1) Several of you who have been granted intervener or interested person status with regard to the BCUC application, to which I responded yesterday, have asked what you could do. I believe that it could help a lot if you all expressed concern about the process itself. BC Hydro has tried to amend the Tariff in ways beyond that applicable to the RDA application itself. Many of the amendments Hydro is trying to push through could have significant ramifications for us. If I hadn’t found this revision, almost by accident, we never would have known about it. Any major change like this is supposed to be done as a separate application to BCUC, and the public is supposed to be given an opportunity to ask questions and raise concerns, as interveners and otherwise. Even those of you who are not officially recognized could write to the BCUC (commission.secretary@bcuc.com) with complaints or comments. The BCUC is supposed to be the watchdog, working to protect us, but it seems to be slipping in this regard. Perhaps due to pressure from the government, re. smeters, our rights re. BC Hydro, etc., so it is incumbent upon us to stay alert and demand our rights.
2) This Liberal government, as with the past one, has shown how little it cares for the public’s welfare or how little it respects laws. The Freedom of Information Act is supposed to provide transparency so that the public can find out what is going on. The various government agencies and bureaucrats are misusing the FOI to prevent this, to hide information to which we have a right.
An example: I have been trying to find out info that should be in the smart meter annual report but it isn’t: how much money has been spent paying claims for damages due to overheating or failures of smeters, either to claimants directly or to insurers. BC Hydro refused to provide, quoting FOI Sections 17 and/or 22:
I am not asking for any personal information, only how much of our money is BC Hydro paying out due to smeter fires and failures. The FOI people tell me that they can do nothing. Hydro has a duty to protect its customers’ privacy. I’m not asking for personal information. Nope, the only way I can get this information is to take BC Hydro to court.
http://thetyee.ca/News/2016/03/11/Triple-Delete-Chargse/
3) There have been 1,000s of studies showing the biological effects of microwave radiation like that from smeters, Wi-Fi, cordless phones, etc. Many of these studies were done by various governments and militaries as long as 60 years ago. 3,000 or so done by the US military are on Dr. Magda Havas’s website (www.magdahavas.com) and were provided by Dr. Zory Glaser (under his name at the site). Here is but one report, done in 1981. Page 28 shows difference in response to exposure between women and men. Page 30 & 31 list of symptoms, very interesting…
“Abstract Mankind has been immersed in electromagnetic fields since his appearance on the earth. Only relatively recently has his environment included more or less coherent EM fields (from electric power lines, radio and television broadcasting, radar, lasers, etc.). Most previous studies have involved effects of ionizing radiation on the human body. Significantly less has been done with “non-ionizing EM fields. This report attempts to summarise the state of published knowledge about the effects of non-ionizing EM fields on humans.” Pg. 116
http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19810017132.pdf
4) The US Navy apparently has not started the air war games using EMR, but they have been using tactics on the ground which potentially are dangerous to all life in the area. Our governments still have not responded to the information we’ve been sending and our requests for them to protect us from this intrusion.
5) A father, who has been attempting to get the Wi-Fi in his daughter’s school turned off and wired internet access offered instead, has decided to try to fight from within by running for office. This is something more of us may have to do to get some of these dangerous policies changed.
http://www.wweek.com/2016/03/07/amanda-fritz-gets-a-last-minute-opponent/#civil-comments
6) Not smeter but shows that BC Hydro and this government are putting lives at risk, and part of this is due to the ability of the government to ignore or “override” regulations and agencies that are in place to act on our behalf, for example, the BC Utilities Commission. In 2010 in the Clean Energy Act, Bill Bennett and company forbade the BCUC from any involvement in 2 major programs: Site C and the Smart Meter Program. This gives BC Hydro a free hand to cut corners, spend money where the costs cannot be justified by benefits. This leaves no money for repairs that have been identified, e.g. WAC Bennett Dam which was identified as having significant problems many years ago. But rather than make repairs, the dam has been allowed to erode further, putting lives and property at risk while money is spent on two projects that are totally unnecessary. Shameful. What would happen if the dam breaches and people die? Would those responsible go to jail? Could they put a law in place to protect everyone from responsibility?
7) From a member regarding submitting questions to the government. I am not sure why MLAs are limited as to when they can ask questions – this is open government?? Given this limitation, I suggest we all get questions about this dangerous, expensive program that is trampling our Charter Rights.
“I have been in touch with our MLA since legislature is in now and he has informed me that over the next few weeks is the time MLAs have to ask direct questions of the various ministers. I sent him four questions (with supporting documentation) and spoke with him by phone at the legislature and he will try to ask my questions plus I told him how Hydro appears to be trying to get rid of all the remaining analogs before the class action suit is certified and asked if he could address that in some way that would protect us from having our analogs taken. He said he will certainly try.”
[the questions he sent to his MLA are below, in “Letters”]
Letters:
From Merritt – I hope you will comment:
http://www.merrittherald.com/bc-hydros-tactics-tantamount-to-extortion/#comment-300052
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P.S. my four questions were:
1) How much more over the originally projected budget this ‘smart’ meter program has cost BC Hydro customers and taxpayers? What is the failure rate of the new “smart” meters?
2) Since the government promised that we will not be forced to change our meters. (I quote: “Individual home owners who had not yet had a smart meter installed on their home, would not have to have one.” BC Hydro may be contacting those ‘hold outs’ one last time and if you say ‘no’ and do not consent – that is the end of it. You will not be ‘forced’ into having one or be in fear of it being installed when you are not home.” Asked for clarification, Hogg referred to a press release and a Jan. 23 op-ed piece issued by Coleman. “‘BC Hydro will not install a new meter without the homeowner’s consent’ –that’s the key message,” Hogg said.) Then why are we now being forced to accept smart meters now (radio off or on the only option) after paying over $800 in monthly fees to keep our analogs as promised by the government. PLEASE NOTE that if the answer is there are no more analogs this is because BC Hydro knowingly destroyed the thousands of analogs they unilaterally removed from BC homes. PLUS analogs are still available for purchase and BC Hydro refuses to buy more or recertify analogs as they had done since their inception until the smart meter program.
3) How many smart meters have caught fire? Where are the records of this? Because of the extreme safety concern, acknowledged in Saskatchewan, of families being burned in their own homes or being burnt out of their homes there should be an independent provincial investigation. OR is this ‘Families first’ government not interested in the safety of BC Families?
4) Why is there a loophole in the BC Standards Act that allows BC Hydro (utilities) to use uncertified equipment? Why is the smart meter the only piece of electrical equipment not CSA approved allowed in a home? Where is the independent electrical engineer or agency certification that smart meters are safe? Let us see it, make it public.
Director, Coalition to Stop Smart Meters
Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground.”
~ Wilferd A. Peterson