{"id":1134,"date":"2010-10-04T08:36:25","date_gmt":"2010-10-04T15:36:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/?p=1134"},"modified":"2011-03-29T14:16:03","modified_gmt":"2011-03-29T21:16:03","slug":"smart-meter-headed-for-disaster-says-ndp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/?p=1134","title":{"rendered":"Smart Meter headed for Disaster, says NDP"},"content":{"rendered":"
http:\/\/bcndpcaucus.ca\/en\/smart_meter_program_headed_for_disaster_says_ndp<\/a><\/div>\n
NDP MEDIA RELEASE<\/strong><\/div>\n
For Immediate Release<\/div>\n
Oct. 4, 2010<\/div>\n
VICTORIA \u2014The B.C. Liberals\u2019 plan to force B.C. Hydro to rush into spending $1 billion to install \u201csmart\u201d hydro meters<\/strong> in every B.C. home by 2012 is a disaster waiting to happen, says New Democrat energy critic John Horgan.<\/div>\n
\u201cRecent evidence from Ontario\u2019s smart meter experiment show more than 80 per cent of people are actually paying more<\/span><\/strong>, not less, under time-of-use billing using smart meters,\u201d said Horgan. \u201cWe are poised to make exactly the same mistakes here in B.C.<\/div>\n
\u201cBy rushing to finish the project by 2012, we lose the ability to make sure we get it right by learning from the mistakes of other jurisdictions. If this really is a good idea, let\u2019s see best practices put in place with a studied, measured approach.\u201d<\/div>\n
More than four million smart meters have been installed across Ontario, allowing for a time-of-use billing scheme to be implemented that is intended to reward users with lower rates for using electricity in off-peak hours. But recent numbers from Toronto Hydro show that 84 per cent of people\u2019s electricity bills have gone up, not down.<\/div>\n
\u201cThe Ontario experience has shown that smart meters don\u2019t work when it comes to conserving energy and saving money. Instead, they are proving to do just the opposite,\u201d said Horgan, noting the billion-dollar price tag to install the meters in B.C. could be better spent elsewhere.<\/div>\n
\u201cJust imagine how much good a billion dollars could do to stimulate the economy and save energy if it was directed to home energy retrofits. Energy efficiency measures like upgrading heating systems, proper insulation, and other home upgrades are a proven way to manage electricity demand.\u201d<\/div>\n
Horgan noted that the B.C. Liberals don\u2019t have a business plan that shows how smart meters will be implemented or how they will save electricity, nor is there an independent review process to evaluate the effectiveness of the program.<\/div>\n
\u201cNow that the B.C. Liberals have exempted all major energy projects from the purview of the B.C. Utilities Commission, all decisions are being made at the whim of the embattled premier with no one but his head-nodding cabinet ministers to question their validity or value,\u201d said Horgan.<\/div>\n
\u201cB.C. families will be the ones who have to pay for the B.C. Liberals\u2019 reckless decisions through increasingly higher bills.\u201d<\/div>\n
The Carole James New Democrats are holding the B.C. Liberals accountable for their HST doublecross while working with British Columbians from all walks of life, all corners of B.C., and all sectors of our economy to build a better British Columbia for the people of this province.<\/div>\n

.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/ontariondp.com\/en\/new-data-proves-smart-meter-scheme-costing-everyone-more\/<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Press Releases<\/p>\n

New data proves smart meter scheme costing everyone more<\/strong><\/p>\n

Queen\u2019s Park<\/strong> \u2013 Andrea Horwath, Leader of Ontario\u2019s New Democrats, says data from Toronto Hydro confirms that Dalton McGuinty\u2019s so-called smart meters have raised rates for 80 per cent of consumers and aren\u2019t producing any conservation gains for Ontario.<\/p>\n

\u201cDalton McGuinty\u2019s so-called smart meters<\/strong> make eHealth look like a bargain. For a billion and half dollars we have a scheme that leaves 80 per cent of people paying higher rates without shifting usage patterns,\u201d said Horwath. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing smart about Dalton McGuinty\u2019s smart meters when it\u2019s hiking people\u2019s hydro bills.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Toronto Hydro study looked at ten thousand households in Toronto that have been billed using so-called smart meters since 2009. The study confirmed that after a year of operation:<\/p>\n

\u2022 On average 80 percent of households have been paying higher rates than before smart meters were installed and there has been little if any shift in household energy consumption.<\/p>\n

\u2022 In one billing period \u2013 from June to September, 2009 \u2013 ninety-two per cent of households paid more.<\/p>\n

\u2022 On average, households seeing an increase were paying anywhere from 2 to 7 per cent more.<\/p>\n

\u2022 These increases are separate from the added cost to households for the cost of the smart meter itself. Across Ontario, consumers will be paying $1.25 \u2013 $4.45 a month for decades to recover these costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe McGuinty Liberals have spent billions on a scheme that leaves people paying more and leaves Ontario falling behind in our conservation goals,\u201d said Horwath.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

http:\/\/bcndpcaucus.ca\/en\/smart_meter_program_headed_for_disaster_says_ndp NDP MEDIA RELEASE For Immediate Release Oct. 4, 2010 VICTORIA \u2014The B.C. Liberals\u2019 plan to force B.C. Hydro to rush into spending $1 billion to install \u201csmart\u201d hydro meters in every B.C. home by 2012 is a disaster waiting to happen, says New Democrat energy critic John Horgan. \u201cRecent evidence from Ontario\u2019s smart meter […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17,3,19,18],"tags":[85],"class_list":["post-1134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bc","category-health_and_safety","category-ontario","category-smart-meter","tag-smart-meters"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1134"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1240,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1134\/revisions\/1240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emrabc.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}