A small but determined group of concerned citizens vigorously protested smart meters and the smart meter opt-out fees along Coast Highway 101 in Encinitas Thursday.
Many sympathetic drivers honked horns and gave them "the thumbs up", while those passing by and some in cars stopped to talk and pick up literature. Twelve (+) SDG&E trucks were noted driving by within the two hour protest—one employee was seen honking, waving, and smiling. This will be the first of a number of protests designed to help call attention to the problems with smart meters and to obtain solutions. If you would like to join us, email director@electrosmogprevention.org.
Smart Meter Protest in Encinitas, CA Oct. 4, 2012 Part 1 of 2
http://youtu.be/AAfv-l6w99s
Smart Meter Protest in Encinitas, CA Oct. 4, 2012 Part 2 of 2
http://youtu.be/gMCl06dMK4Q
Out of concern for the public health and safety...
Demands of these protesters:
1. Free opt-outs from smart meters
2. Full disclosure of risks cited by independent experts
3. Remove all banks of multiple smart meters
4. Do not turn on 2nd radio (Zigbee, for Home Area Network/HAN) as this will increase RF radiation in homes (is scheduled for this winter)
5. National ban on wireless utility meters
6. Remove all wireless from grid
7. No RF emissions for future technologies
8. Restore safe analog meters www.electrosmogprevention.org
Background:
What we want: A nationwide ban on smart meters and until then, free opt-outs; elimination of all banks of smart meters, like at apartment complexes; and elimination of the use of wireless in the electric grid and by utility companies for reading meters.
This local protest was held as part of the INTERNATIONAL DAY OF ACTION TO STOP SMART UTILITY METERS during "GRIDWEEK", a national conference in Wash DC promoting the increased use of dangerous and intrusive smart meters.
Our health and privacy are at stake. We all have a smart meter or two on our property, placed there by SDG&E in the past three years. People are reporting illness from these. There is a smart meter opt-out available from SDG&E, provided after vigorous legal challenges at the CPUC that our organization participated in. However, it is for a high fee ($195 for the first year, $120 a year thereafter), set by the utilities and CPUC, despite the fact that state law forbids extra fees for safety or for accommodating medical conditions (1). We want free opt-outs like Vermont has. An opt-out is not enough, as all the smart meters in the neighborhood provide a blanket of dangerous RF radiation, impossible to escape. Dangerous banks of smart meters with even more RF radiation exist where there are apartments and condos, and opting out by one person or a few does nothing to remove the radiation. We want all smart meters banned and those in place removed, free of charge. No customer should have to pay in order not to be irradiated in his/her own home.
1 smart meter can provide the full cumulative body RF radiation exposure, over time, of up to 160 cell phones (Hirsch). A national doctor association, the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, recommends against having a smart meter on one's property for a wide variety of common medical conditions and even states that the smart meters may be the source of some medical conditions, based on extensive peer-reviewed RF radiation exposure research. A position statement signed by over 52 experts who have published peer-review research on RF radiation and EMF (electromagnetic frequencies) and health, with scathing comments about the dangers of smart meters has recently been published in Canada. Smart meters also collect personal data which is shared with other companies and even law enforcement, infringing upon our privacy. One cybersecurity expert from Carlsbad has told the Director of the Center for Electrosmog Prevention that smart meters may be easily hacked and the data switched so one person receives the bill of another. Former CIA Director Woolsey has called the smart grid "very very stupid" as it places the entire electric grid of the nation at risk of failure due to its wireless nature. For more detail on these and other aspects in depth, visit the Radiation Research Trust (UK)'s Smart Meters - Smarter Practices.
More info at www.electrosmogprevention.org and http://lamesa.patch.com//blog_posts/smart-meters-national-call-to-action-oct-4th. For over 5,000 studies on RF radiation and health, go to www.smartmeterdangers.org (Research section).
(1) CA Public Utility Code 328.2(b) states: “No customer should have to pay separate fees for utilizing services that protect public or customer safety.”
Code 453. (b) states: “No public utility shall prejudice, disadvantage, or require different rates or deposit amounts from a person because of medical condition”
A series of articles about smart meters has been published on the La Mesa Patch at http://lamesa.patch.com/users/susan-brinchman/blog_posts, starting in Summer of 2011. Reading through those blog posts will provide the timeline of events, with details and supporting Media for today's smart meter issues.
Interested members of the public may email CEP at info@electrosmogprevention.org for more info.
Susan Brinchman
Director and Founder, Center for Electrosmog Prevention (CEP)
P.O. Box 655
La Mesa, CA
91944
director@electrosmogprevention.org
www.electrosmogprevention.org
Smart Meter Dangers http://www.smartmeterdangers.org/
Southern Californians Against Smart Meters
American Coalition Against Smart Meters www.causes.com/acasm
No2SmartMeters@Twitter.com
