WSSC: Use Analog, not AMI meters

August 19, 2020

Dear WSSC Corporate Secretary and Commissioners of Montgomery County and Prince George’s County, Montgomery County Council Members, and Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich,

     In my first testimony to you in February 2020, opposing AMI “Smart” Water Meters I told my story of my beloved pet cat who developed extremely high blood pressure 3 weeks after a Pepco Smart Meter was installed on my house. During the afternoons my cat laid approximately 2.5 yards from the smart meter that was on the outside of the house much of the time.  Because of the extremely high blood pressure, she had a detached retina and lost her vision permanently in one eye.  She was extremely lucky that I had gotten her to the vet as quickly as I did before she lost her vision in both eyes or had a serious stroke. The vet put her on blood pressure medication.  After having the smart meter removed and replaced with an analog electric meter, her blood pressure quickly returned to just a little over normal and she could greatly reduce her blood pressure medication.  That was my first understanding of the harms of smart meters.  My vet had heard of other pets having varying serious health problems after a smart meter was installed on their home.  There are many reports of people and animals experiencing serious health effects from the installation of Smart Meters on their homes. Please see www.stopsmartmeters.org.uk (see articles at bottom of the page in the link on Smart Meters).

    But today I would like to address some other concerns I have about placing a Smart Meter on my or anyone else’s home.

1.       AMI Smart Meters are not cost effective.  There is not a common consensus among water utility companies that AMI smart meters are cost effective.  At least five state regulatory commissions have rejected utility Smart Meters because they are not cost effective: Virginia, California, New Mexico, Indiana, and Massachusetts.  Fairfax Water, in Virginia has rejected smart meters because they are not cost effective. The AARP has warned its members for years about the huge cost of utility smart meters.  As a consumer, I would like you to use the safest, most cost effective approach to monitor water usage. I feel that Smart Meters are expensive, unnecessary, and harmful.

   

2.     Smart meters take away jobs from the employees who come to our homes to record our water usage.  Especially at this time everyone who has a job, desperately needs to keep their job. Maintaining the employment of your water meter reading employees will save them and their families from terrible consequences by taking away the money they need to provide for their families.

3.      An opt-out, even a “no-cost” opt out is not a good solution to this dilemma for two reasons. 

A.    Because most people do not know that these smart meters are harmful and will not know to request an opt-out.  Meanwhile they, their families and pets may develop health problems and they will not know why, and 

B.     Because we can still be negatively affected by our neighbors’ smart meters. 

·      However, if you do proceed with the installation of Smart Meters, please provide a “no-cost” opt-out option. 

4.    In my opinion, the installation of Smart Meters is not the best solution to this problem.  Wireless communications are more and more becoming recognized as harmful.  Thousands of peer-reviewed studies done by our best scientists have shown this. The microwave radiation electromagnetic pulsed frequencies used are unnatural to our bodies and the bodies of animals, birds and insects, and are harmful to nature.  We have come to a point where we have learned to develop these technologies, but in the words of Dr. Devra Davis, the founder of the Environmental Health Trust, “Just because we can do something doesn’t mean weshould do something.” We need to be very responsible with how we use technology and not let it take away our common sense as to what is best for the greater good.  Please use new analog meters to replace old worn out meters and keep everyone safe from harm and save money.

5.     I feel that the best choice is to use updated analog meters because they are less expensive, it serves your purposes of replacing worn out meters that are not giving accurate readings, and will not cause harm to people, children, pregnant women, or babies.  If Smart Meters wind up costing the public more, that is unacceptable, especially at this time during the pandemic when many people have lost their jobs or their businesses, are on the brink of being evicted, and are sometimes, very sadly, becoming homeless, or worse, dying of the coronavirus and leaving their family without a breadwinner. 

6.      My present water meter is inside my house just a couple of yards from where I am in the kitchen a lot of the time.  I am very concerned that a new Smart Meter installed in or on my home may harm my health. Please use new analog meters and do no harm to life. 

                   I am very grateful, every day, to everyone at WSSC involved with providing us with a reliable source of clean water, a necessity of life.  Thank  

                   you so very much for what you do to make that possible. 

Sincerely,

Anna R. Pritchard, Doctor of Naturopathy, CNC., Certified Nutritional Consultant, RN., Registered Nurse, BSN., Bachelor of Science in Nursing.