Ned Vernoga of Chico was enjoying a Fort Bragg vacation when he spotted the vigorous SmartMeter protest July 29 in front of the PG&E office on Main Street. About 50 people showed up to protest the ongoing installation of the wireless devices, which read meters in real time.
“There has been a lot of people objecting in our area too and I”d like to find out what it is all about,” Vernoga said. He engaged several people in conversation, including local contractor Bruce Broderick, who provided him information that shows that utility easements don”t give the Public Utilities Commission the jurisdiction to authorize the installation of Smart Meters on private property.
Vernoga said so far SmartMeters are a good thing on his Durham walnut and almond farm. He said meter readers cause problems such as creating mud ruts and stirring up dust that causes mites to infect his orchards. That can result in air pollution from the mite treatment.
He hasn”t had any problems with the devices misreading or having problems, although he has heard stories about those who have. He says his electrical costs have been a little lower so far.
PG&E installed SmartMeters on his five electric meters. When three new meters were installed, Vernoga asked for SmartMeters on those too and was baffled when PG&E told him they were only set up to install conventional devices that require meter readers.
Vernoga discovered in talking to the protesters that the biggest problem was electrosensitive people who don”t want the WiFi broadcasts of SmartMeters being forced on them.
“That is something I just don”t know anything about,” Vernoga said.
Actually one of the key points of protesters is that nobody knows enough about the health and safety issues of SmartMeters and the widespread use of WiFi and other electromagnetic broadcasts.
“I do not believe that the overall effects of EMF has been well-researched. We are making ourselves into lab rats by allowing a headlong rush into an ever-increasing electromagnetic world,” said Chris Skyhawk, who was among the protesters. The issue of electromagnetic fields is taken more seriously in several European countries than the U.S. Sweden recognizes electrosensitivity as a disability. There are planned communities in Sweden where people can live free from microwaves, cell phones and WiFi.
“There are people in our community who say they already feel it. I do not, myself, but these are members of our community. We should not stand idly by while a monopoly … throws them under the bus,” Skyhawk said.
Even SmartMeters advocates concede more information and study is needed. As for now, there is not enough information available to prove or disprove long-term effects of these new technologies.
Will the protest have an impact?
“I doubt that they will run up the white flag of surrender just because we had a demo outside their office. This company has shown a great deal of callousness towards its customers, so the only way to prevail on them will be a lot of public awareness and pressure,” Skyhawk said.
He said PG&E has a history of being opposed to local autonomy, such as opposition to Community Choice Aggregation. The company also pushed a failed ballot proposition that sought to make it difficult for local governments to form rival utilities. The protesters got occasional honks of support. They left enough room for people to come and go from the PG&E office.
“This is a well-connected monopoly. Their opt-out proposal, which will be heard by CPUC, forces their customers to pay for a meter they never asked for in the first place … There will have to be a long-term focus by activists on public awareness and public pressure. Today was one step toward that,” said Skyhawk.
RefuseSmartMeters.com lists numerous concerns about the new technology.
For more information about SmartMeters from PG&E, call 1-866-743-0263. To delay SmartMeter installation, call PG&E at 1-877-743-7378.
