Brian Stevenson of AT Maintenance, the person who gleefully cut power for many on Vancouver Island, is now in the Merritt area and says he has many exchanges to make.

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1)    In many of our towns and cities new LED street lights are being installed because they are considered less expensive, but there are health costs that have not been considered. In California, people are raising issues that we need to raise with our City Councils. One major one is blue light, the one that interferes with melatonin production, but this is not the only reason for concern.

“The Department of Energy (DOE) and IEEE reported there are serious health risks from LEDs if inexpensive drivers are used.  DOE writes , “Why is flicker bad? For one thing, in addition to being annoying and distracting, it can cause eyestrain, blurred vision, and impairment of performance on sight-related tasks. And in those who are flicker-sensitive, it can cause debilitating headaches and migraines — 10% of the population is estimated to suffer from migraines, and that’s only one of the groups prone to flicker sensitivity.  According to the IEEE recommended practice, flicker has been reported to contribute to autistic behaviors, and can be a trigger for epileptic seizures.… Some of these problems might occur even when the flicker isn’t detectable by the eye.””

http://emfsafetynetwork.org/the-perils-of-led-streetlights/

2)    We’re all trying to make our homes safer, removing all wireless devices and fighting to keep smeters and microcells away from our homes. One major RF emitter that most of us use is the microwave oven. See how much RF is emitted.

The Danger of Microwave Ovens    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–4pHVr9GtU

3)    From a member of a group in California. An interesting way to spread the word and make a difference.

I just was on the telephone for an hour speaking to a Walmart, baked goods shoppe, and 2 different public libraries, I called all of them for the same reason: they all had Wi-Fi in their building.

None of the managers or associates I talked to was aware it was carcinogenic. The Walmart will be sending it up the chain, and the baked goods owner will hear about this, and both libraries are looking into this and putting it up on a board meeting.

My point?

If you haven’t already, call places in your community! Libraries, schools, stores! Voice your concern – and get the word out! People will be talking about this (and thinking about this). It may help to have some notes to go off of – these are the notes I used today:

– are you aware that the electromagnetic radiation emitted by Wi-fi and other wireless technologies has been classified by the World Health Org as a class 2b carcinogen – in the same category as DDT and lead?

– people who are EHS are already having to tolerate people selfishly using their cell phones and wireless gadgets to fool around – now they have to deal with industrial strength Wi-Fi pulsing radiation…

– libraries are supposed to be safe havens for children

Please open that telephone book or look up numbers and start calling! If everyone did this all around the country, we could start something! Every call counts! Make sure to provide contact info if they want to follow up with you.

4)    William Bathgate, an Electrical Engineer in the US, said in a recent email that he would never have an ITRON smeter on his home. He has given testimony before the Michigan Utility Commission warning about the many design flaws he has found in ITRON smeters. He finds the switch mode power supply (the device that converts a small amount of the electricity coming from the pole from AC to DC to run the meter) a major fire hazard. Other Engineers have found the remote disconnect switch poorly designed and this has been found to have caused many fires.  Could this be why BC Hydro refuses to have an Electrical Engineer inspect this device and to certify it if he believes it to be safe? Bathgate, and other Electrical Engineers, have said this meter could not be certified safe, no Engineer would risk losing his credentials by saying it’s safe.  Please help get this to the attention of BCUC, plus every MLA.

 

I am very familiar with the design elements of a switched mode power supply because I had to include “Common Mode” filters into the products I was responsible for while at Emerson Electric to minimize the Electro-Magnetic Interference (EMI) coming from the switching integrated circuit back onto the feeding input AC circuit and the output AC circuit. A clean 50 or 60 Hz is needed and the AC input and AC output had to be void of any oscillation introduced by the switching circuit. I would not have been able to sell the same ITRON switched mode circuit design with the products I managed. I would have been fired for allowing such a condition.

If DTE (or any Utility) was to demand of ITRON, their supplier, to provide a “Common Mode” filtering circuit and tested this design for elimination of EMI and of stray capacitance present in the current design, I believe the troubles with people becoming ill from the Opt-Out AMI meter could be significantly mitigated. This should not be ignored or taken lightly. There could be a solution to help the people affected by the high frequency oscillations created by the switched mode power supply.

In short lacking a redesign of the AMI meter switched mode power supply the solution for people affected by the AMI meter program is very simple and costs nothing, allow those affected residents and business to retain an Analog meter which is readily available and meets all ANSI and other applicable standards.

https://stopsmartmetersbc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/ecodwell-nov2016.pdf   go to Page 3.

Letters:

From: Sharon Noble
Sent: December 13, 2016
To: Elizabeth May <elizabeth.may@parl.gc.ca>

Subject: Consumer Protection

Dear Elizabeth,

Right this minute, the lives and property of British Columbians are being put at risk by a dangerous product and I have been unable to find any agency, whether provincial or federal, including Consumer Affairs, that can help us. I am appealing to you, as one of the most respected MPs in our Parliament, to amend the regulations that prevent the Consumer Affairs from acting on our behalf.

As you know, I have been attempting to find ways to protect the citizens of BC from the dangers posed by smart meters. The dangers are real and verifiable, ranging from the health concerns due to constant exposure to microwave radiation, to security, to fires. For the last 2-3 years I have devoted my energy to documenting fire incidents in BC involving smart meters. I have reports from the BC Fire Commissioner, the BC Safety Authority and BC Hydro confirming that smart meters have failed.  In addition professional electrical engineers, after having studied smart meters and their specifications, have determined  that wireless smart meters have design flaws that make them fire hazards.

I have sent the BC Utilities Commission all of this information but the Commission feels its hands are tied because of the Clean Energy Act which prevents them from becoming involved in any aspect of the smart meter program save setting rates.

I am writing you because a federal agency, the Consumer Affairs is saying that its hands are tied, too, because the smart meters are not consumer products. I was told that equipment that is owned by utility companies is outside the jurisdiction of that department.

Even though BC Hydro knows that these meters are fire hazards and the risk was increased by allowing unqualified persons to install them, it cannot be held liable for any damage or injury that has been caused. BC Hydro itself has included in the BC Electric Tariff (which it writes and BCUC approves) the following provision: (http://www.bcuc.com/Documents/Proceedings/2015/DOC_45333_B-1-1_BCH-Amendments-docs.pdf)

9.5 Liability of BC Hydro

BC Hydro will endeavour to provide a regular and uninterrupted supply of Electricity but does not guarantee a constant supply of Electricity or the maintenance of unvaried frequency or voltage and will not be responsible or liable for any loss, injury, damage or expense caused by or resulting from any interruption, termination, failure or defect in the provision of Electricity, whether caused by the negligence of BC Hydro, or its representatives or agents or otherwise, except to the extent that the loss, injury, damage or expense results directly from the wilful misconduct of BC Hydro or its representatives or agents, provided, however, that neither BC Hydro, nor any of its representatives or agents is responsible for any loss of profit, loss of revenue or other economic loss, even if the loss arises directly from the wilful misconduct of BC Hydro or its representatives or agents.

This leaves us as the customer of a monopoly that has no responsibility for any injury, damage, or loss. BC Hydro is the sole provider of an essential service and we are left with no help and no agency that has the ability to ensure that we receive safe service.

These devices are not just utility equipment out on a pole along the street. They are on our homes, often on bedroom walls where children sleep. I believe that the regulations that currently prevent the Consumer Affairs from reviewing the meters performance and problems are in desperate need of amendment. Please, Elizabeth, will you raise this issue with your colleagues in Parliament?

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a healthy, happy 2017.

 

= = =

From: Elizabeth May
Sent: December 14, 2016
To: Sharon Noble; elizabeth.may@parl.gc.ca
Subject: Re: Consumer Protection

Thanks Sharon.

I had a recent and great meeting with Devra Davis and we are trying to educate other MPs…It sure is uphill!  I do not have a spot in the roster for private members bills… I will see if any MP is in a good slot and willing to take this on…

Thanks for sharing this news…

Elizabeth