Risks of fires & explosions are bringing smart meters into an urgent focus.
By Cynthia Sue Larson | RealityShifters.com
Many products are advertised as “smart” these days, although in some cases, the technology comes with hidden costs. At this time when Smart Meters are being rolled out world-wide, controversy has arisen regarding how they do their job of wirelessly communicating energy usage to the utilities that own them.
“Smart” Meters are digital utility meters that send customers’ detailed usage information to the utility using a radio-frequency transmitter, or over the power lines in the case of Powerline Carrier (PLC) systems. Some also contain other capabilities, such as remote shut-off. Smart Meters are part of a larger plan to change the electricity grid to a “smart” grid–though there is controversy about whether the customer meter is actually crucial to that change. Electric smart meters are replacing older analog style meters, while gas “smart” meters are generally small devices attached to existing gas meters. Wireless water meters are also being installed in many regions.
Some of the most heated areas of controversy concerning “smart” meters involve matters of: safety, security, privacy, health risks, over-charging, hacking, terrorism exposure, fires, and explosions. For these and other reasons, increasing numbers of concerned citizens are choosing to opt out of this problematic new technology in favor of analog devices that are UL listed and consistently covered by homeowners insurance.
While each of these above-mentioned risks deserves a great deal of attention, let’s first take a look at the risks to entire communities when an entire block of homes and businesses are converted to “smart” meters. Such concerns now need to be factored into every community’s Emergency Preparation planning, due to the ubiquitous nature of “smart” meter installations. Four incidents have now transpired with SmartMeters on the north American continent, leading concerned citizens to question their design:
(1) In Palo Alto, August 25 2011, a surge happened for more than an hour in which 80 Smart Meters caught on fire and burned out, while 120 homes equipped with classic analog style meters hit by the very same power surge were unharmed.
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2011/09/04/power-surge-raises-questions-about-smartmeters
(2) In Forest, Ontario, October 31 2013, 70 Smart Meters blew out, with some expelling projectile pieces of SmartMeters with violently explosive force.
(3) In Summerland, November 26 2014, 69 Smart Meters burned and exploded, leaving such destruction that residents were still dealing with the aftermath weeks later.
http://globalnews.ca/news/1724845/watch-summerland-still-dealing-with-november-power-surge-fall-out/
(4) In Stockton, California, March 30, 2015, hundreds of peoples’ homes were affected by a power surge that exploded Smart Meters when a county dump truck crashed into a power pole.
What You Can Do
“Smart” meter planning in the United States is related to the Energy Act of 2005 and administered by the US Dept of Energy, the FCC, and each state’s public utilities commission (PUC). However, in that Act, there was NO mandate to force all residential customers to accept installation of “smart” meters–only that they are offered. Local utility companies in many states have been approved to install “smart” meters, but this does NOT require you to accept them.
Find out whether Smart Meters are being installed in your community by contacting your local utility. Ask your utility how you and others can opt out, and if no opt out option is available, request smart meter opt outs. Check with your local emergency preparedness coordinator to ensure your community has an emergency plan for handling the possibility of fires and explosions associated with SmartMeter failures.
For Further Information:
http://stopsmartmeters.org/frequently-asked-questions/faq-smart-meter-basics/
Smart Meters are exploding! Ontario Canada homeowner discusses her harrowing experience and others weigh in! Listen below.
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Cynthia Sue Larson is a best-selling author, researcher, and transformational speaker who helps people visualize and access whole new worlds of possibility. Cynthia writes and teaches about the science of spirituality, and how consciousness changes the physical world. She has been featured on the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, Coast to Coast AM, and BBC, and has presented papers at international conferences on science, spirituality, and consciousness.
For the past 16 years, Cynthia has shared findings from scientific research in the fields of quantum physics, quantum biology, the placebo effect, positive psychology, sociology, and alternative medicine. Cynthia’s articles have appeared in journals ranging from Cosmos and History, to Magical Blend, to Parabola.
Results from Cynthia’s “How Do You Shift Reality?” surveys conducted in April 2000 and June 2013 document incidences of the most commonly experienced types of reality shifts, and her RealityShifters web site has compiled one of the most extensive collections of reality shift reports in the world. Her popular ezine, RealityShifters, is eagerly awaited each month by thousands of subscribers world-wide.
Cynthia has a degree in physics from UC Berkeley, an MBA degree, and a Doctor of Divinity. Cynthia reminds us to ask in every situation, “How good can it get?”
