take action. If we want to protect our communities and stop Smart Meters, we must take action.