The California Public Utilities Commission is being urged to
put a moratorium on Pacific Gas & Electric’s planned July
deployment of smart meters in Fairfax, located just north of
San Francisco. The Fairfax town council wants an independent
third party to review the smart meter program and also wants
the PUC to make participation in the smart meter roll out
voluntary, so residents can opt out. Fairfax is located
north of San Francisco.
Beyond the questions of accuracy, the Fairfax city fathers
have expressed concern over the potential health risks posed
by the smart meters’ radio transmissions. Mayor Lew Tremaine
explains, “The concern is that these things equate to cell
phone towers times 10, and that the ambient electromagnetic
and radio wave fields that will come as a result of having
these things at every house running constantly is an
unforeseen health risk. For people who are sensitive to
electromagnetic radiation, it’s going to be a living
nightmare.”
The Contra Costa Times reported that PG&E spokesman Paul
Moreno denied the meters posed a health risk, saying the
emitted radio signals are well within limits established by
the Federal Communications Commission. “The meters emit a
signal once every four hours for a fraction of a second, and
at very low power,” Moreno said. “These levels are far below
what you would find in many common household appliances.”
Fairfax and PG&E have a contentious history. The town
strongly supports the Marin Clean Energy plan, which
competes with PG&E for customers. So residents were already
suspect about the smart meter deployment and have been vocal
about the perceived increase in their electricity bills.
Moreno countered by saying the increases actually reflect
the accuracy of the meters. “In the vast majority of
situations, the higher bills can be attributed to increased
usage due to seasonal changes, as well as rates being higher
than in the previous summer.”
The last issue brought up by the Fairfax mayor was the
negative impact on employment the smart meters presented.
However, PG&E has gone on record saying it’s providing job
training for its meter readers, of which less than a third
are full time employees.
Moreno reported that about 80 percent of meter readers have
transitioned to other jobs within the company. “Meter
reading has historically been a stepping stone toward other
employment at PG&E, although some people do make an entire
career out of reading. We’ve had very good success at
helping meter readers interested in staying with the company
transition to other jobs.
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