Reducing EMF from smart meters
How we wised up to the smart meter
What we’ll learn in this article:
1. Why did my smart meter shielding experiment fail?
2. What process did I use to remove my wireless smart meter?
3. Why are wired and analog smart meters not a solution?
4. How I defeated a smart gas meter installation
5. How to know when the utility will install a smart gas meter
6. Common objections given by the utility to assure you smart meters are safe
7. Why is the EMF from smart meters different than cell phones?
8. How to remediate EMF from a smart meter
9. How to remove a smart meter in days
10. How to opt-out in the US & Canada
When I first moved to Canada in 2015, I was still a little wet behind the ears, and assumed that the smart meter rollout was only helping make our world more energy efficient. A couple years later, I was listening to Max Igan as he mentioned the film Take Back Your Power by Josh del Sol, which exposed the harmful impacts of smart meters upon our health and privacy. Although I had always been health conscious, it was the privacy infringement that ticked me off the most. This propelled me to learn everything I could about wireless systems, and how they were being used against us. I learned about the Notice of Liability process from InPower, however I never submitted the paperwork due to personal reasons.
Time passed, and I bought a smart meter shield to block the radiation. Little did I know that the protection I installed was backfiring like a laser of truth shattering any illusion of safety. I measured the radiofrequency and electric fields on the other side of the wall of the smart meter, and was still picking up a signal. Dumbfounded, I reached out to colleagues, who helped me understand that unless I applied shielding to the inside of the garage, the wireless radiation would still penetrate the wall.
Then came the next beam of reality that would hit me square in the face: dirty electricity. Whether you have a wireless, wired, or analog meter - all electric meters tap into our electric wiring to extract information. Even though analog meters are mechanical with less circuitry than a typical smart meter, they also generate pulses of dirty electricity in the kilohertz (kHz) range (50,000 - 200,000 Hz). The average heart beats at 1 Hz (one cycle per second). Our brain signals fire at a rate of 8-30 pulses per second. How can we function and think in an electric field that is hundreds of thousands times more powerful?
Today my concept of EMF protection has radically shifted. I’ve come to appreciate that a shield can quickly become a cage if we’re not careful. Being safe all the time isn’t far from being a safe - a metal box, where we can’t move, breathe, or live. After my failed shielding experiment, I contacted The Electrosensitive Society and found out about the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. What this meant was that once I obtained a doctor’s note stating that I was electrosensitive, I could submit the note to my electric utility. We are all electrically sensitive, however some of us feel the effects of EMF more than others. This is why I prefer the term “electromagnetically poisoned” instead.
For anyone who is hesitant in approaching their doctor to get such a note in Ontario, rest assured that Electromagnetic Hyper Sensitivity (EHS) is recognized as an environmental sensitivity and disability by the Canadian Human Rights Commission.1 According to The Women’s College Hospital of Toronto an estimated 5% of the population experience mild, moderate or severe symptoms around wireless devices. Independent researcher in bioelectromagnetics Michael Bevington conducted a peer-reviewed study2 , which estimates the prevalence of moderate cases of EHS in those living in developed nations to be 18 percent, and severe cases to be 0.65 percent. This means that in the US alone, there are at least 63 million people who have EHS. Those with severe cases in the US (unable to function in society) total about 2.3 million.
The trillions of nerve cells in our body, brain, heart, and organs fire and operate on electromagnetic impulses. Environmental doctors and researchers like Magda Havas suggest that repeated long term exposure to RF energy can cause microwave radiation sickness in average people.3 Cell phones, Wi-Fi access points, iPads, etc. all transmit and receive electromagnetic RF radiation in the microwave range.
The Process
I called Hydro One, and had them guide me over the phone as to which link on their website I would use to send in my doctor’s note. I then submitted what was called a medical condition consent request. I sensed that all this seemed too easy, and unfortunately my intuition was right.
I had asked the representative on the phone to make sure they would not install another smart meter, and asked them to confirm it was an analog meter. I knew that even if the meter was wired, it could still put high frequencies back on the electrical wiring. These types of meters use PLC (power line communication) technology, which radiates through the home:
I crossed my fingers as Hydro One said they’d come out with an analog meter. Weeks passed and I heard nothing. After a handful of phone calls and polite emails reminding them about our conversation, the appointment was set.
When I came home, I noticed that the technician did not install an analog meter, but put in a wired, digital meter. Turning the power off was becoming more appealing by the kilowatt hour. I felt helpless. I could fight, but flight seemed more realistic. I was left stranded on the side of my lawn, thinking…how did this electronic cage came to encircle us all, with little chance of escape?
How was dirty electricity born?
The roots of our biological crisis with technology sprouted from the energy crisis of the 1970s. Before 1970, utility meters were mechanical and not electronic. In 1973, an Arab oil embargo catapulted America into the age of energy-efficient appliances. This caused electronics manufacturers to design components that used a technology known as switch-mode power supply, which cut up the electrical current thousands of times in order to switch it from AC to DC. Today we have 21st century electronics running on a 20th century power grid that sorely needs an upgrade. Our current power grid has a three-wire system designed for light bulbs and motors, not electronics. In 2000, the New York Power Association conducted an experiment where they monitored levels of EMF using a five-wire system vs the three wire system we have today. They found that just by adding two neutral wires, there was a 40% reduction in ground current, and a 50% reduction in EMF.4 Utility companies are aware of the problem but are still doing nothing to fix it.
The increased demand for power causes large amounts of electricity to flow along neutral wires, back into our homes. Worse yet - our yards and earth become saturated with stray electrical current due to utilities using grounding rods rather than dedicated neutral wires. The National Institute for Environmental Health & Sciences (NIEHS) and many peer-reviewed studies have shown that low levels of this type of electrical current are enough to cause cancer.
Below is an example of what an average home’s electrical quality could look like:
Now imagine that same dirty current running through your body, scrambling your brain and jarring your heart day in and day out. Is it any wonder irritability and brainfog increases when we’re in the present of these fields?
Smart gas
We had also received a letter from the gas company stating they wanted to do us the favor of replacing our non-digital gas meter. When I called and asked them if what they were going to replace the meter with was a smart meter, the representative told me “no, it’s not a smart meter.” Having my doubts, I pressed on and asked, “does this meter emit radiofrequency?”
Unfortunately I got disconnected, so I decided to have the technician come out anyway so that I could be certain they were installing a non-smart, analog meter. When most people hear ‘smart’ meter they think ‘electricity’ meter, not the meter for gas or water, so keep this in mind when you speak to the utility. You need to be crystal clear. Since the gas meter isn’t connected to our electrical wiring, an analog meter works as a low-EMF alternative.
When the technician came out with a smart meter, I was glad to be home, as they began installing even without even knocking on my door. I stood my ground, and told the technician to stop the install.
At first they told me they could not, that this smart meter was all they had. After hemming and hawing, they finally said they could check their supply shed and call me back the next day if they had anything. Lo and behold, they found an analog replacement for the gas meter, and all was well. I even gave them a generous tip - a lecture on the biological harms of radiofrequency.
Example of a smart gas meter replacement letter:
If you ever get a letter telling you your meter needs to be replaced, like this one, be wary:
If you get this type of letter, prepared to have this type of letter at hand:
“But my utility company tells me they’re safe!”
Power companies use government safety guidelines, like Safety Code 6 in Canada, that don’t take into account non-thermal, biological effects of EMFs, and only consider thermal, heat-based effects, which are only the tip of the iceberg.
Well over 10,000 independent peer-reviewed studies have shown that EMFs can cause DNA damage, cancer, heart disease, neurological disease, and metabolic disorders like obesity and diabetes.
Why do websites say that smart meters have low RF emissions?
Contrary to claims made by utility providers that our exposure to radiofrequency (RF) is “low,” many smart meters continuously emit RF in millisecond blasts. These short bursts of radiation can be very powerful. Wireless smart meters typically produce very short high levels of pulsed microwaves. They emit these millisecond-long RF bursts on average 9,600 times a day with a maximum of 190,000 daily transmissions. Even battery powered smart water meters radiate numerous times an hour.
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The wireless mesh
Smart meter systems intentionally create a “mesh” wireless communications network with radiofrequency. Many smart meters work differently than cell phones. Cell phones communicate by continuous two-way exchange of RF emissions between the phone and a cell tower, whereas, smart meters can communicate with each other in a wireless “mesh network.” Every meter in the mesh network wirelessly “chats” with radiofrequency, connecting it to every other meter within its mesh network (the size of the network can be all meters within one or two miles).5
The crumbling of our electrical infrastructure, combined with the additional electrical demand from digital meters has also led to home fires. Rolling out in 2009, local utilities started to install smart meters in every home and small business throughout Ontario. The Fire Marshall of Ontario conducted an investigation in 2012, and cited potential fires caused by wiring failures and faulty installations. This was the unfortunate circumstance for this homeowner in Ontario:
Technically the smart meter is the property of the utility company, and they are not liable for any damage potentially incurred because of “faulty wiring” as they are not responsible for the electrical lines coming into the home. This has occurred in the US as well as Canada.
What can we do?
While living off grid is ideal, it’s not a reality for many. Before we go into what we can do, let’s start with what we should not do. If you have a smart meter on your bedroom wall, consider shielding as a last resort. If you have any dirty electricity in the home, electrically-conductive surfaces like shielding will attract more EMF into your room, and your body. If the meter is wireless, and on another wall away from the bedroom, you could potentially use shielding on that wall, however each situation is unique.
Thank you Paul Harding for your guidance.
We opt to use dirty electrical filters, and also shut the power off to most of the home at night. Using the proper EMF meter will allow you to get a baseline reading of radiofrequency and dirty electricity in the home.
A better option could be to move your bedroom, or at least move your bed a few feet from the wall to minimize electric fields. Again - each situation is unique, but we prefer a less-is-more approach for many reasons.
How to remove a smart meter in days
When the utility company claims the meter is their property, this can be used against them. Some individuals are calling the utility company and saying that “if you want to keep your property on my property” I’ll have to charge you $20 per day as a storage fee, as this lady succeeded in doing:
If you don’t want to be as aggressive as the lady above, although I like her style, you can try the “opt-out” approach, listed here:
Opt-out fees in US & Canada:
Ontario residents do not have the ability to opt-out. However if you are not able to obtain a doctor’s note, you can always first send your electrical utility a certified letter, along with a liability notice like this one:
We hope this article has opened your eyes to how we can all stop working smarter, and start living wiser.
“He who does not walk against the arrows cannot talk about the strength of his shield!”
~ Mehmet Murat Ildan
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Roman & Bohdanna
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Additional Resources:
http://www.chrc-ccdp.gc.ca/sites/default/files/policy_sensitivity_0.pdf
https://doi.org/10.15436/2378-6841.19.2402
https://bioinitiative.org/
T. A. Short, J. R. Stewart, D. R. Smith, J. O'Brien and K. Hampton, "Five-Wire Distribution System Demonstration Project," in IEEE Power Engineering Review, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 62-62, March 2002
great article! (and videos) - i am so glad you were able to get rid of your "smart"meters as well as help others do so. even in calif, where we have had the opt out since 2012, most people don't know they have a choice. yes it costs a few dollars each month for 36 months: $5 for low income,$10 otherwise, plus an initial one-time opt-out fee, it was (and i think still is) $10 for low income, $75 regular - that is still very cheap health insurance. some US states now have opt-outs but many don't - i haven't yet heard about people using a medical exemption in the US, great idea for states without an opt out.
I just had a thought -- could one of the reasons lead paint was banned was because it shielded from emfs and thermal imaging? Maybe they couldn't see inside your house if your house was painted with lead?