Saturday, July 2, 2011

Letter to the School Board / Effects of RF on the Central Nervous System / etc.

W.E.E.P. News

Wireless Electrical and Electromagnetic Pollution News 

2 July 2011

 
 
Letter to the School Board
 
Dr. Pellizzari, School Board Trustees, et al.

I would like to bring to your attention the fact that WiFi in schools is a concern to many parents, and not just those in Canada.

In Portland Oregon, parents are challenging WiFi in a school based on health concerns.  Four experts are testifying on behalf of the parents.  You should be aware of this hearing as it is likely to be the first of many across North America.  Americans are more litigious than Canadians.  Taking legal action is a very costly way to deal with this issue, and should be used only as a last resort. Some parents will use this when it comes to protecting the health of their children.

Many scientists and doctor are aware of the harmful effects of microwave radiation and have been speaking out for decades.  It takes time for science to be translated into policy and the longer it takes the more harm is done to human health.  The question is not whether microwave radiation is harmful, but rather, when will Health Canada formally recognize that microwave radiation is harmful?  It has taken the WHO decades to come to their reclassification. I hope it will not take Health Canada as long.

As much as parents are concerned about microwave exposure of their children, they are also upset about having no choice in the matter.  Many parents would be willing to work with the Board to figure out in each school how to minimize exposure to microwave radiation.  Much can be done even if you go ahead and install WiFi.  But instead the School Board has taken a dictatorial approach.  The issue is not going to go away especially because the School Board is unwilling to work cooperatively with parents and teachers.

I wish that you didn't feel so entrenched in your opinions and in your need to support a decision that was made prior to the WHO reclassification.  Gandhi was once quoted as saying, "This is my opinion today.  Tomorrow I may learn something and I may then change my opinion."

I wish I were wrong about the harmful effects of WiFi.  I wish this technology was safe to use.  But it isn't.  I have been in this field too long and have read too much to the contrary.  My own research shows that microwave radiation at very low levels affects the heart, at levels lower than what was reported at Monday night's meeting.

I know that some of you think that I am a fear monger.  I was called by worse names when I was doing acid rain research and the coal industry wanted to show that acid rain was caused by volcanoes.  Back in 1975 Environment Canada denied that there was such a thing as acid rain.  It was then, as a graduate student, that I learn not to automatically trust government scientists or those in authority because they could be wrong.  They were wrong then about acid rain and they are wrong now about microwave radiation. 

I have colleagues who stood up to the very powerful lead lobby. They also were taunted and criticized and they continued the fight, which eventually resulted in lower acceptable blood lead levels in children.  The messenger is  attacked when people don't want to hear a particular message.  I knew this going into this "battle".  It didn't deter me with acid rain and it is not going to deter me now. 

Instead of fear I am trying to help educate anyone who wants to learn about the science and to help those who are being adversely affected by the radiation.  For that very reason I designed a website and produced youtube videos to make the complex technical information easier to understand.

I'm certain that many of you, if you were in my position, would be doing the same thing that I'm doing–sharing information so people can make intelligent choice about what they do and do not want to be exposed to.

Please, consider becoming more flexible.  We are not asking that access to the internet be taken away.  We are simply asking that access be made available through wires rather than WiFi.  Surely when it comes to the health of students and teachers that is not too much to ask. 

-magda

____________________________
Dr. Magda Havas, B.Sc., Ph.D.
Environmental and Resource Studies Program, Trent University
Peterborough, ON K9J 7B8, CANADA
email:      mhavas@trentu.ca
phone:     705-748-1011 x7882   
fax:         705-748-1569
www.magdahavas.com (general)
www.magdahavas.org (academic)
 
 
 
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'Jump in a nuclear reactor and die!'

Those were the words directed at the chairman of Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) by one angry man at the tense stockholders meeting held today on June 28. It captured the sentiment of many people in Japan who are demanding the company take responsibility for the meltdown on March 11, at the nuclear power plant

 
 
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Effects of RF on the Central Nervous System
 
Early research from 1969, Allan H. Frey
 
See the attached document
 
Marika
 
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Renew Grid
by Renew Grid on Thursday 30 June 2011 Global smart meter shipment volumes continued to be strong in the first quarter of this year, with 17.4 million units shipped and a nearly equal number of associated advanced metering infrastructure communications ...
 
 
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Telegraph.co.uk
AN ambitious project to install smart meters in every home will cost the equivalent of £434 for every household in the country but it is uncertain that the benefits will be passed onto consumers, the National Audit Office has said. ...
 
 
 
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Smart Meter Events in BC Canada
 
Dumb Meter Rally
 
 
Salt Spring
 
 
Stop Smart Meters
 
 
Rally to be held July 9th
 
 
More Info
 
 
 
 
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Open letter to Rossmoyne Primary School: Wifi and Health

Dear Geoff, Members of the School Council and P&C

We know that there is a possibility and growing evidence to support the view that there is a biological danger from exposure to Wifi radiation.  We also know that this danger is greatly increased for children. The possible biological effects of this radiation are: chromosome damage, short-term memory problems, cancers, cardiac risk, sterilisation… to name a few.

While there has been an exponential growth in the past few years of the amount of radiation that surrounds us and is currently beyond our control, it would be very short-sighted to introduce a new source directly into our primary school where our children spend more than 6 hours every day.  While the possible benefits of a 1:1 laptop program at Rossmoyne Primary are apparent and have been aggressively marketed, the overall well-being of our children should be of foremost importance. The school has, as yet, not brought this issue to the attention of parents.

The issue is that while current legislation and guidelines for radiation exposure are pointed to, they are inadequate. Policy decisions take time to implement. To quote Dr Magda Havas*, who responded to my email yesterday, "It takes time for science to be translated into policy and the longer it takes the more harm is done to human health."

On having closely read the articles distributed by Geoff to assure us of the safety of Wifi (in spite of not having directly addressed the actual health concerns attached to Wifi), I have concluded that they present excellent examples of the kind of pressures and dilemmas that we, as parents, are faced with: 

  • The 'Wifi health.pdf' is produced by Aruba Networks, whose very business existence is based on selling mobile network services and devices.  Need I say more?  These companies are concerned simply with compliance to existing exposure limits and maximising their profits and image.
     
  • With regard to Princeton University's Position Statement, it appears that PU is facing increasing concerns by the university community on the safety of their existing Wifi environment.  It is in response to these growing concerns that the university has prepared a position paper.  I would like to point out that the University of Princeton is in a completely different situation to that of Rossmoyne Primary School:  the campus ALREADY has WiFi, and the University is therefore entrenched in the position that they currently hold.  Rossmoyne Primary School, on the other hand, is concerned with the question of whether to place our CHILDREN (not adults) INTO a WiFi environment.  

I have already given to Geoff, and attach here a list of bans or warnings against Wifi. 

I would encourage you all to consider the following resources for starters: 

 

There are many, many more resources available. 

The school leaders and management stand at a crossroads.  They are in a unique position to guide both our school and others in this very important decision. 

I will appreciate it if this email can be forwarded to and minuted by the P&C and Members of the School Council. 

Thank you. 

Kind regards
Colleen Gartz
Tel: 9457-3604
 
 
 
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TODAYonline
At the Hub, which has walls splashed with bright colours and providing free coffee and Wi-Fi, teens can make an appointment for a free mental health assessment by youth workers and doctors from the IMH. Those who need further counselling or treatment ...
Dr Pang has seen a 30- to 40-per-cent increase in the number of youths over the last five years, with the majority facing psychological problems like anxiety and mood disorders. (Shall we call this Wi Fi Sickness ?)

http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC110701-0000324/Teachers-to-help-spot-mental-issues
 
 
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Wireless World?
 
 
Robert
 
 
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Mobile Phone Derived Electromagnetic Fields May Impair Synaptic Learning Processes In The Brain

 
 
 
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Wired but tired: is modern life draining your energy?

The Ecologist
A growing number of scientists worldwide are trying to alert us to the fact that the devices to which we are all so attached emit electro magnetic frequencies [EMFs], which could have serious consequences for our health. You cannot see them, ...

http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/home/961759/wired_but_tired_is_modern_life_draining_your_energy.html

 
 
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Blake Levitt on Smart Meters

   Think I have written about this before for the list... It is my & Chellis Glendinning's article that appeared in Counter Punch and later in Energy Bulletin that John is quoting.
   There are several generations of meter technologies:
   1. Old analog with dials requiring meter readers to come up to the meter. (Systems reliable, good for jobs, not optimal for corporate profits) 
   2. First generation RF meters that accumulated usage data and released it wirelessly to a van that would pull in the drive or cruise the neighborhood and "call" for usage information at each house/business. Meters generated RF once a month and automatically shut off. (Required a meter reader who did not have to get out of a vehicle. Systems less reliable, better for corporate profits, fewer meter readers due to more efficient use of their time.)
 3. Smart meters -- completely wireless, no need for meter readers of any kind. (Optimal for long term corporate profits since taxpayers largely upfront-funded investment through the federal stimulus package. Bad for long-term jobs but good for short term temp positions. Cost shifting onto the medical/insurance sector. National Grid security uncertain but Wall Street and Green investors love it....)
   In Connecticut where I live, Northeast Utilities (NEU) put first generation RF meters on homes about 5-7 years ago. I refused to allow it and worked directly with their corporate meter manager (who was already familiar with my work) to find a way around. For a year, I read our meters and did a fine job but they weren't comfortable with that indefinitely. Every month when I called in my readings to a live person, their computers automatically issued work orders to replace the meters on the main and guest house on our property and the whole thing constantly involved some sort of human correction to stop it. New installers kept showing up because the system had told them to. Managers were constantly having to override the orders. So I could understand their in-flux system problems, too. Eventually it got squared away with some software adjustments but it was labor intensive for everyone, including me.
   At the time, there were no alternatives offered to residential customers. But it turns out that in already high RF environments -- near broadcast facilities, military areas, airports, some research/medical/university facilities etc. --  first generation meters wouldn't work anyway because there was too much environmental RF causing interference already. They could not get accurate readings. So, they had become adept at using landlines that connected directly to the meters. Usage is called for daily, typically at night, by an automated system. That's what they connected us up to, by special request. But it took coordination by them with AT&T, which the local installers considered a pain. (The utility couldn't just connect to the phone lines -- they don't own them and vice versa.)
   And for us it meant that switching landline phone companies would be difficult if not impossible. I recently tried to bundle landline service with our cable TV service and cable TV had absolutely NO way to accommodate anything like that. Same for web-based phone connections like SKYPE.
   This is by way of saying, understand what you are asking and what you are tying yourself into if you go this route. 
   At the time, Schlumberger made two models used by NEU. One gave off regular pulses. The other, only when data was called for. NEU used the latter.
   Fruitful areas of inquiry for those trying to help set policy in California and elsewhere... Ask what their reading/metering systems are now for high RF environments? Clearly, there must be some sort of dedicated line for major users like universities, etc. as there are too many possibilities for error with the frequencies used so close to consumer wireless products. They say that smart meters are encrypted but I do not know if this is their way around the RFI potential problems. Needs clarification from a grid engineer.
   I am lucky in CT as I was not asking them to change entire state/regional meter policy and what they could do, they already were doing for corporate clients. This is likely true in many states. We have also been at the same property since 1983. If we moved around often, it would obviously be a lot tougher. And in newer construction, homes aren't even wired for landline phones anymore... a whole other challenge.
   What's reasonable re: policy requests:
1. Ask utilities to make available the same wired usage systems as corporate clients with potential RFI problems.
2. Assume that there will have to be extra coordination between the utility and your phone company and that this will take more time and possibly upfront expense although in our case it did not.
3. Since AT&T has petitioned the FCC to allow them to abandon their landline system altogether, we should begin to approach big players like Google and Microsoft who are also getting into fiberoptic/entertainment/highspeed internet to provide a utility interface for residential electricity usage. There is money to be made there for them... they just need to know there is demand.
4. Find the right in-house systems engineers and/or entrepreneurs (who can patent their own work) to design an easy interface between electric meters and myriad wired networks via copper landlines or fiberoptic. Such interfaces may already exist and we just need to push them to the forefront of requests to grid designers...
5. Pressure the DOE for a safer "smart wired grid" because that's where this is coming from. They love wireless & nuclear.
6. Understand that the smart grid as currently designed hits none of it's marks but that its main objectives of saving energy/lowering carbon emissions through realtime information made available to residential users is attainable via small plug-in meters that will give constant readouts without going wireless. GE makes them. We don't have to redesign then entire grid to get this function. They can offer such info plug-ins through billing for a price and make money that way too. 
7. Call legislators on the ethics of this as a big handout to the largest corporations on the planet, for next to no return for taxpayers, and likely danger to health and the environment. There's is nearly no upside to this and it's just a question of time before Wall Street catches on to the longterm bait & switch about to go down.
8. In cases of multiple meters needed for water & gas too, using landlines might not be possible without installing dedicated lines just for them at customer cost. Copper can only carry so much information load. Fiberoptic, though, would be able to accommodate all comers.
   If we are asking for national policy changes, we need to know what's reasonable, doable, and what will work...
 
Best,
Blake Levitt. 
 
 

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