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TMCNet: Mill Valley council asks for SmartMeter opt-out provision, health study

[September 08, 2010]

Mill Valley council asks for SmartMeter opt-out provision, health study

Sep 08, 2010 (The Marin Independent Journal - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The Mill Valley City Council will ask state energy regulators to let some customers opt out of using SmartMeters, the devices Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is deploying throughout Northern California.

The council on Tuesday also joined Assemblyman Jared Huffman's call for a study of the health risks of the meters, which use wireless signals to transmit data on energy use.

Mill Valley joins a number of local governments that have voiced concerns in recent weeks over the meters' privacy, accuracy and safety. On Tuesday, the council voted to express its concerns in letters to the California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates PG&E, and the California Council on Science and Technology, which advises the state on science and technology issues.

The vote came after about a dozen residents registered their opposition to the meters, focusing mostly on the potential health effects of the radio waves used to transmit data.

"We won't know for 10, 20 years how safe these things are," said Mill Valley resident Steve Lett.

The Federal Communications Commission has approved the meters' safety, and PG&E says they emit only a fraction of the radiation that comes from common gadgets such as laptops, microwave ovens and cell phones. But several residents argued that consumers have a choice whether to use those devices, saying it is unfair for PG&E to force the meters upon unwilling customers.

"I don't have a microwave in my house and I never put a cell phone to my head," said resident Linda Brauner.

In a letter, the Mill Valley council will ask the utilities commission to make SmartMeters optional for people who are sensitive to radio frequencies. A separate letter to the science and technology council will voice support for Huffman's call for a new study of the meters' health effects.

Before voting 5-0 to write the letters, members of the council acknowledged the city has no direct authority to stop or delay the installation of SmartMeters.

"We're powerless," Councilman Andrew Berman said.

In a separate vote Tuesday, the Corte Madera Town Council also voted to send a letter of concern to the PUC.

SmartMeters provide data on households' energy use and allow customers to access the information online. They are aimed at cutting energy use and allowing quicker responses to blackouts.

In addition to the health risks, critics have said the meters can lead to inaccurate bills, and can expose personal information being exposed to hackers.

Earlier this month, a PUC-commissioned study reported that accuracy problems have been fixed. The PUC has also said it will not allow the meters' wireless function to be activated until security protections are in place, according to Councilman Ken Wachtel, who met recently with commission representatives.

Read more Mill Valley stories at the IJ's Mill Valley section.

Contact Will Jason via e-mail at wjason@marinij.com To see more of The Marin Independent Journal or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.marinij.com/. Copyright (c) 2010, The Marin Independent Journal, Novato, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail services@mctinfoservices.com, or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544).

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