After receiving several delegations regarding the captioned issue, which included submissions from concerned citizens, BC Hydro, and Interior Health Council for the City of Vernon adopted the following resoultion at their Regular Open Meeting held May 14, 2012

Re: Andrea Collins, the Citizens for Safe Technology Society and British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority
- Complaint under Section 47 of the Utilities Commission Act

"On behalf of Andrea Collins and the Citizens for Safe Technology Society ("the Complainants"), the following is submitted in reply to BC Hydro's submissions dated April 25, 2012, in the context of our reconsideration application with respect to the above-referenced matter.

A. Operation of the UCA by default BC Hydro asserts that the CEA exemption was meant to capture the smart meter system. We agree. This issue arises because there are two kinds of smart meter systems: hard-wired systems and wireless systems, the latter of which are accompanied by a host of health and environmental concerns.

"The Legislature and Cabinet knew, at all material times, that both these options existed. If it was intended that the exemption apply to the wireless option, why did the Legislature and Cabinet fail to make a specific reference in that regard - either by describing a system that includes a wireless component or by wireless functionality?

"The failure of the Legislature and Cabinet to bring, by explicit reference, wireless communication technology into the scope of the CEA exemption, results, by default, in the application of the UCA's CPCN requirement.  We advance this assertion based on the following reasoning . . .

Smart Meter Moratorium Motion and / or Opt Out Tally List
Current Tally: 45
Congratulations and welcome, Squamish #44 and Vernon #45

Vernon Star Article
Vernon Council's Letter to Charles Reid

For links to help organize your own delegation request for a moratorium in your community, begin here.

A growing number of responsive and proactive B.C. Municipal and City Councils are passing motions for moratoriums on mandatory installation of B.C. Hydro's wireless "Smart" Meters as follows:

"According to Bill 23-2008 of the British Columbia Public Health Act, section 83

(1) a municipality must take action when it learns of something that could be harmful to its residents. It must notify the Minister of Health or take immediate action. At its June 27 Council meeting, the City of Colwood, B.C. passed a motion to write to the Minister of Health and, due to the potential for wireless smart meters to cause harm or to compromise security, request a moratorium on mandatory installations of wireless meters. The Council also requested that concerned residents be offered safer alternatives at no cost to them.

B.C. Councils who have considered the above request, and voted in favour of it:

1. Alert Bay
2. Burnaby 
3. Central Saanich
4. Colwood
5. Chawathil
6. Central Kootenay Regional District (RDCK / Nelson /Fortis BC)
7. District of Highlands
8. Duncan
9. Enderby
10. Gold River
11. Hagwilget Village First Nation
12. Invermere
13. Islands Trust (Bowen Island) 
14. Ladysmith
15. Lake Country / Winfield
16. Lake Cowichan
17. Langley Township
18. Maple Ridge (Moratorium declined, Opt Out Request Submitted)
19. Metchosin
20. Nanaimo
21. New Denver
22. North Cowichan
23. North Saanich
24. North Vancouver City
25. Oliver
26. Parksville
27. Powell River
28. Qualicum Beach
29. Regional District of Nanaimo
30. Richmond
31. Saanich District
32. Salmon Arm (opt out with possibility of moratorium.)
33. Sechelt
34. Sicamous
35. Silverton
36. Sooke
37. Squamish
38. Sunshine Coast Regional District
39. Surrey
40. Tofino
41. Ucluelet
42. Vancouver
43. Vernon
44. Victoria
45. White Rock
46. 
    

"Vernon officials don't want smart meters forced on to anyone.

"Council unanimously voted Monday to urge B.C. Hydro to develop an opt-out procedure for people who don't want the remote monitoring devices.

"I believe people should be given the right to decide what goes on their houses," said Coun. Bob Spiers.

"Spiers points to Quebec where residents there can refuse meters as long as they cover the costs involved with traditional meter reading . . .

"Hopefully those in power will reflect on this and consider what the community wants," he said."

Letter from Vernon Mayor to Charles Reid

"Residents of a Kitsilano apartment building are holding an all-day vigil to keep B.C. Hydro from installing smart meters this week.

"Sonya Makaroff, whose family owns a 74-unit building on York Ave., has plunked herself down in the lobby and is ready to deny access to Hydro personnel.

"A notice on the front door says the building's owner is "unable to grant installers access to exchange meters."

"Hydro intends to install new meters, which use wireless technology, sometime before 8 p.m. on Wednesday.

"It's hard to say exactly how things will go," said Makaroff. "A lot of this is evolving . . .

"In the case of an apartment building, Verschoor said Hydro would not recognize a building-wide ban being undertaken by individuals.

"Each customer would have to contact us individually to have their meter put on hold," she said.

"Makaroff said over 50 per cent of the building has signed a petition against the meters . . .

"BC Hydro said it won't provide a free opt-out of its contentious smart meter program for residents who are concerned the wireless technology is dangerous.

"The utility was responding to the latest development in B.C.'s smart meter saga: a push from Vancouver city Coun. Adriane Carr.

"The original motion was that we provide a free opt-out and of course we can't do that because the costs would be transferred to our other customers," said Cindy Verschoor, communications manager for BC Hydro's smart meter program.

"Carr asked Vancouver council May 2 to endorse a plan to request that Hydro offer a free non-wireless smart meter technology option to Vancouver residents who believe the devices might be a health risk. Carr told Business in Vancouver that she's been hearing complaints from people she described as "hypersensitive" to electromagnetic radiation . . .

B.C. Hydro is in the process of installing wireless "smart" meters on 99% of homes and businesses in the province of British Columbia, with a target completion date of December, 2012.  They are doing so without due diligence or public education, using "implied consent" as their reason to proceed without permission of the people of B.C. 

This form letter is for those who have had a chance to learn more about the negative effects of living and/or working in the vicinity of wireless smart meters, who do not accept the risk this involves, and who wish to officially register their opposition in the form of a demand for removal of the wireless smart meter, and the re-installation of a wired, analogue meter.

NB You will need to download it in order to copy and paste it into your own email, and fill in your information before sending.

It would be a good idea to also register your situation with your mayor and council.  Address finder here.

If you do NOT already have a wireless "smart meter?"  After posting (ASAP) a sign with your address, name and date, on your meter and on your door, you can send the original Letter of Non-consent to register your wish to keep your analogue meter after posting your intention to. 

Via electronic mail to:  smartmeters@bchydro.com and info.utilities@corix.com

Also via Canada Post to:

BC Hydro,
Smart Meter Specialist Department
6911 Southpoint Drive, Burnaby BC, V3N 4X8 

Attention B.C. Hydro, Corix Utilities and agents and/or assignees thereof:

Re: DEMAND FOR REMOVAL of any wireless Smart Meter at my Residence/Workplace  AND RE-INSTALLATION of Analogue/Wired Meter

Dated: _______________, 201__      B.C. Hydro Account # on bill_____________

Address: ___________________________________________________________

Please accept this as your official notice from this date forward of my absolute demand for the removal of any wireless Smart Meter installed on my Residence / Workplace AND for the re-installation, at BC Hydro's expense, of a wired, analogue meter on my home or premises at

full address  ________________________________________________________

Take notice that B.C. Hydro, Corix Utilities and /or agents and assignees thereof did not have my authorization, permission or consent to enter my property, business or premises for the purpose of replacing my previous meter with a new wireless Smart Meter.

Your action of installing this device on my property or residence is constituted as trespass and a violation of rights afforded to me as a citizen of Canada. 

I refuse your wireless Smart Meter on the grounds that it has the capability of being a surveillance system, used by you or other parties, which could violate my right to privacy. 

Also: My fundamental democratic right to protect my health from a possible carcinogen, specifically radiofrequency electromagnetic fields emitted by your wireless Smart Meter, supersedes any right you have to install a wireless Smart Meter on my property.

You only have authorization to attend at my property for the purpose of reinstalling a non-wireless analogue meter, and reading it manually. 

Name in full ________________________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________

Copy (Cc) to

Liberal BC Leader Christy Clark, Minister of Energy Rich Coleman, NDP Energy Critic John Horgan, BC Chief Medical Officer Perry Kendall, NDP Deputy Health Critic Sue Hammell, Green Party Federal Leader Elizabeth May, Minister of Health, Mike de Jong, NDP Health Critic Mike Farnworth,
NDP BC Leader Adrian Dix, Green Party BC Leader Jane Sterk, BCRefed Leader Ingrid Voigt  
         

premier@gov.bc.ca, rich.coleman.mla@leg.bc.ca, john.horgan.mla@leg.bc.ca, perry.kendall@gov.bc.ca, sue.hammell.mla@leg.bc.ca, elizabeth.may@greenparty.ca, mike.dejong.mla@leg.bc.ca, mike.farnworth.mla@leg.bc.ca, adrian.dix.mla@leg.bc.ca, leader@greenparty.bc.ca, ingridrefed@gmail.com 

This letter format can be accessed, downloaded, cut and pasted into your own email from:citizensforsafetechnology.org   (Smart Meter Action Kit under "REMOVAL LETTER")

There was a great turnout in Langley in front of Rich Coleman's office at the Langley Events Centre. People with posters and signs showed them enthusiastically to drivers in cars passing by on the busy roadway, getting many honks in response.

Our BC Liberal Minister of Energy's office was empty and locked but letters were dropped through his mail slot letting him know concerned citizens had been there.

It is Rich Coleman who holds the reins to the Smart Meter Program. Mr. Coleman refuses to tell the public the truth about the program. He says it's safe, that the data will be public, that people will see lower bills, that "it will only hurt a little."

Mr. Coleman has ignored 43 municipal governments asking for a moratorium and/or an opt out choice. He has ignored the Union of BC Municipalities. He is completely ignoring all evidence of harm, all precautionary advice, including the World Health Organization's ruling that radiofrequency emissions are a possible cause of cancer. He is using misinformation as a distraction and a shield, ignoring medical doctors' letters requesting analogue meters for sick patients.  Most importantly, he is ignoring our democratic, civil, and human rights as enshrined in our Charter and Constitution.

The only advice from Rich Coleman is "learn to love the meter," "go off grid" or "leave the province."

Citizens are tired of being ignored.
All citizens need and deserve safety and privacy in their own homes.

It's time to question false assurances from profiteering governments and corporations.
It's time for BC to learn about the impacts and implications of this program in their own lives.

Knowledge is powerful. 

More rallies to come.





  




FORM LETTER To RICH COLEMAN FOR SMART METER WAIVER

"BC Hydro has apparently concluded that the easiest way to install 1.85 million Smart Meters by the end of this year is to treat us all like blithering idiots. The only thing missing from the Crown utility's spin cycle is a copy of "Smart Metering for Dummies."

"Thousands of Hydro customers -- who never asked to have these omniscient lifestyle monitors attached to their homes -- are discovering that these hummers have a singular ability to produce outrageously high utility bills even when power consumption patterns remain constant . . .

"I have been trying to accurately determine how many Hydro customers are up in arms, specifically how many have refused to have the meters installed. But, Hydro doesn't want to come clean because the Crown utility -- and the provincial government -- don't want to acknowledge that they have a $1 billion customer relations disaster on their hands . . .

"One North Vancouver resident said: "We have refused to allow Corix to install Smart Meters in our building. An installer told us we had been placed on a UTC ("unable to complete") list along with 40,000 other households in the province."

[Hydro] "The most accurate figure we can provide you in regards to the number of customers who have contacted us with concerns about having a Smart Meter is approximately one per cent ... of all customers (approx 1.85 million)." . . .

"My call was immediately transferred to a Hydro line and a disembodied voice warned me my wait time to reach a real human was probably going to be "45 minutes." Care to guess what percentage of frustrated Hydro customers give up in disgust at this point? . . .

Letter to the Honourable Michael de Jong:

" . . . When I voiced my concern, B.C. Hydro said I had "no choice in the matter" and that if I refused to have one installed that they would cut off my power."

"  . . . Shortly after the installation, which was on the outside of my house nearest to my den, my 12 year old dog Trapper started to exhibit distress and odd signs of behavior which we had never experienced before. The den was where he slept since he was a 3 month old puppy and where he went to seek refuge if he was ever scared. After December 14th, he avoids that room at all costs and has spent many sleepless nights walking and pacing from room to room, trying to sleep and lifting up his head in distress countless times, and the only place he can calm down is outside on our deck, outside of the house . . . 

"When we take him to friends' homes (who don't have smart meters) to get some moments of solace, he is like our old dog, relaxed, sleeping peacefully . . . no whining, crying, pacing etc. . . and then as soon as we bring him back home, it all starts in again. . .