This letter is to inform people of the potential dangers of Smart Meters, now installed in Tryon, and what they can do about it. This is an individual decision, but I believe that we as a community should opt out, refusing Smart Meters, period.

I noticed the other week that Duke Energy has begun to install Smart Meters in my neighborhood in Tryon, and maybe by now they’ve completed the job as a whole. In a conversation with a number of friends recently, we realized that most are unaware of Smart Meters or their effect on the human body. So for the first time, I decided to write a letter.

I refused a Smart Meter both verbally and in a certified letter to Duke Energy. I still have my old meter, which is a drive-by type, emitting Radio Frequencies. My understanding from the Duke helpline (704 382-5009) is that the Smart Meters will be required by November. There is no NC opt out program at this time, but you can call Duke to be a bypass customer – so a Smart Meter is not installed. Or if your Smart Meter is already installed, and you want to remove it, call the help line. A friend of mine, after being VERY insistent, had to speak to three people to arrange to have hers removed within the next 2 weeks.

In November, I (as a bypass customer) will have to install an analog meter, and pay some kind of fee(s) because I have elected to forgo the Smart Meter Program. My current meter will no longer work. I prefer that, and am very happy to do so.

I am an opponent of Smart Meters, for two reasons: One, because they can cause health problems. And two, because we are already bombarded with various types of (micro) waves from cell phones, and cell towers without really understanding the long term cost to our physical and emotional health.

The Smart Meters put out a minimum of 10,000 pulses PER DAY, pinging each other and sending your electrical usage data to Duke. I suspect that as electrical beings, we are being impacted at a subtle level in our body’s communications between mitochondria, DNA and so on. Many people are reporting health problems. Intuitively I feel it’s like putting our head in a microwave.

When Smart Meters have been installed, people begin to have headaches, heart palpitations, insomnia, learning problems, and the list goes on. Check out http://emfsafetynetwork.org/smart-meters/smart-meter-health-complaints/ for some information on this.

A $25 million study was recently completed by the US government on the effects of RF (radio frequency) and EMF (electro magnetic frequency) on rats. The result of the study – exposure to these frequencies causes tumors in rats. So we’re talking exposure to Smart Phones, Smart Meters, household Wi-Fi systems, cell towers and the electrical systems in our houses.

The final way to opt out in North Carolina has not been determined yet. My understanding is that by the end of July our state government should have a final verdict on this.

As I learn more and more about Wi-fi, EMFs, and RFs I am changing the way I use my computer (dedicated line, instead of wi-fi), and the way I have my phone set up. If you want to educate yourself more on this, watch a TED talk by Jeromy Johnson at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0NEaPTu9oI.

If you want to bypass being a Smart Meter customer, then call Duke at 704-382-5009. Be forewarned that you may have to be VERY insistent.

Erin Miller, Tryon, N.C.