Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Let DTE Make You and
Your
Get Smart – Stop Smart Meters!
A local group of concerned citizens is sponsoring a series of free public awareness seminars on the many
controversies surrounding “Smart Meters” – new electric and gas meters currently being installed on
area homes and businesses by utility provider DTE.
Installation of these wireless devices result in higher bills, numerous negative short and long term health
effects, safety risks ( fire, wiring) and continuous exposure to electro-magnetic (EMF) and radio
frequency (RF) radiation – “electro smog pollution,” deemed a serious health hazard by numerous
medical authorities.
Other issues concern consumer rights, (currently no opt out available) invasions of privacy, civil liberties,
and other legal concerns.
Dr. Darren Schmidt, Director, Nutritional Healing Center of Ann Arbor will open the series on
Wednesday, May 9, with a talk on “SMART METERS, Dirty Electricity and Your Health.” Hear how EMF
and RF (microwave radiation) emitted by the newest electrical meters, cell phones and antennas may
impact your health negatively, and are potential carcinogens. Find out what symptom you may have
from this exposure and what you can do about it.
Read this article by Dr. Darren Schmidt: Is dirty Electricity damaging your DNA and causing your health problems?
The following on May 16, Best Videos and Smart Meters Controversies will be presented, followed by
discussion and Q&A. Find out how you can protect yourself, you home and your rights. Citizen groups
have successfully enacted resolutions, moratoriums, and bans across the country. Find out how you can
effect (shouldn’t this be affect?) this change locally.
Both events will be presented at the Crazy Wisdom Bookstore, 114 S. Main Street in Ann Arbor from 7
pm – 9 pm. Free and open to the public, but seating is limited.
Please call or email to reserve your space. Future events TBA – Find out more at StopSMMnow.wordpress.com. Presented by CHASM (Citizen Heroes Against Smart Meters). StopSMMnow@gmail or call 734.277.0098.
They’re Coming to Ann Arbor!
What You Need to Know About the Health Risks of Smart/Advanced Meters
What is a Smart Meter?
A Smart Meter, also called an Advanced Meter, is a wireless, digital meter that transmits customer
electricity use back to the power companies (DTE) using high frequency Radio Frequency (RF)
communication, the same frequency used by cell phones. They are part of the “Smart Grid” and are to
be installed on every home and business in Ann Arbor to monitor your energy use, eventually down to
each appliance. Smart Meters are supposed to replace all analog meters. Unfortunately, they are mini
cell towers and making thousands of people sick while invading their privacy.
Are They Dangerous?
Yes. They emit high levels of non-ionizing radiation, continuously day and night.
Numerous health studies have been done on the harmful effects of non-ionizing, high radio frequency transmissions (such as cell phone and smart meter transmissions).
The World Health Organization Recently Classified this type of Radiation as a Possible class 2B Carcinogen, on par with lead and DDT.
The American Academy of Environmental Medicine has just published a recommendation for the immediate halt to the Smart Meter rollout due to the health impacts.
“Excessively elevated radiofrequency/microwave radiation levels are likely to occur within occupied space of single family
homes and multi-family dwellings”, says Cindy Sage, Sage Associates, “Scientific studies report risks for cancer,
neurological diseases and cardiac problems at levels at and below those produced by Smart Meters.”
Scores of physicists, nuclear scientists, MDs, (Dr. David Carpenter, Dr. Daniel Hirsch, Dr. Bill Deagle, Dr. Magda Havas, etc.) and environmental experts have been warning government and industry officials about the dangers to humans of long term exposure including neurological diseases and cancer.
RF readings of Smart Meters show levels up to 8 times that of an iPhone 4 and 107 times that of a laptop Wi-Fi antenna (see chart on back).
Across the country and around the world, thousands of people are reporting symptoms such as ringing in the ears, headaches, nausea, dizziness, heart problems, fatigue, chronic anxiety, joint pain, insomnia and cognitive dysfunction after these meters have been installed.
DTE (Detroit Edison) Says They are Safe and Meet FCC Guidelines, is This True?
DTE claims the devices are safe to avoid stalling or altering the meter rollout, a multimillion plus
investment. They claim that the meters give off no more radiation than commonly used wireless
electronic devices such as a cell phone, television, Wi-Fi router, microwave, and garage door opener.
These statements are false, see chart.
This is partly due to the use of antenna boosters which boost the transmission power of the meter, the
direction of the meter antenna (which can be configured to transmit directly through your house), and
the meter installation.
What About FCC Guidelines?
The utility company will also claim the meters meet FCC (Federal Communications Commission)
guidelines for safe RF levels. Though the meter itself may barely meet the highest end of these limits
which have not been updated for over 20 years, the measurement does not account for many factors
that exist in reality given the “Smart” mesh wireless infrastructure. Additionally, the utility companies
are time averaging the RF output in order to downplay significant transmission spikes.
What Affects the Radiation Levels?
The direction of the meter antenna; antenna boosters; residential data “collection” meters in every
neighborhood – a core part of a mesh network; the reflection factor (RF reflects off of steel inside, i.e.
your refrigerator, or cars outside); the constant “chatter” or polling between meters and cell towers
which keep the connection live 24/7; and the very high and harmful RF spikes resulting from the
meters pulsing information either to DTE or a collection meter nearby are some of the real life aspects
of Smart Meter deployments.
Additionally, the meters cannot be turned off and pulse radiation into your home several times an hour
24 hours per day without shielding.
What Can I do About It? Who Can I Talk To?
According to the Energy Act of 2005, residents were to be given a CHOICE of whether to accept a
wireless meter or not. You have the right to tell DTE that you do not wish to have a wireless meter
installed. It is your right to protect your home and health.
Many Michigan cities and townships have enacted resolutions and moratoriums against Smart Meter
installation: Oak Park, Grand Haven, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Rochester Hills, Grand Rapids, and
Shelby. The MPSC has ordered an investigation and needs your input.
Get Informed. File a Complaint. Exercise Your Right to Say No. Comment on the Investigation.
http://michiganstopsmartmeters.com http://stopsmartmetersgr.wordpress.com http://stopsmartmeters.org http://www.w4ar.com/Smart-Meters http://www.stopsmartmetersnow.com
For more info Call 734.277.0098 or email [email protected]
Citizens Letter
Dear Friends and Neighbors, I am contacting you because I have a deep and abiding concern for your well being. The greatest threat to your health and privacy is invading this town quickly and silently. You may have received a brochure from DTE, telling you your electric and gas meters will soon be replaced (i.e. any day now) with new advanced “SMART METERS” designed to be read remotely. Far from being advantageous (except to the utility) These devices are DANGEROUS! They pulse radiation and “dirty electricity” into your home which is hazardous to your health. The devices are not UL rated, and so unsafe that installers are known to wear fire retardant clothing and even face shields. At least six building fires in Michigan are directly attributable to these machines so far, and many more reported in other states, where these have been installed. The smart meter devices and the mesh network they feed into are contributing greatly to electro‐smog enveloping our communities. Explosive growth of cellular phones and wireless technologies emit frequencies that assault every living thing invisibly. DTE claims that these devices meet standards set by the FCC – which are obsolete and do not apply to this technology. The device, when spiking, appears to emit much more radio frequency than test studies indicate. Rejection of this technology is true personal ecology. As an individual and citizen, you must act immediately to prevent this scourge from your home, neighborhood and community. Do it now! – or you and your family will be in clear and present danger. We, the people, can take back our power from the power company monopoly. Let us band together and ban this “smart meter” – declare Ann Arbor a “NO FRY ZONE.” JUST SAY NO TO THE SMART METER! CALL MAYOR JOHN HIEFTJE AND CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS TO DEMAND AN IMMEDIATE HALT TO INSTALLATION AND TO INSTITUTE A BAN DUE TO THE THREAT TO PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY. CIRCULATE THE ENCLOSED PETITION AND DELIVER IT TO CITY HALL. Please read the packet of information enclosed, because this is literally as serious as your heartbeat. These devices are especially dangerous to people with cardiac, neurological and autoimmune conditions. Those with pacemakers, defibrillators, and metal medical implants are in specific danger. Continued exposure can cause arrhythmia and is a peril to those who have it already. DTE claims this is part of “sustainable” technology, so you can observe and limit your energy use – which you will have to, once their 24 hour/day four tiered pricing rate goes into effect. “Critical Peak Pricing” events charge $1.00/kwh (vs. $.07 to $.08 per kwh) up to 80 hours annually; see enclosed rate sheet. In states where these have been deployed, bills have increased by 2‐4 times. The only thing “green” about these devices is the money that DTE will be taking from you. The utilities ability to remotely monitor specific energy usage paints a picture of daily activity, potentially subject to law enforcement scrutiny, marketing or hacking. By remote access, power can be limited or cut off without your consent or control. The many threats to your privacy far exceed that of a meter reader entering your yard. Once the installation is complete, meter readers, installers and workers who connect and disconnect power will be out of a job permanently and add to the unemployment rolls. The old analog meters, which have worked perfectly well for decades, will go to a landfill.
DTE is refusing removal of the smart meters – the only defense is to NOT ALLOW THEM TO
INSTALL. ELECTRIC:
PLACE A LOCK ON THE LOOP AT THE BASE OF YOUR ELECTRIC METER.
CHAIN OR CAGE YOUR BOX
PUT A SIGN ON YOUR METER INFORMING DTE THAT YOU REFUSE THIS TECHNOLOGY AS A HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARD AND AN INVASION OF PRIVACY
GAS:
TAPE THE FACEPLATE MODULE TO THE METER WITH CLEAR PACKING TAPE SECURELY
CHAIN AROUND THE FACEPLATE SO IT CAN BE READ, BUT NOT REMOVED
PUT A SIGN ON YOUR METER CALL ACCUREAD (INSTALLER FOR DTE) TO GET ON THE OPT OUT LIST – 855.864.2271 – keep a record of time, date, person spoken to as DTE says currently there is no opt out. (In a recent case, installers ignored the OPT OUT request and the locked gate and jumped a fence to install – ILLEGAL!) CALL AND WRITE DTE AND TELL THEM YOU DON’T WANT THIS DEADLY DEVICE ON YOUR HOME THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO MEDICAL EXEMPTIONS! If you have health conditions, demand that an analog meter remain or be put back on the home. CALL AND WRITE THE MPSC in reference to case U-17000. Call: 517.241.3323 or email: [email protected]. DUPLICATE OR SCAN THIS LETTER AND MATERIALS AND TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW! DOWNLOAD MATERIALS FROM SUGGESTED WEBSITES AND GO VIRAL!
Join the local movement: Email: [email protected] Blog: www.StopSMMnow.wordpress.com – Library/Archives, Meetings, Comment, what you can do and more info. Phone: 723.277.9802
Email the Michigan Attorney General: Michigan Attorney General, Bill Schuette at – email: [email protected] or call 517.373.1110 The State of Michigan needs to hear from citizens!
April 16, 2012 MPSC Attention: Judy Palnau
Subject: MPSC Smart Meter Investigation ‐ Case U17000 Please accept my comments and concerns regarding Case U17000. My objections to the many issues involved with the Advanced Meter Initiative (Smart Meter Installation) are so numerous that for sake of brevity, are categorized.
Increased costs (rates and charges)
Negative short and long‐term health effects
Safety risks (fire, wiring)
Invasions of privacy and remote monitoring
Consumer rights and civil liberties
EMF and RF radiation/pollution, electro‐smog and ecology These concerns have engaged Michigan cities and counties to pass resolutions and moratoriums, against installation as exampled by other communities across the country. On January 12, 2012 MPSC opened a docket for the purpose of launching an investigation into the deployment of smart meters in Michigan. Citizens look to your commission to recommend suitable solutions. However, on April 11, 2012 the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that the MPSC erred in granting a recent $37 million rate increase (part of a $217.4 million dollar annual increase, granted in 2010) for the smart meter program to DTE, as it provided no public benefit, and rejected MPSC approval of a ‘rate decoupling mechanism’ that ensured a profit guarantee for DTE even when consumption was reduced. Michigan Attorney General, Bill Schuette upheld these findings in his opinion the following week. He found the program’s excessive costs had no proven benefit, and that potential opt-out customers should not be doubly penalized by paying for the smart meter program in their rates plus reinstall charge and monthly fee. The courts recent findings cast doubt on the MPSC’s ability to make assessments or recommendations on the smart meter program with any degree of impartiality or integrity. I have been told by the MPSC that they have only rights to regulate rates, and have no jurisdiction over the business practices of DTE. It is unclear to me how the commission will respond and remedy the many public complaints, since my correspondence and communication from MPSC seems to reiterate information provided by DTE. The exorbitant rate increases granted belies public statements that DTE is absorbing all costs of installation, not the consumer. Stimulus (tax payer) money was to be used to rebuild infrastructure but DTE used funds to slap meters on
quickly. It seems the MPSC is aiding and abetting DTE in duping the public with dubious and dangerous technology. The MPSC sent me a letter informing me that as a customer of DTE, according to rule 37 of 460.137, I am “subject to shutoff…for refusal to allow replacement…or removal of a meter.” Who made this rule and when? Who is the MPSC to try to enforce upon me the “purchase” or “providing at increased cost,” a device which serves only the convenience and profit of the utility, is of no benefit, and may be harmful to me? Why should I have power shut off when paying bills timely? I declare that this is tyranny, and I will exercise my civil liberties. This demonstrates a government agency imposing protections for a corporate monopoly. Neither entity appears to have any concern for the health, safety, privacy or economy of the public they supposedly serve.
The MPSC has a record of granting DTE every price increase they requested, which they may request and do as often as they please as allowed by legistration of 2008, the Market
Monopolization Mandate. Energy rates have increased by more than 20% since that time. In 2010 MPSC granted DTE a $217.4 million annual rate increase, to date DTE has fulfilled none of its promises; to build new power plants, provide thousands of jobs, create cleaner technologies and lower prices, DTE continues to be rewarded generously by the MPSC, unless prevented by doing so judicially. Given this history, I am skeptical that the MPSC will reach any substantive conclusions. The proposed OPT OUT program is not a solution, but may be offered as a “symbol of compromise.” Consumers who opt out will still be affected by transmissions from neighboring devices and the mesh network, adding to pollution exposure to electromagnetic and radio frequencies, considered a potential carcinogen by the WHO (World Health Organizations) and other medical authorities. Opt out consumers will be subject to increased rates, charged for replacement meter installation, and monthly fee (penalty) for the privilege of getting back what they had to begin with. This is an unsafe, untested uncontrolled field experiment on the populace, putting the public health at risk. The precautionary principle must apply – prove safety before implementation. The only prudent decision is to STOP THE AMI/SMART METER PROGRAM IMMEDIATELY, COMPLETELY AND PERMANENTLY. Customers should be retrofitted with analog meters at no extra charge.
DTE customers deserve a sizeable rebate from DTE whose practices reflect a “robber baron” mentality and strategy tantamount to legalized theft and piracy. DTE should be fined heavily for unfulfilled promises, excessive gain at public expense, and implementation of a dangerous and unproven technology. If you do not reach these conclusions independently, you have not done your jobs. Your commission should be dissolved immediately, and all members subject to intense legal scrutiny.
BAN THE SMART METERS
FINE DTE
SERVE THE PUBLIC, WHO PAYS YOUR SALARY
Concerned Citizen (advised by MPSC staff to sign anonymously) Please accept consumer complaints beyond today’s deadline as citizens may only become aware of the issues surrounding smart meters after installation.
Watch this 2 minute video from David Carpenter, MD, Public Health Physician, Harvard Medical School, New York State Department of Health for 18 years, specializes in electro magnetic fields.
Stop Smart Meters Now! StopSMMnow.wordpress.com [email protected] 734.277.0098
