Tag: smart grid failure

WHO KNEW? The Wireless Smart Meter Meltdown

Cindy SagePerspective 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.

Some national environmental groups bought into the technology, mistakenly gave it a ‘green’ endorsement, and actively partnered with ‘smart’ technology corporations like the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Some have publicly promoted the ‘smart meter’ as a good way to achieve energy conservation. Other environmental groups have been silent. They have turned a blind eye and refuse to take a position.

Environmental group leadership and independence of scientific assessment has taken a huge blow and will take decades to recover. Donors will think twice about where they send their donations to protect the environment. They believed in false promises but didn’t look deep enough. The national priority to convince families to conserve energy for the good of the planet has taken a direct blow. Who can believe in them now?

It shows how little anyone really knew what these meters entailed in ‘unintended consequences’. And how immediate the adverse effects would become visible.

READ MORE…

Project Censored 2013: #14 Wireless Technology a Looming Health Crisis

logo

Project Censored educates about the importance of truly free press for democratic self-government.  They expose and oppose news censorship and promote independent investigative journalism, media literacy, and critical thinking.

Founded in 1976 at Sonoma State University in California, they annually publish 25 top independent news stories that have been either ignored, misrepresented, or censored by corporate media; and they investigate hot topics in journalism and politics.

Story #14 for 2013 is ““Looming Health Crisis: Wireless Technology and the Toxification of America”.

Project Censored introduction to the article: “As a multitude of hazardous wireless technologies are deployed in homes, schools, and workplaces, government officials and industry representatives continue to insist on their safety despite growing evidence to the contrary. Extensive deployment of “smart grid” technology hastens this looming health crisis.

By now many residents in the United States and Canada have smart meters—which transfer detailed information on residents’ electrical usage back to the utility every few minutes—installed on their dwellings. Each meter has an electronic cellular transmitter that uses powerful bursts of electromagnetic radio frequency (RF) radiation to communicate with nearby meters, which together form an interlocking network. Such information can easily be used to determine individual patterns of behavior based on power consumption.

Utilities sell smart grid technology to the public as a way to “empower” individual energy consumers, allowing them to access information on their energy usage so that they may eventually save money by programming “smart” (i.e., wireless-enabled) home appliances and equipment to run when electrical rates are lowest. In other words, a broader plan behind smart grid technology involves a tiered rate system for electricity consumption that will be set by the utility, to which customers will have no choice but to conform.”

Read the story: James F. Tracy, “Looming Health Crisis: Wireless Technology and the Toxification of America,” Global Research, July 8, 2012.  

Smart Meter: heros and bullies in Oklahoma

Joe EspositoJoe Esposito lives in Tulsa County on the fence line next to the City of Owasso, Oklahoma, which was a pilot for the State of Oklahomaʼs Smart Meter program. Joe called the Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) and told them he did not want a Smart Meter. He came home one day from work and discovered that PSO had installed a Smart Meter on his home without his consent.

Joe and his wife watched Dr. Dietrich Klinghardtʼs video “Smart Meter and EMR: The Health Crisis Of Our Time”. After watching the video Joe took Dr. Klinghardtʼs advice and nailed a sheet of lead (30”x30”) between the smart meter and his house and later that night he woke up to discover the two major health problems he had been having were gone. He then built a faraday cage to sleep in which helped him even more.

Joe says, “The important issue to understand is that I did not need any pharmaceuticals, I just needed to get the radiation stopped.”

Joe then worked with Jerry Day, who helped him obtain an analog meter and legal paperwork. Then he talked with a licensed electrician who suggested he apply to the City of Tulsa for a permit to replace his Smart Meter with an analog meter, due to health problems. Joe did just that and the inspector came out said all was fine and he would call PSO to have them put their security lock on the new analog meter.

Within days he received an over-night letter from PSOʼs attorney saying put back the Smart Meter or we will cut your power off.  Joe refused and he and his wife were forced to live without power for over two months.

Joe’s attorney and PSO’s attorney finally worked out an agreement to place a ‘plug’ instead of a meter on his house and gave Joe two months to resolve this issue or PSO will cut his power off again.

While Joe was learning about radiation he purchased a GIGAHERTZ SOLUTIONS Meter HFE 35C, so he could read the amount of radiation from all these electrical devices. He found where his wife would lay her head on their bed his meter would peg.

Once the electrician put the analog meter on Joeʼs home, Joe believed all would be normal inside his home. But the reading at their bed stayed the same. So now they tried no meter on the home, no power to the home, and yet the reading was the same on their bed.

The next day he nailed aluminum window screen wire to the whole south side of his home, which helped lower the readings. What he learned was the hospital approximately 700 ft. to his south was pulsing radiation every 30 seconds, and a cell tower about a half mile to the south was transmitting constantly.

Joe says, “If a person breaks into my home to do harm, I can protect my family. What is the difference if microwave radiation is breaking into my home and doing harm to my family?”

Joe founded the website Stop Smart Meters in Oaklahoma. You can read more about his story in his own words here: Joe Esposito.

Recently Oklahoma TV news station ran a story on the health impacts of smart meters including Joe Esposito and Monique Smith who is suffering from headaches, dizziness and nosebleeds from the smart meter.  She has a note from her doctor saying it’s “medically necessary that the smart meter be removed from the home.”  Still their utility company refuses to remove it, forcing them out of their home.  Here’s the first of three excellent videos. The second and third can be watched here: http://kfor.com/2013/07/23/customers-says-oge-smart-meters-making-them-sick/

Warren Woodward refutes utility lies and deceptions

Warren Woodward has written over a dozen letters to the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) over the last two years about the hazards of, and falsely presumed safety of so-called Smart Meters.  As a specialist in Smart Meter microwave transmission power Warren spent several weeks measuring the peak power output of Smart Meters around Sedona and he found it is much higher that he was lead to believe.

Recently Warren joined forces with Nancy Baer and Monnie Ramsell of Sedona Smart Meter Awareness in a two hour presentation at Sedona City Council.  This resulted in the Mayor of Sedona sending the ACC a request for a city wide option for residents to retain the analog utility meters without any opt-out extortion fees.  See also Warren’s letter to the editor.  (Open Letter to the Arizona Corporation Commission: APS = more deception, lies and misinformation).

The video is an interview with Steve Devol of Sedona.biz with Warren Woodward responding to a critical “Letter to the Editor” about his presentation before the Sedona City Council about Smart Meters.

Family with young children forced to live in the cold and without power for refusing a LADWP Smart Meter

LOS ANGELES- Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) has terminated electricity to the family of a middle school teacher, her husband, and their six children for refusing to have a smart meter on their home, which they say caused their family serious health problems.

In July 2012, LADWP installed a Smart Meter on Derek and Anura Lawson’s home without notice or consent.  Their house was part of a smart meter pilot program. Other houses in the neighborhood still have their analog meters.

That same month their four youngest children started to have serious health problems. The mother, Anura Lawson writes they had fevers “out of nowhere”, “as high as 105”, and they “began to have problems controlling their bodily fluids, our five year old began peeing and pooping herself, our four year began to display the same problems…” The mother also struggled with migraines, insomnia, concentration problems and other health symptoms.

The family requested LADWP restore the analog meter.  LADWP then gave them what they said was an analog meter, but the health symptoms persisted.  The family objected.  According to Anura, LADWP ridiculed them.  She says, “When I called customer service, “Jennifer” laughed at me, telling me they would not remove the meter.”

When an agent of LADWP met with the family he said, “This isn’t one of those ‘SmartMeters’ that have been making all those people sick.  These are RF meters. Totally different.”  He talked about how safe radio was and that it had been used for years.  Meanwhile the children’s health problems persisted.

Clearly something had to be done.

In January 2013, after repeated, unfulfilled requests to LADWP for help, the family restored a true analog meter obtained from Jerry Day.   The mother wrote that after the analog meter was restored the children’s symptoms “diminished greatly, they no longer get high fevers, or suffer from loss of their bodily function.”

Two weeks later, LADWP disconnected their electricity.  Anura saw the workers scale a neighbor’s wall, climb the power pole in their backyard and literally cut the wire to their home.   Since February 11th the Lawsons have been living without electricity, without heat, without use of their appliances and without lights.

Joshua Hart, director of Stop Smart Meters! says, “Pilot programs are supposed to be a test to see how a new system operates.  When problems crop up, you don’t punish customers for reporting them- you fix the problem.”

The family has been using candles and battery powered lanterns to see at night.  They are cooking on a camping stove outdoors, and keeping their food cold in ice chests. The family says the incident has been extremely stressful.

This incident echoes other bullying incidents around the country, where people have been cut off after having had their smart meters removed due to health issues.

Sandi Maurer, director of the EMF Safety Network states, “Federal law states customers should be offered smart meters, not be forced to have them on their homes.  LADWP is exceeding its authority by mandating these devices.”

Jerry Day, a video producer on the forefront of empowering customers to stand up for their constitutional rights states, “This is inexcusable.  This is not responsible power company management. This is senseless abuse of utility customers.”

We agree. The Lawsons need their power switched on and an analog utility meter restored on their home.  NOW.

IMPORTANT FOLLOW UP!  Anura Lawson took this issue to the Los Angeles City Council meeting and their power was restored that same day.

In extreme contrast to this situation, Liz Barris of the People’s Initiative Foundation today reports LADWP has removed a smart meter from a property in Hollywood Hills Ca. She says it took two weeks of wrangling with them until a senior manager Vincent Zabukovec 213-367-2725 agreed to the switch.  Here’s her video of the meter swap.

Article written by Sandi Maurer, EMF Safety Network and Joshua Hart, Stop Smart Meters!

Naperville armed police assist forced Smart Meter deployment- Two mothers arrested

(ILLINOIS) From Naperville Smart Meter Awareness (NSMA): Two Naperville mothers were arrested today in conjunction with the forced installation of smart meters. NSMA President, Kim Bendis and Board Member, Jen Stahl were arrested today during a forced installation at Jen’s home.

Details are still pending but Kim was witnessing the event from Jen’s property and was video taping. Three officers shoved her against a tree, pried her camera from her hands, and cuffed her. Both Jen and Kim were taken into police custody sometime in the 2:00 hour CST.

Kim is a mother of 3 school aged children. Jen has 2 school aged children and a toddler at home. All children are safe and are being taken care of by family or friends.

This is an extraordinary tragedy as there is still a pending federal lawsuit and the issue of smart meters has not been decided in Naperville.  This demonstrates the lengths to which the city officials have been willing to go to force residents into compliance.

Sources close to the group say that during a closed door council session there was discussion of the strategy the city would use this week to obtain 100% compliance on installations. Residents have been told the city is willing to use whatever means necessary.

Local News Coverage: “2 meter opponents arrested in Naperville: ‘A society of violating one another”


“Smart” Water Meter or NO water!

City of Baraboo Michagan denies a request by an 80 year old widow and great-grandmother Audrey to keep her analog water meter and forces her to choose between a “smart” water meter or no water service at all.

On September 24, 2012 Audrey went before the City’s Public Safety Commission and told them she did not want a “smart” water meter for health, safety and privacy reasons, including that she’s experienced health palpitations in her kitchen, which she believes is caused by an electric Smart Meter that was installed on her home previously without her knowledge or consent.

The committee chair contends, that the “Smart” water meter is not a hazard for Audrey and he makes a motion to deny her request for an analog meter. Another member agrees, stating “I don’t see anything that’s harmful”.  The three member committee unanimously deny her request and then they confirm the timing when her “Smart” meter will be installed (in two weeks). The alternative is her water service will be turned off if she does not accept the new meter.  See the video: http://youtu.be/VfDdSCfsoqY

You can support Audrey by writing to City of Baraboo officials:
Mayor Mike Palm – mpalm@cityofbaraboo.com
City Engineer Tom Pinion – tpinion@cityofbaraboo.com
Utilities Supt Wade Peterson – wpeterson@cityofbaraboo.com
Alder Phil Wedekind – pwedekind@cityofbaraboo.com
Alder Tom Kolb – tkolb@cityofbaraboo.com
Alder Michael Plautz – mplautz@cityofbaraboo.com

In stark contrast to this situation, in Fairfield Iowa, City officials were making plans to halt the wireless water meters, and refunding customers any opt out fees they’d paid. According to the Fairfield Ledger article the “smart” water meters were transmitting RF radiation every 14 seconds.