“Could smart meters be used to spy on your home? Devices could be used to create ‘honeypot’ of data to sell onto marketing companies, privacy campaigners warn”
The article goes on to explain how data from smart meters represents a “honeypot” for companies and could be used by marketing firms to target consumers.
The article states:
“Gas and electricity firms will be able to use smart meters to collect information about how customers use energy as frequently as every half hour.
“This could reveal details such as which rooms and gadgets clients use most regularly, as well as when homeowners are in or out and even what time they are going to bed or how many cups of tea we make.”
A monumental and perhaps the most inclusive work ever on MCS [Multiple Chemical Sensitivities] and EHS [Electrohypersensitivity] –Pelda B. Hyman, New York.
In presenting a host of the non-communicable diseases that currently plague our society not simply as diseases of civilization but as by-products of that civilization’s reliance on chemo- and electrowizardry, Prostituting Science takes up where Silent Spring left off.
Prostituting Science documents authoritative evidence for such an aetiology for a number of contemporary disorders ranging from asthma, migraine, diabetes, obesity, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and cardiovascular disease; through ADHD, autism, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, depression and schizophrenia; to chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple chemical sensitivity, and electromagnetic hypersensitivity.
In addition to mustering a formidable assemblage of scientific data, Mrs Crumpler documents her own family’s descent into disabling Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) and Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity (EHS) as a consequence of heavy pesticide exposure. Here, too, is all the evidence you’ll ever need to convince the sceptics that these are bona fide physiological disorders, as well as an effective treatment protocol for recovery.
As the title denotes, Prostituting Science also explores the paradox whereby the more that is known of a physical aetiology for these disorders, the more widely accepted have become allegations of psychogenesis. Within this context are also recounted gross abuses of the civil and human rights that other citizens of a representative democracy tend to take for granted.
Diana Crumpler trained as a teacher-librarian and taught in Victorian schools until 1984, when she was forced to retire due to ill-health. A career change was prompted by the eventual diagnosis of MCS and EHS. For the past 25 years she has been one of Australia’s foremost writers on MCS and EHS and the effects of chemicals on both human and environmental health. Her first book, Chemical Crisis, won widespread acclaim in Australia, North America and Great Britain.
NB: The text above comes from the back cover of this book which I highly recommend to anyone who is interested in how chemicals and electromagnetic radiation can adversely impact health.
That’s the question that the new documentary Generation Zapped hopes to answer with interviews with doctors and scientists who are leaders in studying electomagnetic radiation (EMR) and health.
You can see the trailer for this film at the link below:
On Sunday, December 27, the Maori TV news programme “Te Kaea” broadcast a story about smart meters.
The story focuses on the experiences of Whangarei women Marama Waddell (who has become ill and experienced sleeping difficulties following the installation of a smart meter at her home) and Mrs Nellie Rata. Mrs Rata – whose late husband Matiu Rata was the much loved MP – has had her power bill increase significantly after a smart meter was installed at her home.
Please note that while staff from some electricity companies have been telling their customers that smart meters are compulsory or are some sort of government requirement, this is NOT true. (There is more information about this issue at this link ) If you do not want a smart meter because you are concerned about the higher bills that could follow a smart meter installation, or Time of Use pricing, many people in NZ are successfully refusing to have a smart meter installed using the techniques described at this link
If you would like to keep up to date with information about electromagnetic radiation and health, including the “smart” meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz. Thank you
If you have experienced a significant increase in your electricity bill with no change in your electricity usage after a smart meter installation, you are not alone.
Update: The reason for the higher bill in the case of Alan Graf (who is featured in the story at the link above) has turned out to be that he had been incorrectly charged at a for three phase power (via the smart meter) for his residential home that uses only single phase power.
Have you had higher bills after a smart meter installation?
NB: If you are in the situation of having had a large bill increase after a smart meter installation, it could possibly be due to a faulty meter or perhaps your tariff may have been changed around the time that the smart meter was installed. If your bill increase does not appear to relate to increased electricity use, you have the option of first complaining to your electricity retailer, and if that does not solve the problem, complaining to the Electricity and Gas Complaints Commissioner Scheme.
Smart meters are NOT compulsory in NZ
Please note that while staff from some electricity companies have been telling their customers that smart meters are compulsory or are some sort of government requirement, this is NOT true. (There is more information about this issue at this link )
If you do not want a smart meter because you are concerned about the higher bills that could follow a smart meter installation, or Time of Use pricing, many people in NZ are successfully refusing to have a smart meter installed using the techniques described at this link
NB: If you would like to keep up to date with information about the “smart” meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz. Thank you
On December 22, 2015, Whangarei journalist Clare Swinney used a Cornet ED 78S model EMR test meter to measure the microwave radiation (also known as radiofrequency radiation) adjacent to a smart meter which had been installed at a friend’s home.
As you can see from the video below, the smart meter was shown in the test to emit brief pulses of microwave radiation every six seconds or so.
The pulses of microwave radiation measured during this brief video clip were quite high; over 100 milliwatts per square metre or 100,000 microwatts per square metre. The highest pulse measured on December 22 was over 140,o00 microwatts per square metre. The previous day, the highest measurement had been 258,000 microwatts per square metre.
The Bioinitiative Report (which was written by an international coalition of scientists concerned about the health effects from microwave radiation exposures) recommends a maximum exposure of only 1,000 microwatts per square metre.
The brand and model of the meter being measured in the youtube clip is a Landis+Gyr E350 series smart meter. (This type of meter is also being installed in the Waikato area by WEL Networks Ltd where the meter is being termed a “smart box”.)
Landis+Gyr smart meters are also being installed in other parts of NZ including the South Auckland region by Counties Power. Network Tasman Ltd (which covers the Nelson and Golden Bay area) also indicated that it would install this type of meter as did Alpine Energy which is in Central Canterbury. NB: If you go to www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz and type Network Tasman into the search box you will found a lot of information about this company’s activities or you can go to this link.
(Links to more information about the Landis+Gyr E 350 series type of meter will be included at the bottom of this post.)
The meter appears to be owned by Metrix. (Metrix is a division of Mighty River Power which was partially privatised by the NZ governemnt. Metrix’s company motto is “Power is Information“).
What if you don’t want to be exposed to microwave radiation from a Landis+Gyr smart meter?
Your electricity retailer should be able to arrange for the removal of the modem and ZigBee (also known as “communications module” for you. Once these components have been removed the meter will no long produce pulses of microwave radiation. (You can read more about smart meters with their modems removed at this link.
Smart meters are NOT compulsory in NZ
Please note that while staff from some electricity companies have been telling their customers that smart meters are compulsory or are some sort of government requirement, this is NOT true. (There is more information about this issue at this link ) If you do not want a smart meter because you are concerned about the higher bills that could follow a smart meter installation, or Time of Use pricing, many people in NZ are successfully refusing to have a smart meter installed using the techniques described at this link
Links to further information about Landis+Gyr E350 series smart meters
If you would like to keep up to date with information about electromagnetic radiation and health, including the “smart” meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz. Thank you
British physician Dr. Erica Mallery-Blythe has written an excellent resource on electromagnetic hypersensitivity (also know as electrohypersensitivity (EHS) and electrosensitivity (ES).)
NB: Smart meters have been reported as a possible contributing factor in the development of electromagnetic hypersensitivity in some people.
If you would like to keep up to date with information about electromagnetic radiation and health, including the “smart” meter issue in NZ, please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz. Thank you
Recently, this website has reported on some new “Settlement Agreements” on the Electricity Authority website. These “Settlement Agreements” are good news for the many people in NZ who do not want a microwave radiation producing smart meter.
These “Settlement Agreements” are especially good news for people who live in rural Canterbury or the Invercargill area and people whose electricity meters are owned by Contact Energy.
NB: If you do not know what company owns the meter at your home, your electricity retailer should be able to tell you this or you can email the Electricity Authority and they should give you this detail and should also be able to tell you when your meter’s certification expired or is due to expire.
The links to the posts that explain the details of the “Settlement Agreements” and their implications are below:
It can really ruin your holiday if you come home to find an unwanted smart meter at your home.
Smart meter installers will be at work in many parts of New Zealand over the summer holiday period. I hope that the installers will have Christmas Day and the other statutory holidays off but i do not know if this will be the case – so if you do not take precautions against an unwanted smart meter you could find one has been installed at your home if you come back from a week’s holiday – or even a day at the beach.
Here is what people in NZ who do not want a smart meter have been doing to prevent these devices from being installed at their homes:
Please note that www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz has received reports from New Zealanders who have had smart meters installed at their home without prior notification. Also, even if notification is sent you may have only a few days notice – assuming the letter does not arrive while you are on holiday, if you are going away. For this reason it is prudent to prepare in advance to ensure that your home stays smart meter free.
Please note that if your meter is inside your home and you may have family or friends or a housesitter at your home over the holiday period, it is important to let them know to refuse entry to anyone who says that they are going to “upgrade” or even “do maintenance” on the meter.
Wishing you a happy Christmas and a great start to 2016!
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
If you live in the Invercargill area and don’t want a smart meter, there is good news in a new document* on the website of the Electricity Authority.
According to the document:
“As of 21 May 2015, in total 26,000 category 1 metering installations (Electricity Invercargill was responsible for 7,546, and TPC [The Power Company] for 18,454) had expired interim certification.”
The Electricity Authority wants customers in these areas to have certified metering and has required Electricity Invercargill and The Power Company to come up with a plan to achieve this.
Part of this plan includes installing non-smart meters for customers who have refused to have a smart meter installed!
Quoting from the document Electricity Invercargill and The Power Company [TPC] agree to:
“(a) take all practicable steps to achieve compliance as fast as possible, preferably by 14 December 2016. To achieve this outcome, Electricity Invercargill and TPC commit to taking the following actions:
(i) certifying all non-compliant ICPs regardless of suitability for an AMI meter, including using alternative certified meters or moving the metering point where customers are refusing permission to install electronic/AMI meters;” [Emphasis added]
So a big thank you is due to everyone in this area who has refused a smart meter so far (and helped on the campaign in other ways, such as by running screenings of Take Back Your Power.)
Your actions have helped to make a difference.
If you are in the Invercargill area and if your electricity retailer informs you that your meter’s certification has lapsed, you can tell the company that you are happy to have your meter changed – as long as it is to a properly certified non-smart meter.
Meridian and Powershop joined the investigation that preceded this settlement agreement so both these companies will be aware that the agreement directs Electricity Invercargill and The Power Company to install non smart meters for customers who do not want smart meters.
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
* SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
Regulation 24(1) Electricity Industry (Enforcement) Regulations 2010
DATED:
BETWEEN:
(1) The Power Company Limited of 251 Racecourse Road, Invercargill, (TPC);
(2) Electricity Invercargill Limited of 251 Racecourse Road, Invercargill, (Electricity Invercargill);
(3) Electricity Authority in its role of the market administrator under the Electricity Industry Act 2010, of 2 Hunter Street, Wellington, (market administrator);
(4) Meridian Energy Limited of 33 Customhouse Quay, Wellington (Meridian); and
(5) Powershop New Zealand Limited of 43 Hanson Street, Wellington (Powershop)
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
NB: If you would like to keep up to date with the smart meter issue in NZ (and also get other news relating to EMR and health), please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz Thank you.
If you have a friend or relative who has virtually everything…here is a novel idea for a present for them.
A phone. But not just any phone.
NOT a microwave-emitting cell phone that may increase their risk of developing a brain tumour (or a perhaps breast cancer in the case of women who may unwisely carry a mobile phone around in their bra.)
NOT a cordless phone – because cordless phones also use a microwave transmission frequency. Moreover the bases for many models of cordless phones also transit microwave radiation into your home 24/7. (Research shows that use of a cordless phone may also carry increased risk of brain tumours. )
A good old fashioned landline phone with a cord allows people to communicate with their friends without microwaving their brain.
A traditional phone with a cord is safe for children to use. (Many scientists who are familiar with the literature on microwave radiation and health recommend that children DO NOT USE cell phones or cordless phones.)
So does a phone with a cord make a good gift idea? I think so.
What do you think?
NB: I have no financial interest in companies that manufacture phones or provide landline services.
NB: If you would like to keep up to date with the smart meter issue in NZ (and also get other news relating to EMR and health), please sign up to the free email list at www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz Thank you.
Author Devra Davis recently gave a lecture on electromagnetic radiation and health in Melbourne and you can now see the lecture online at the link below:
Ed note: Devra Davis’s book include Disconnect: The Truth About Cell Phone Radiation, What the Industry Has Done to Hide It, and How to Protect Your Family.
If you have to use a cell phone to make calls, an air tube headset greatly reduces the amount of microwave radiation to which your brain is exposed.
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.
a legal seminar run by the Law Faculty of NSW University about wireless radiation, risk and liability;
the establishment of a new Australian Association for wireless safety;
WiFi precautions being introduced in US schools;
the latest update on Berkeley’s mobile phone labels;
Martin Pall’s new study on the link between EMR and symptoms;
dirty electricity and what to do about it;
EHS – the experts are saying it’s real and can be diagnosed;
a report on smart meter problems in Australia;
how an Australian mum stopped WiFi in her child’s school;
some tips for a safer home and holiday;
the latest news, research and items of interest from around the world and MORE.
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.
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