‘Smart’ meter health risks

[KEH]

Anyone else concerned about Seattle City Light’s ‘smart’ meters and the increase in radiation they expose us to? And the medical problems some people are reporting since analog meters began being replaced with smart meters? SCL is currently replacing analog meters with smart meters in West Seattle. I’m amazed no one here seems to be talking about the increased health risks documented in numerous sources, including the award winning documentary ‘Take Back Your Power’… We attempted to opt out of our meter ‘upgrade’, and were told that because we have solar panels we are ineligible! This is really concerning considering the ‘upgrade’ is only a change that benefits SCL and in no way benefits our family. We’ve been challenging SCL to allow us to opt out without having to disconnect our solar panels, but without much success. Even though we are technically still in the process of trying to opt out and our account is noted as such, I arrived home yesterday to find an SCL employee attempting to install a smart meter. When I called to speak with SCL today, they confirmed there was a note on our account that we were opting out, and they had no explanation as to why an SCL employee would not have known this. Wondering if anyone here in the community is interested in having a conversation about this to increase our collective power.

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[dhg]

They use cell phone technology, same as cell phones in home. It’s true that they emit radiation but, in defense, visible light is also radiation. We are all steeped in it. When wifi first became popular, there were a few people claiming health problems. Wifi is now 1000 times more common but claims of health issues have disappeared.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/smart-meters-dumb-science_b_2768405

• This reply was modified 5 years ago by dhg.

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[Censored.wsb]

You know I get a headache every time I call Seattle City Light and ask when will I be able to view my electric usage on-line. Got my meter.
They promised last year.
Every time just another excuse.

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[mark47n]

You don’t own the meter, SCL does. It’s within their purview to replace/upgrade it to meet their needs.

Prior to the smart meter SCL did a lot of estimated billing based on prior use. With the advent of the smart meter your billing will be more accurate and, perhaps, eye opening.

As to the radiation claims: unless you’re carrying the smart meter in your pocket, just like your mobile phone, you won’t need to worry about it. As noted above, we are bombarded by all sorts of electromagnetic radiation from visible/non-visible light, cell phones, wifi, x-rays…and the list goes on. Enjoy!

• This reply was modified 5 years ago by mark47n.

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[imanon]

“I’m amazed no one here seems to be talking about the increased health risks documented in numerous sources, including the award winning documentary ‘Take Back Your Power’…”

KEH, We are with you. In my household, we are very upset and concerned about this forced metering conversion from analogue to digital. And the digital conversion is to an “Advanced Metering System” (aka Smart Meter). In addition to monitoring your power usage, it also collects data from “smart” devices in your home and re-sells the data to companies that make the smart appliances. I have read that City Light will make more money selling the data they collect than they will selling electricity. Which is why they are determined to force us all to convert. The smart meters come at the risk of your privacy and your health. And it is all in preparation for 5G, an even greater unprecedented and unnecessary risk to our health. By the way, the closer the meter is to where you sleep, the greater the health risks.

KEH is right. Please do your homework and watch the documentary “Take Back Your Power” and look at the research.

We were not on the ball at first and the smart meter was installed last September, before we understood the downsides. We paid about $85 to have it taken out and received a “non-communicating” digital device (hmmmm…) Sadly, our much safer analogue meter is gone forever. We would not have had to pay the $85 had we opted out before the Smart Meter was installed. However, everybody who opts out of the smart meter has to pay a one-time $123 “administrative fee” and a monthly fee $15 or $16 for the non-communicating meter. Forever! KEH, For the record, SCL employees are not doing the installations; they are done through a sub-contractor. That could explain the installation even though there was a note on your SCL account. Also, are you sure they gave you a smart meter vs converting you to a non-communicating digital meter? This is a SCL link to opt-out of a smart meter and it shows a photo of an opt-out meter (and associated costs):

http://www.seattle.gov/light/ami/opt-out.asp

Best of luck to you, KEH. We’re with you all the way.

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[CarDriver]

KEH & imanon. How are you shielding yourselves from all the other forms of radiation?? Is the meter the only “bad” thing emiting??? Speaking of monitoring…every time you use the internet your website choices are being monitored and sold. If you subscribe to any magazines your info is being sold. If you use a credit or debit card your info is being sold. How’s that any different??.

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[mark47n]

Time for buying stock in tin foil.

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[bohdi]

CarDriver, dhg,
The Huffington post article is kind of a joke. It is interesting that they point out science, then theirs is so flawed. To comment about wavelengths being long and therefore unable to harm the brain is bogus. Microwave ovens have a wavelength of about 12cm, do they think that couldn’t cause any problems? I’m not suggesting that a 1200 watt oven is the same here, but if they are going to talk science, at least base it on something legitimate. I purposefully don’t sleep with my cell phone next to my head, do you? People’s SCL meters could be anywhere on the house, so…

As for the general comments regarding cell phones, WiFi, etc… That all may be true, but no one is requiring that you have WiFi or a cell phone. And if KEH’s question was “does anyone else have concerns”, clearly your particular answer is ‘no’. Which is fine. As for imanon’s points regarding data gathering and your response to it… It’s concerning if you’ve just got the attitude of throwing your arms in the air and burying your head in the ground. I’m sorry to hear that you don’t have concerns about all the data gathering (which you can do things to help, btw; VPNs and Tor to name a couple) companies are doing. That ambivalence is part of the problem.

It is interesting that you both attack someone that was just asking if anyone else was concerned about these risks that were noted in the film and certainly plenty of other sources. I think KEH was also speaking to his/her desire to opt out and the perceived sneakiness of someone found in his/her yard attempting to replace the meter. These are all valid concerns, whether you agree with the health risk part or not.

Magazines, your browsing history, your own use of WiFi and cell phones, and credit card tracking are all things that you do have some control over. If SCL is forcing folks to use a controversial meter and people like KEH or imanon aren’t asking questions, we’re headed in a bad direction. Maybe KEH should have said RF radiation, if that makes it more clear to folks talking about radiation from the sun and what not. Totally missing the point. Regardless of your political leanings, I think we can all agree that the government (FCC, in this case) isn’t always acting in our best interests. (I call out the FCC as the body that determines ‘healthy’ vs ‘unhealthy’ amounts of RF radiation.)

Be open to those that question the status quo and want the power to choose.

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[dhg]

bohdi: I did not attack KEH. I pointed out the flaws in the claims that these meters are harmful to your health. The modern world has many dangers in it but, in my humble opinion, electric meters are not on that list. A reviewer on Amazon agrees with this opinion:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RKG0V7WR8J6VN/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_viewpnt?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00PRVS8D8#RKG0V7WR8J6VN

Perhaps the American Cancer Society would like to chime in?
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/radiation-exposure/smart-meters.html

There is so much change in our modern world, it’s best if we focus on real problems, and ignore the drums of fake science.

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[KEH]

Thank you, imanon and bodhi. Thank you for responding with openness and transparency; I appreciate your real research, shared concerns and for taking so much time to thoughtfully respond to my post. I’m aware that a contractor for SCL is replacing all meters, however the person who showed up in our yard to switch out our meter was actually an SCL employee. He identified he was in the neighborhood that day replacing meters for solar panel customers. Apparently solar panel customers are technically not eligible to opt out, which is in part what prompted my outrage. I wish we all felt empowered enough to speak up in limiting our exposure to RF and/or EMF. Luckily, we have learned that our family is protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act to opt out regardless of having solar panels, and that we do not have to pay any monthly or one time penalty fee to opt out, because my daughter has a disability that is impacted by RF and EMF. BTW, there are many disabilities covered under this category, the most common ones being ADD/ADHD, MS, depression, anxiety, etc. I’m happy to educate anyone interested in trying to advocate for their family.

For those out there feeling too victimized to question SCL and similar systems, or too defended to acknowledge the reality that RF and EMF are no different from how we thought of cigarettes in the 60s, even SCL acknowledged that the waves emitted by ‘smart’ meters cause enough harm that some ‘sensitive individuals’ will notice symptoms from its use. One supervisor at SCL shared that the ‘smart’ meters installed here in Seattle have not shown to cause “as much” harm as the ones being in installed in the rest of the country but that she did in fact understand my concerns.

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[mark47n]

2011: A report by the California Council on Science and Technology concludes, “Exposure levels from smart meters are well below the [FCC’s established standards] for such [health] effects,” and “There is no evidence that additional standards are needed to protect the public from smart meters.”

2010: WHO studied 13 countries found a “very minimal and partially contradictory between cancer risk and heavy cellphone usage”. In other words if you use a cellphone you are at risk as the smart meter and your pocket addiction screen have similar risks.

Smart meters transmit data 1.4s/day, not 20/7.

Microwave intensity decreases at the square of the distance. This means that you’re probably at higher risk in your kitchen making a burrito.

There’s more but I’ll not post an exhaustive collection of study results. I know, I know, these are paid for by government dollars. But you either trust the scientific method or you don’t. Of course, as I read some of the other sites out there that contest these finding, the others out there that provide a counter viewpoint aren’t biased…right?

If you have concerns about radiation in your home start by not having a cellphone, no wifi, no bluetooth, no microwave…and more.

Of course, the ‘net has sites out there for everyone. Anti-vaxxers have their sites, Truthers have theirs, etc, etc, etc. Believe what you want. I recommend making your house into a giant Faraday cage, though.

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[mark47n]

Just think vaccines and anti-vaxxers.

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[KBear]

They’re changing things on me! There must be a conspiracy behind it! They’re suppressing the real science, but I did my own research!

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[CarDriver]

Just read on CNN.com that Trump stated windmill’s cause cancer. My concern is that all these “cancer concern’s” will cause our eye’s to roll, get a good laugh and go on living our lives. At some point a LEGITAMATE cause will come along and nobody will believe you. Ever hear of “the boy that cried wolf” Last question: if someone get’s a bad disease that only affects one in 100 million people will you demand that that product/food be banned??

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[newnative]

The one in a million factor reminds me of the controversy over MSG, an old seasoning (of Japanese origin) that people seem to narrowly associate with Chinese food and claim it’s some kind of poison or allergen.

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[imanon]

KEH:
Yes, please do advise – what is the procedure to pursue opting out without penalties through protections associated with the Americans with Disabilities Act? Do you start by contacting SCL or with an ADA contact? And how do you protect your privacy during this process? Thanks for any direction you can offer.

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[KEH]

imanon: As long as you or someone living in your home has any kind of diagnosis or disability that is impacted (i.e. symptoms made worse or progression accelerated) by EMF, the process to opt out without penalties is quite simple. Get a letter from any medical provider who treats that person, stating they are treating you (or the person living in your home) for a condition that is impacted by EMF and that limiting EMF is important for the health of the person being treated. For example, our daughter’s occupational therapist was more than happy to write a letter on our daughter’s behalf stating: “___ is being treated in this clinic for a medical condition which leaves her extremely sensitive to her physical environment. It is believed that among the sensitivity challenges she faces, electro-magnetic frequency pollution in particular affects her sense of well-being and her ability to function in daily activities such as sleep and play. EMF exposure may be considered harmful to this child’s daily life at this time due to her condition.” It might be worth sharing that I did not have to educate our daughter’s OT, but many health care providers are still clueless and might need some education. If that’s the case for the provider you ask to write a letter, I’m happy to share resources if it helps. Diagnoses I know to be impacted by EMF: anxiety and depression, mood disorders, learning disabilities, ADHD/ADD, PTSD, dissociative disorders, all sensory integration disorders inclusion autism, neurological and nervous system disorders including MS, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimers, etc., people recovering from traumatic brain injuries and strokes, sleeping disorders, any disorder where self regulating is difficult or compromised. There are many more I’m sure, these are just the most common ones I know of and see in my work (I’m a psychotherapist). As you can see by this list of diagnoses/disabilities, more people than not have a family member living in their home who is impacted by EMF. I hope this helps- good luck imanon!

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