Tampa City Council considers Smart Meter resolution

At the June 28^th Tampa City Council meeting, the council was shown a presentation by Deborah Rubin concerning the installation of Automated Meter Reading AMR  meters by Tampa Electric Company.  She informed the council that TECO has been installing these meters without the knowledge of the consumer.  Rubin requested that the City of Tampa pass a resolution declaring that customers must be notified before Tampa Electric Company installs an AMR, or the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) smart meter, on their home; and be allowed to opt out if they choose, without being forced to pay a fee.  Ms. Rubin came with pages and pages of research material suggesting that smart meters might pose potential health risks to energy consumers and TECO customers.

Although there are no specific studies on smart meters, there are hundreds of peer reviewed studies on non-thermal radiation proving it harmful to human health.

A recent letter sent to the Florida PSC from the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) states that for over fifty years the organization has been studying and treating the effects of the environment on human health.  The letter states that for the last twenty years “our physicians began seeing patients who reported that electric power lines, televisions and other electrical devices caused a wide variety of symptoms.”

In the letter, the AAEM asks for:

• An immediate caution on Smart Meter installation due to potentially harmful RF exposure.

• Accommodation for health considerations regarding EMF and RF exposure, including exposure to wireless Smart Meter technology.

• Independent studies to further understand the health effects from EMF and RF exposure.

• Recognition that electromagnetic hypersensitivity is a growing problem worldwide.

• Understanding and control of this electrical environmental bombardment for the protection of society.

• Consideration and independent research regarding the quantum effects of EMF and RF on human health.

• Use of safer technology, including for Smart Meters, such as hard-wiring, fiber optics or other non-harmful methods of data transmission.

The council appeared to take Ms. Rubin’s concerns about smart meters seriously, and thanked her for her presentation. They called her back to question her further on the issue.  Councilman Frank Reddick asked if she had any data that would show that anyone has died from being exposed to AMR or AMI meters.

The issue is not that exposure to these meters can kill someone instantly.  Like so many other health issues, there will be varying degrees of sensitivity in people to electric and magnetic fields (EMF) and radio frequency (RF) exposure.

The council agreed to review the information that Ms. Rubin provided and bring it to the attention of the City of Tampa legal department to see if they can prepare a resolution that would allow TECO customers to opt out of the metering program. They also agreed to encourage an investigation by the Public Service Commission on the safety of these meters to energy customers.

We are already exposed to these through wireless computers and cell phones, microwave ovens, ham radios, GPS devices, and many more. A number of people with extreme- or hyper-sensitivity have reported adverse and sometimes severe health effects.  The federal government has guidelines on radio frequency safety and exposure.  They are aware of the carcinogenic potential of such exposure.

Perhaps one meter on your home will not affect your or your family’s health.  But what happens if every home in your neighborhood has a smart meter; every unit in an apartment building has a smart meter; we are being bombarded by EMF and RF continuously?

As I have written in previous articles here, and here, the smart meter program seeks national, and ultimately global, connectivity to a Smart Grid.  The AMI meter reads two ways, and allows the utility to monitor your energy use.  It is being presented to the consumer as a way to self-monitor your use of electricity so that you can reduce your electric bill by using electricity at off-peak hours, which will be charged at a lower rate.  You have to ask yourself why the electric companies encourage you to use less electricity, when by doing that they would make less money.  A smart meter also allows the utility to turn off your electricity when they deem it necessary.

Your electric company will know when you are home and when you are not, and when you are using certain appliances.  Is this an invasion of your privacy? Is this a threat to your health? Do you care?

Below is a rant from Mark Levin on Smart Meters.