Category: smart meters

Toward a Smart Meter RECALL!

CPSC_logo_redblue_QRCustomers all across the United States have reported being harmed by utility smart meters. In Indiana, a mother of three small children can’t live in their home because a bank of smart meters gave her debilitating health problems.  In California hundreds of customers have reported headaches, ringing in the ears, heart palpitations, sleep problems and more.

Customers report flames shooting from outlets, burned out appliances and fires after smart meter installation.  Meanwhile in some states, the utility companies and their regulators response is to charge more money (opt-out fees) to avoid smart meters and they ignore the health and fire hazards.

The US Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) is a federal agency that will take complaints on utility smart meters from all US states.

Last year the CPSC recalled 1.3 million GE dishwashers due to “15 reports of dishwasher heating element failures, including seven reports of fires, three of which caused extensive property damage.”

If you’ve been harmed by smart meters or had safety problems call: (800) 638-2772  Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET  

or submit your complaint by email.*

Here’s the information you will need to provide:

  1. A description of the product;
  2. The name of the manufacturer;
  3. A description of the injury, or death, or the risk of illness, injury, or death related to use of the product;
  4. The date or estimated date when the incident occurred or when you first became aware of the potential for the product to act in an unsafe manner;

You will also need to provide a description of who you are, for example, consumer, health care professional, a government agency;  your name and mailing address; and permission to publish your Report on SaferProducts.gov.  Finally your verification that the Report is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge, information, and belief.

Record the time and date of the call and the name of the person who took your complaint.  Write  down the receipt number they give you.  Keep this information for your records.

Once the CPSC receives your complaint they will send a report back to you for your review and consent.  It will then go to the manufacturer where they will have to respond in ten days.  After that depending on the number of complaints the compliance office receives, they will decide if the products should be recalled!

* PLEASE NOTE: If you hope, or plan to file a lawsuit for damages there is a two year statute of limitations, so registering and providing a date of harm will start that clock. (If so, you might also want to consult a lawyer regarding timing)

Initial smart meter complaints sent by email to the CPSC were troublesome.  Calls to the CPSC today (6/25/13) confirmed that the CPSC is taking reports on smart meter harms.  If your complaint was rejected please persist and follow up with a phone call.  Also we learned in order to reach a decision for a recall they may work with other federal agencies such as the Department of Energy, or the FDA.  Be assured however that the CPSC is handling smart meter complaints.

Sedona Arizona- A Smart Meter Free Zone?

Screen shot 2013-06-21 at 8.34.09 AMOn Wednesday, June 19, the Sedona City Council held a special workshop regarding Arizona Public Service (APS) plans to deploy utility smart meters in Sedona.

Sedona Smart Meter Awareness (SSMA) is raising awareness about the cost, privacy, health and safety hazards of utility smart meters.  APS and SSMA presented information about smart meters. Both sides were given equal time.  Only ten public speakers were allowed due to time constraints, however all spoke in opposition to Smart Meter deployment.  The meeting was standing room only.  The entire discussion, including the presentations and council discussion is available by video here, see part 3A,.

Screen shot 2013-06-21 at 8.30.23 AMNancy Baer, SSMA representative said, “APS representatives seemed to be in over their heads when Councilors began asking questions.  Sedona Smart Meter Awareness created a solid, fact-filled PowerPoint presentation delivered by Warren Woodward. All concerns were thoroughly covered: health, safety, privacy, and cost.”

In response to the question of federal requirement to install smart meters, APS confirmed, “There’s been no federal mandate for us to move in this direction.”

Screen shot 2013-06-21 at 8.15.59 AMAPS currently has a proposal on file with the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) to charge opt out consumers $75 upfront and $30 more added to their monthly bill.  Every councilor objected to that proposed fee.

At the conclusion of the workshop, Councilor Barbara Litrell introduced and Councilor Dan McIlroy seconded the motion to:

“..direct the staff to prepare a statement for the Arizona Corporation Commission that expresses concerns, on behalf of our Sedona citizens, that Smart Meters have not been proven safe and until such time as definitive proof exists the Arizona Corporation Commission should allow the Sedona community to opt out without penalties.”

On a 4-3 vote, the City agreed to file a letter requesting community opt-out without penalties with the Arizona Corporation Commission.

Warren Woodward said, “In addition to violating health, rights, trespass and wiretap laws, APS will be violating the City’s nuisance ordinance if they install ‘smart’ meters in Sedona.  APS should not be immune from law just because they are supposedly regulated by the Arizona Corporation Commission. We asked the City to enforce the law.  Their motion is a first step.” 

Sedona currently has no smart meters deployed there.

Smart meter surveillance use confirmed

SpyToday the San Francisco Chronicle confirmed utilities are giving customers smart meter data to the government and third parties.  Reporter David Baker writes, “Phone records and e-mail aren’t the only kinds of personal data that government agencies can collect on Americans.  They can look at your home’s energy use, too.  And that information can be revealing.”

Smart meters are a surveillance tool, best described by Jerry Day in this video– which has reached over 1.7 million viewers.  And now we have proof that if you have a smart meters on your home, your privacy: what you do in your home, or if your not home, when you cook, watch TV, or  if you get up in the middle of the night is provided to third parties for “legal” purposes when requested.  The smart meter data when analyzed  shows a detailed pattern of your life.

The Northern California ACLU writes, “transparency reports filed by the California utilities companies and obtained by the ACLU of California show that a significant amount of data about the energy use of Californians is also ending up in the hands of third parties.  In 2012, a single California utility company, San Diego Gas & Electric, disclosed the smart meter energy records of over 4,000 of its customers. “

The “privacy” rules, adopted by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) allows disclosure of smart meter data for legal purposes, or pursuant to situations of imminent threat to life or property.  San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) disclosed the records of 4,062 customers. PG&E disclosed 86 and SCE disclosed one.

“In 4,000 of those [SDGE] cases, the information was subpoenaed by government agencies, often in drug enforcement cases or efforts to find specific individuals, according to the utility. The other 62 disclosures came as the result of subpoenas in civil lawsuits. Some of the released information focused solely on billing information, account addresses and other data that could be used to locate an individual.” David Baker- SF Chronicle

According to the ACLU “a single legal request can potentially result in the disclosure of millions of customers’ records.”

More: ACLU website.

Osoyoos Indians ban smart meters from their land

chieflouieOn behalf of the Osoyoos Indian Band, Chief Clarence Louie announced today that he and all Band Council members have signed a governing document prohibiting Fortis BC, the local utility company, from installing Smart Meters on the approximately 703 homes and businesses on the Osoyoos Indian Reserve.

“Having been presented with science-based evidence, the Band Council and I are convinced that Fortis’ proposed wireless smart meters in meshed-grid networks have potential to harm our children and our environment. No scientist on the planet has been able to verify the safety of these extremely dangerous devices that emit microwave radiation 24/7 in perpetuity and which cannot be turned off.”

“As Chief of the Osoyoos Indian band, my first duty is to protect my people, our future generations and our lands. For that reason, the Band Council and I believe we need to err on the side of caution and respect the world’s leading independent scientists who say – and have evidence to prove – that electromagnetic radiation, especially pulsed radio and microwave frequency radiation is harmful to all living things.”

“I am proud of our Council for standing up and voting to prohibit the installation of smart meters on our lands in order to protect not only our own people, but all the peoples who reside and work on the Osoyoos Indian Band lands.”

Mass tort lawsuit filed over smart meter health injuries

gavel-judgementAttorneys David Kyle and Paul Overett have filed a mass tort lawsuit against two California utilities:  Southern California Edison (SCE) and Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) for health damages from exposure to smart meters, and or smart grid.  Also named in the lawsuit are smart meter installer companies, Corix and Wellington and smart meter manufacturers, Itron and Landis and Gyr, with possibly more defendants to be added as the lawsuit progresses.

Attorney David Kyle has previously won a small claims lawsuit against SCE over smart meter installation, and  settled with PG&E in a wrongful death suit involving an alleged smart meter fire.

Sixteen plaintiffs, ten SCE customers and six PG&E customers allege they suffered health effects ranging from headaches, insomnia, chronic fatigue, ringing in the ears, dizziness, heart palpitations, to heart attacks and medical implant interference from exposure to smart meters.

The suit alleges the defendants withheld important safety information associated with the use of smart meters as well as multiple violations of CA laws, including California Civil Code section 1710 which defines deceit as an untrue assertion or suppression of a fact so as to mislead.

Plaintiffs allege negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, fraud and deceit, and products liability.

Elizabeth Barris, organizer for the lawsuit invites customers from other California utilities, including municipally run utilities, whose health has been effected by smart meters or smart grid to join the lawsuit. Elizabeth can be contacted at 310-281-9639 or email: contact@thepeoplesinitiative.org

Where the public gets burned and corporations get rate increases

Earlier this month California state legislators grilled the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) on it’s lax safety oversight and financial problems. President Michael Peevey was caught by a TV investigative reporter at a winery conference, instead of answering questions at a senate hearing in Sacramento: Peeveys Priority: Senate Hearing or Napa Winery?  Legislators voted to wipe out the CPUC’s $1.4 billion budget to “force the regulatory agency to justify how it spends its money.”

On Thursday May 23, PG&E customers continue to demand safe utility oversight from the CPUC. President Peevey started off the CPUC business meeting by saying since everyone had been there before he’d skip the safety instructions for the building.

Garril Page, of Marin County was one of a group of PG&E customers who spoke at their business meeting during public comments.  She said this:

“Lax oversight and failure to regulate too-cozy utilities… How often does this require restatement before there is corrective action? 

It is not Jack Hagan’s military mind we need, but a surgical strike at the head of the CPUC,  to stop unsafe, unreliable conditions, abuse of funds and fiscal improprieties.  

The public is threatened by deferred maintenance of utility infrastructure,  improperly regulated,  radiation-spewing devices,  overburdened power poles loaded with snooping, profit-producing,  data collectors that topple and burn. 

The CPUC used bureaucratic box-checking to conceal the number of exploding underground vaults. How will the truth about power pole fires be hidden?

The truth about Smart Meters is being revealed despite the CPUC’s apparent indifference to scientific research and aversion to public testimony. 

No amount of a carcinogen is safe, radiation effects are cumulative, the damage is irreversible, and for the privilege of toxic exposure we are charged opt-out  fees.

The California Public Utilities Commission: where the public gets burned and corporations get rate increases.”

Bravo Garril! There were many other terrific speakers too.

Cindy Sage Challenges the “Smart” in LADWP’s “Smart” Grid

LADWP project manager guarantees “smart” meters are optional!

Last week at a Woodland Hills City Council meeting, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) presented information about their Smart Meter deployment plans, while environmental consultant Cindy Sage, co-editor of the BioInitiative Report, presented information warning of the deployment risks.

Marcelo Di Paolo, manager of the LADWP Smart Grid project said they received a $60 million dollar federal grant and that the research institutes of USC, UCLA and Cal Tech/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) doubled the project funding for a total of $120 million dollars.  Hmmm… what does a Jet Propulsion Lab have to do with smart meters?Hmmmmmm.....

Di Paolo stated this is a demonstration project and would be in three areas around UCLA, USC, and Chatsworth.  LADWP is planning to deploy 52,000 Itron smart meters.  Hmmm, 52,000 meters is a demonstration project?

He also said the meters only transmit 3 times a day!  Hmmm….Haven’t we heard that before?  PG&E used to say their meters only transmitted 6 times a day. Then they admitted up to 190,000 times a day, per meter.

Di Paolo also said that the project is “purely a volunteer optional program” and that the community can “pick and actually choose whether or not to participate.”

In stark contrast to Di Paolo’s optimism was Cindy Sage who warned about the evidence for health problems from the  pulsed radiation Smart Meters emit.  She stated,  “Those wireless impacts are biologically very similar to the impacts you would have from a cell tower.”  She wisely urged them to learn from the mistakes the Investor Owned Utilities have made.  She asks, “Is this a smart business model, to provide a device for energy conservation…if there are going to be unintended consequences in terms of health impacts for people?”

Di Paolo said the deployment would start in a couple weeks, but two LADWP customers  said they already had Smart Meters on their home, that they were sick from the exposure and that when they complained, LADWP refused to remove it!

Meanwhile, although the manager claims LADWP sent out letters stating at the bottom of the letter that participation was voluntary, nowhere in the Smart Grid L.A. Letter  does it say the meters are optional. At the end of the meeting Di Paolo guaranteed the meters were optional and provided his direct line for people to call: 213-367-1388.

PastedGraphic-1-9Deploying Smart Meters at a time when multitudes of people worldwide are complaining about the health and safety impacts is beyond super dumb, and reckless endangerment of innocent lives.  Our children are the most vulnerable.  Chronic exposure to pulsed radiation is harming everyone’s health.

Thanks to Ecological Options Network for providing the videos of the event. Here’s Part 2 of the meeting:

Smart Meter Harm in Port St. Lucie Florida

Shari Anker begins her comments to the Port St. Lucie Florida city council by stating,  “In the book, Diary of Anne Frank, is Anne’s famous entry that reads, Despite everything I still believe that people are good in their hearts.”  Not long after that she was killed in a concentration camp.  Anne Frank was right that at least some people have good hearts.  But for her, at that time and in that place there weren’t enough good people in her life.”

Shari states, “The pulsed modulated radiation emissions from the Neptune R900 water meters the city is installing causes injuries to my health. I need a zone of safety around my home where I am free of these emissions.”  Sheri’s letters and requests to the city are ignored. She asks,  “WHY NO RESPONSE?”

Lisa Lacoparra had a seizure 3 weeks after the “smart” water meter was installed by the City of Port St Lucie Utility Dept this year.  She also had a seizure last year one week after Florida Power and Light (FPL) installed smart meters on her neighbors homes.  Although FPL removed the smart meters from Lisa neighbors’ homes the Cities “smart” water meters for neighbors, at the end of her driveway are making her very ill.

Lisa’s doctor is requesting for all transmitting meters to be removed within a 300-600 m radius of her home. The City and the utility dept are refusing — even though it is a life threatening situation.

Call to demand that the city remove the transmitting radiation meters and provide a zone of safety for Lisa, and Sheri and everyone who requests it!