2 from Orange County sue over health effects of 'smart meters'

Jun 13 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Morgan Cook The Orange County Register

Sixteen consumers have sued Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas and Electric in state court alleging that the utilities' "smart meters" caused them physical harm ranging from dizziness and ringing in their ears to radiation burns and cancer.

Ten people, including two from Orange County, sued SCE in Los Angeles Superior Court on May 31, seeking unspecified damages for what the civil complaint describes as the defendants' failure to warn customers of safety risks before installing the smart meters, which transmit information wirelessly via radio frequency radiation.

Other defendants in the lawsuit include Corix Utilities and Itron Inc., both companies the lawsuit identified as providing support services for the meters. Six more consumers sued PGE and two associated companies in a similar lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court.

"The ultimate goal would be to have them (defendants) stop doing what they're doing, and, in the interim, have them take care of the damages they have caused," plaintiff's attorney Paul R. Overett said during a news conference Wednesday at his offices in Long Beach.

Edison officials on Wednesday said the radiation from the meters is well within safe limits.

"SCE is reviewing the allegations in the lawsuit, including claims about illnesses," Edison officials said in a written response to the Register's questions. "The radio frequency emissions from SCE's smart meter system are well below government safety guidelines for human exposure, which were established by the Federal Communications Commission and are based on its independent assessment of relevant scientific, health and engineering experts.

"The smart meter devices communicate using low-power, wireless signals that are similar to or weaker in strength than those created by common consumer devices like cellphones or Wi-Fi home computer networks."

In 2008, the California Public Utilities Commission gave Edison permission to replace 5.3 million analog meters with smart meters. The high-tech meters, which are part of Edison's new "SmartConnect" grid, transmit information through a "secure wireless network," so workers and customers can check meters remotely.

James Newsome, 64 of Long Beach, said he started hearing ringing in his ears shortly after utility workers installed a smart meter on the back part of his home early last year. Edison then moved the meter to an outside wall -- about 3 feet from the desk where Newsome often sits. He said he experienced heart palpitations.

In April, Newsome, a Vietnam veteran and retired truck driver, began to develop more health problems, including indigestion, a 2-inch-long radiation burn on his neck, and a lump in his throat that turned out to be cancerous.

Newsome said he bought a device to measure radiation and found unsafe levels at many parts of his home.

"The last two weeks they had the smart meter (near his desk), I couldn't even go in that room," Newsome said. "It was like a toxic environment."

Newsome notified Edison that he wanted to "opt out" of the smart meter program. He agreed to pay the $75 fee and additional $10 per month to use an analog meter instead.

The PUC gave utility customers statewide the ability to "opt-out" of the smart meter program in 2012 after receiving hundreds of complaints. The complaints involved accuracy of the meters, privacy concerns, and fire and health risks.

Some critics and special-interest groups have been vocal about health concerns linked to the smart meters, pointing to studies that correlate radio frequency exposure with diseases such as cancer, neurological disease, reproductive disorders, immune dysfunction and electromagnetic hypersensitivity.

U.S. regulators have given mixed signals.

In Michigan, a report by the state Public Service Commission staff called the health risk from smart meters "insignificant."

In Maine, the state's highest court ruled that state regulators failed to adequately address safety concerns about smart meters, and ordered its Public Utility Commission to reconsider a complaint raising health concerns.

Contact the writer: mcook@ocregister.com

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