by Katherine | 17 Oct, 2014 | Events, Latest News, Users Feedback
What happens when a doctor and his local community ask questions about a proposed Cell Phone Tower in their neighbourhood ? The answers will shock you. This is a ‘Must See’ Movie – and here is your opportunity to see it for free.
When? Tuesday 28th October at 7.00pm
Where: St Heliers Centre, 100 St Heliers Bay Rd, St Heliers, Auckland 1071
(If you are not in Auckland, please let friends and family in Auckland know about the screening in a timely manner so they don’t miss out.)
Booking essential: Tel 5756098
There will be free refreshments after the movie.
Paul Waddell from www.safespace.net.nz will be available to answer questions.
If you are interested in the microwave radiation and health issues, please consider joining the email list for www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz to get updates on what is happening with the smart meter issue in NZ. (If you are in Australia, please visit www.stopsmartmeters.com.au.)
by Katherine | 15 Oct, 2014 | Events, Latest News, Take Back Your Power, Users Feedback
Just a reminder that on October 16 there is a special community screening of the award winning smart meter documentary Take Back Your Power.
Please make plans to attend and/or tell friends and family in this area about the screening. Thank you!
For full details see this link:
https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/uncategorized/october-16-take-back-your-power-napier/
by Katherine | 14 Oct, 2014 | Latest News
A test of a smart meter modem (Sierra Wireless EWM GRPS 100) carried out in Auckland, New Zealand showed that the level of microwave radiation it produced might exceed the level allowed under NZ’s national standard NS 2772.1:1999.
The test equipment was located 20cm away and the amount of microwave radiation when the modem was operating at its highest power was 4,458.886 microwatts per square metre. (NS2772.1:1999 is 4,500,000 microwatts per square metre for the 900 MHz frequency band at which the modem was transmitting.)
This suggests that microwave exposure at a distance of less than 20cm might exceed NS 2772.1:1999. (When the calculations are done which show the microwave radiation exposure at less than 20 cm have been done, I will add the results to this post.)
Website editor’s note: Since post was published an engineer friend has confirmed to me verbally that the amount of RF at produced by the smart meter would be well in excess of 4.5 million microwatts per square metre at the antenna. However, he has not yet supplied a graph to illustrate this.
Given that the scientists who compiled the BioInitiative Report (www.bioinitiative.org) consider that 1,000 microwatts per square metre is a suitable upper limit for human exposure, the level of radiation produced by the modem is a serious concern.
The limited test data that is available for smart meters in use in NZ has shown that they transmit intermittently rather than constantly. Also, they may not operate at full power in many situations. However, a home owner has no way of controlling how much radiation is produced other than having the modem removed or the smart meter replaced.
You can see the test report here:
EMC Report for AMS Sierra Wireless EWM100 GPRS Modem Meter (3)
End Note: Unfortunately, even though this modem would be capable of exceeding 4.5 million microwatts output (the approximate legal limit for a cell phone tower transmitting at 900 MHz) I have been informed that the modem is still compliant with the NZ National Standard, the reason being that time-averaging of smart meter pulses over a six minute (360 seconds) period is allowed. This means that because under normal operating conditions, the type of modem used in the test would produce radiation intermittently rather than constantly, the times at which it is not producing radiation (a zero level) can be counted in the assessment with its compliance with the standard.
NB: If you would like to keep up to date with the smart meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz Thank you
by Katherine | 14 Oct, 2014 | Latest News
A document prepared by smart meter manufacturer EDMI shows that its GPRS modem EWM100 produces less microwave radiation than the level permitted by the NZ legal standard NS2772.1:1999 but still a very large amount of radiation nonetheless.
As you can see from the attached document, the modem can produce pulses of microwave up to 1,990,000 microwatts per square metre.
Given that the scientists who compiled the BioInitiative Report (www.bioinitiative.org) consider that 1,000 microwatts per square metre is a suitable upper limit for human exposure, the level of radiation produced by the modem is a serious concern.
Due to the high amount of radiation produced by the modem EDMI recommends that signs be used to warn people who may spend any large amount of time next to the modem (such as might occur if the smart meter were on the wall of their bedroom or next to a chair where they work.) however, I am not aware of any case in NZ where4 any smart meter installer has put up a warning notice regarding the microwave radiation hazard posed by a smart meter.
NZS 2772 – Exposure to Radiofrequency fields – EWM 100 with comment
by Katherine | 9 Oct, 2014 | Government and Electricity Industry Positions, Latest News, Privacy, Users Feedback
An earlier post on this website (since corrected) erroneously stated that having a smart meter could mean that householders could have their heat pump turned off remotely by their electricity company. (In actual fact, some smart meters may be able to turn down heat pumps down to their lowest setting, but they should not be able to turn them off altogether… please read on for more details and to learn whether you may be affected if you have a heat pump that may be able to be controlled via a smart meter.)
My initial error (in stating that a smart meter with a ZigBee chip* could potentially be used to remotely turn off a heat pump) was kindly pointed out to me by Graeme Purches from Trustpower. In an email he wrote:
“There are probably less than 20 meters in NZ that are equipped for this [turning off heat pumps and other devices remotely], and they are installed as part of field trials to test their capabilities.”
He added:
“At the end of the day, the direction the industry is headed is that people will in the future be able to determine at which price point they want their appliances to start and stop. The control will be in the hands of the consumer, unlike controlled hot water, which is a network load issue and can legitimately be controlled in return for lower price because those using the option have hot water storage. You can’t ‘store’ the heat from a heat pump so the industry would never want to control those.”
I decided to investigate the issue of how smart meters may be used to remotely control heat pumps (without the householder’s consent) in more detail.
My initial (and as it turned out, incorrect) information about heat pumps having mandatory “demand response functionality” came from the website of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.
In following up on this issue, I first tried to access the current standard for heat pumps and found that while there was one in existence, I could not access it unless I either went to the central library in Auckland (not very practical) or paid a couple of hundred dollars (not feasible either).
I therefore sought the advice of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Agency (EECA).
A helpful staff member wrote an email that explained the following:
1) That having “demand response functionality” is not currently mandatory in NZ.
2) That some of the heat pumps on the NZ market do have “demand response functionality”. This “demand response functionality” cannot be used to turn the heat pump off altogether but it can be used to turn the heat pump down to its lowest setting.
3) That manufacturers can choose to show that their heat pump has demand response functionality on the label on their heat pump. You can click on the image to make it larger. The tick mark which is circled in red indicates that the appliance has “demand response functionality”.
Presumably heat pumps that have “demand response functionality” will contain a ZigBee and/or some other radiofrequency radiation (RFR) producing device to allow the appliance to communicate with a smart meter. I have no idea whether appliances which have “demand response functionality” will be producing RFR all the time or intermittently or whether the default setting for the appliance will have the “demand response functionality” switched off.
However, if you do not want extra RFR in your environment and/or you do not want to risk your electricity company being able to control your heat pump via a smart meter in your home, it would seem prudent to avoid buying items with “demand response functionality” indicated by the label.
Please note that I do not know whether it is mandatory for manufactures that make appliances that have “demand response functionality” to declare this capability on the label. For this reason it would be prudent to ask the retailer whether any appliance you would like to buy has any “demand response functionality”, regardless of the label. If you already have a heat pump and it not longer has its label, please see the info at the bottom of this post.
Conclusion
So there you have it. It does appear that some smart meters in NZ (those than contain ZigBee chips*) may have the capacity to remotely control some heat pumps, although this feature may not yet be active. It also appears that there are heat pumps on the NZ market which have “demand response functionality” which could allow them to be controlled via a smart meter.
*In NZ, smart meters that contain ZigBee chips include:
WEL Networks Ltd “smart box” (actually a Landis+Gyr smart meter) and the Landis+Gyr smart meters being installed by Network Tasman Ltd and Counties Power in South Auckland/Franklin. These contain a “silver spring” brand “network interface card” which includes a modem and a ZigBee. The default mode for the ZigBee on the “silver spring” brand “network interface card” has been stated to be inactive, so these ZigBee chips, may not yet be functional. (Presumably they could be activated remotely by a power or lines company should the company with an active link to the smart meter modem decide to do this.)
It is possible other smart meters contain ZigBee chips; some EDMI smart meters which are very common in NZ have the potential to include a ZigBee chip.
If you are in any doubt about whether the smart meter at your home has a ZigBee chip, your electricity retailer should be able to tell y0u.
If your heat pump no longer has its label you can find out about its “demand response functionality” through the following procedure:
1) Go to this link:
http://www.energyrating.gov.au/for-industry/regulation-information-for-industry/meps/
2) Scroll down the link above until you come to this text:
Next steps for households and businesses
3) Click on the word “Compare energy ratings”…as above and you will get to this link:
http://reg.energyrating.gov.au/comparator/product_types/
4) At the link above you will see a list…pick “Air Conditioners” by clicking on this link Air Conditioners – AS/NZS 3823.2 and you will get through to this link:
http://reg.energyrating.gov.au/comparator/product_types/64/search/
At the link above you will see a row of black buttons…one is Download CSV.
Click on this and you will get an Excel file. Open the file.
The field that indicates whether a heat pump has “demand response functionality” is labelled “BE” at the top of the column. The word “TRUE” in the “BE” column indicates the heat pump has “demand response functionality”. The word “FALSE” in the “BE” column indicates that a heat pump does not have “demand response functionality” .
by Katherine | 8 Oct, 2014 | Latest News, Privacy, Users Feedback
Anyone who was affected by the recent blackout in parts of Auckland will have a new awareness of just how dependent we are as a society on electricity. Black0uts are not only inconvenient but potentially dangerous to health and costly to businesses. (Fortunately in the latest black-out, caused by a fire destroying cables at a substation in the suburb of Penrose, there were no fatalities from the fire, nor, as far as I know, from interruption of power supply to people who are dependent on medical technologies that require electricity.)
Smart meters and the purportedly “smart grid” may potentially increase the risk of further black outs, as “black hat” hackers are set to reveal soon, according to an article on www.smartgridawareness.org. A hostile government or other organisation (or even an individual) with a destructive agenda could potentially cause massive disruption to a city or perhaps even an entire country by hacking smart meters or “smart grid” infrastructure.
Full details are at this link:
http://www.smartgridawareness.org/2014/10/04/smart-meters-can-be-hacked/
by Katherine | 3 Oct, 2014 | Events, Latest News, Take Back Your Power, Users Feedback
Just a reminder that there will be a second community screening of the award-winning smart meter documentary Take Back Your Power in Marton on October 16. Full details are at this link:
https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/uncategorized/october-16-take-back-your-power-marton/
Please let family and friends in this area know about this screening.
Also: If you are on Facebook you may like to visit this new group and let your friends know about it.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rangitikei-Smart-Meter-Watch/1472539493022803
Thank you!
by Katherine | 2 Oct, 2014 | Latest News
A spate of fires involving “smart” electricity meters overseas (and subsequent recalls of some smart meters) has increased interest in the potential of smart meters to cause fires in NZ.
There was a spate of smart meter associated fires in Christchurch in 2010, as you can see from this link: http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/fireprone-meter-boxes-causing-concern-2010060317
I asked the NZ Fire Service for information about meter box fires in NZ and below you can see the information kindly supplied to me. However, it does not differentiate between the type of meter from which a fire originated as the NZ Fire Service does not keep this level of details in its statistics, as you can see from the comment by the officer who supplied the data. The statistics go until 2010, similar to other statistical data on the NZ Fire Service website.
(Click on the table to make it bigger.)
If you have suffered a fire originating from your meter, please consider letting me know the brand and model meter that you had, and whether your meter was mounted outside in a meter box or inside as part of your meter board. You can contact me through this link:
If the meter was destroyed beyond recognition in the fire and you did not previously know what sort of meter you had, your electricity retailer should be able to supply you with this information.
A good source of information about smart meter-associated fires is this link:
http://www.takebackyourpower.net/news/category/fires-damage/
UPDATE: Since this post has been written, www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz has been notified of a fire at a school in Northland as well as a house fire in NZ. Please see this link for details.
To stay up to date with the smart meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz
by Katherine | 29 Sep, 2014 | Government and Electricity Industry Positions, Latest News, Privacy, Smart water meters, Users Feedback
A statement on WEL Networks Ltd’s website gives the impression that it is compulsory to accept a WEL “smart box”.
In actual fact, a WEL Networks “smart box” is actually a Landis+Gyr smart meter and there is NO government requirement for WEL Networks to install these so-called “smart boxes” and there is NO government requirement for anyone to accept the installation of a “smart box’.
These “smart boxes” can expose people in a home or business to a considerable amount of radiofrequency radiation (RFR) in the microwave range. (See this link for details of how much microwave radiation a WEL “smart box” can produce: https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/government-and-electricity-industry-positions/is-the-wel-smart-box-a-health-hazard/
WEL smart boxes may eventually produce microwave radiation more frequently than they do at present, since if Councils in the Waikato area adopt wireless so-called “smart” water meters (see this link and this link for details) the WEL smart boxes could be used to collect and send on the information from the “smart” water meters.
If you agreed to the installation of a WEL “smart box” because you believed it was compulsory but do not want to be exposed to the microwave radiation that it produces, you may want to contact WEL Networks Ltd to arrange the removal of the smart box.
If you do ask for WEL Networks to remove a smart box, please email through this link to let me know how the company responds. Thank you.
by Katherine | 25 Sep, 2014 | Smart water meters
In mid-August 2014 I found out that the Waikato District Council was planning to vote on adopting water meters in Huntly, Ngaruwahia and Raglan and that the Council also would also vote on whether to continue to monitor smart water meters in NZ “with a view to implement when the technology when it becomes cost effective and proven in NZ.”
I subsequently wrote to the Council to inform the Mayor and Councillors about the potential health risks from wireless “smart” water meters, and encouraged other people to write as well.
Please see these links for details:
https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/uncategorized/letter-sent-to-mayor-and-councillors-of-the-waikato-district-council/
https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/uncategorized/some-ideas-to-help-you-write-to-the-mayor-and-councillors-of-waikato-district-council/
Unfortunately, the Council voted in favour of the resolution, as you can see from the document below. Two Councillors did not support the motion. (Click on the image to make it bigger.)
NB: If you live in the Waikato District Council area and are concerned about this issue, please contact me through this link: https://stopsmartmeters.org.nz/contact-us/
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