Smart Meters and Your Health
Research conducted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Electric Power Research Institute, the Utilities Telecom Council and others has found no negative health impacts from digital meters that send information via a wireless communications network. The radio frequencies emitted by digital meters fall well below the maximum recommended in federal guidelines. People are continuously exposed to very low levels of natural and man-made radio frequency fields, or RF. Even the earth’s surface and the human body are constant sources of RF fields. Digital meters send information about home electricity use to KIUC by RF signals. KIUC’s meters emit RF similar to that of many common household devices such as baby monitors, cordless phones, and remote-controlled toys and medical monitors. The exposure from new meters is much lower than other common sources for two reasons: 1) infrequent signal transmission, and 2) low levels.
On a daily basis, the cooperative’s meters emit power for less than one minute per day. In addition, these meters are typically placed outdoors, with a wall separating the meter from the living space. This combination of placement and infrequent operation means that you would need to be within one foot of 7,000 digital meters all communicating at the same time to reach the FCC exposure limit. You can rest assured our new metering equipment is safe for you and your family. The metering products we selected underwent testing by an accredited lab to verify that they met all FCC requirements.
Your cooperative is a not-for-profit private business that is solely owned and operated by the members who receive electric service from our company. When our board of directors approves a policy or procedure for the use of new equipment and technologies, they do so knowing that it will also apply to their own homes. In using this metering system, we have not only deemed it to be a wise and safe choice for all co-op members and their families but our own families as well.
Click here to download a PDF of the Radio Frequency Comparison of Common Sources Chart
Don’t just take our word for it. Get the facts.
We urge you to look deeper, and to also consider the dozens of studies, reports and papers produced by government agencies, environmental advocates, health-care organizations and research institutions that have investigated the health effects of smart meters. These studies aren’t produced by utilities or corporations. They include research by the World Health Organization, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the California Council on Science and Technology and the Environmental Defense Fund. Links to these reports can be found at http://website.kiuc.coop/content/smart-grid-article-and-research-links.
