by Kyle Wells [email protected] Amid controversy and debate, the BC Hydro Smart Meter program is coming to Powell River this fall and the City of Powell River is not going to stop it.
At the Thursday, September 15 council meeting, councillors voted down a motion to ask the ministry of energy and mines for a moratorium on the installation of the meters, which BC Hydro expects to take place in Powell River in late October and early November.
The motion came as a result of residents’ concerns and general controversy over health concerns related to the meter’s use of radio frequencies, privacy concerns over the meter’s collection of personal daily use, security scares over the potential for others to hack into wireless data and other worries.
For its part, BC Hydro maintains the meters will help it locate and fix power outages faster, obtain more accurate meter readings, improve efficiency in the power system and reduce electricity theft, presumably by marijuana grow operations. The company also says that radio frequency levels will be below accepted allowable levels and the network will be safe, secure and private.
Gary Murphy, Smart Metering Program chief project officer, said there is no way to opt out of the program. Murphy said BC Hydro is committed to hearing the concerns of customers and there is a process for getting more information, but the only option for those who still have concerns is to have their meter base moved, at the homeowner’s cost, to a location further away from the house.
“Honestly, for us that would certainly not be something that we would recommend because we’re absolutely convinced that smart meters are safe,” said Murphy. “I don’t know whether that’s going to be worth the investment for the issues that they think that are there.”
Murphy said the meters are already becoming the global standard and BC Hydro needs to make the investment for customers and to keep up with population growth.
Councillor Maggie Hathaway introduced the motion at the council meeting to request a moratorium on the installation of the meters. Hathaway said she has heard the concerns and believes that more independent research should be completed and acceptable alternatives should be available.
Councillor Aaron Pinch spoke to the motion by stating he has spent “a significant amount of time researching this issue” and that he could not support calling for a moratorium. He said that despite the concerns, smart meters do meet limits set by Health Canada and are less harmful than wireless networks that are already established.
“We’re surrounded by wireless signals that actually are greater than these smart meters: cellphones, cordless phones, wireless Internet from the library that’s coming up into this chamber right now,” said Pinch. “I think this is just overreacting and I’m speaking against this motion.”
In the vote, Hathaway and Debbie Dee voted for the motion and Mayor Stewart Alsgard, Pinch, Dave Formosa, Chris McNaughton and Jim Palm voted against it.
To date 14 communities in BC have issued requests for moratoriums under the Public Health Act.
Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall wrote in a form letter that he has considered “thousands of studies looking at potential health impacts of radio-frequency emissions.” He said the consensus among those studies is that there is “no convincing evidence of adverse health effects from these exposures” but “all, however, call for additional studies and monitoring for potential adverse effects.”
