Update on Smart Meters

In October, the Office of the Public Advocate (OPA) requested that Maine CDC comment on health concerns related to the wireless communication technology, also known as smart meters, being installed by Central Maine Power (CMP). As a result, Maine CDC submitted a report on November 8 to OPA and the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) of our review of national and international government-affiliated organizations’ analyses on this subject.

Subsequently, Maine CDC and others received several correspondences from people expressing concerns about the review. In order to make sure OPA, PUC, and the correspondents have our responses in a concise format, we have grouped the concerns into eight topic areas and compiled our responses into a Frequently Asked Questions document.

Worried about smart meters?

A complaint was filed with the Maine Public Utilities Commission at the end of October, focusing on concerns related to the health, safety (malfunctioning, shorting out, and igniting), and security (vulnerability to hacking) of smart meters, also known as advanced metering infrastructure.

Maine CDC conducted a review focused on the health concerns expressed in the complaint. The review did not indicate any consistent or convincing evidence to support a concern for health effects related to the use of radio frequency in the range of frequencies and power used by smart meters. The review also did not indicate an association of EMF exposure and symptoms that have been described as electromagnetic sensitivity.

For more information, visit http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/boh/smart_meters.shtml. The full review is about 70 pages, but the executive summary is only 5 pages.