You may not be aware that you have a “smart” meter on your property, which was installed by La Plata Electric Association without your informed consent.

You may not be aware that “smart” meters have caused hundreds of home fires worldwide. Lloyd’s of London which underwrites most homeowner’s insurance policies will not cover damage caused by “smart” meters, which are not even UL rated! At a July 2014 Republican Women’s meeting, LPEA’s Ron Meier, stated that you and I, as co-op members will pay for all damage caused by “smart” meter fires here.

You may not be aware that the pulsed, electromagnetic frequency that “smart” meters emit 24/7 is extremely dangerous to our health and can even cause life-threatening conditions. Twenty-five medical doctors and people holding doctoral degrees explain: www.bioinitiative.org.

You may not be aware that LPEA chose to ignore almost 10,000 credentialed, peer-reviewed scientific and medical studies that demonstrate the myriad of health dangers associated with “smart” meters. Despite the abundance of information available, LPEA made the decision to remove your analog meter – which was working just fine – and install a “smart” meter.

You may not be aware that in order to finance the deployment of “smart” meters, LPEA has obligated all co-op members to repay an $8.5 million loan from the federal government’s Rural Utilities Service.

You may not be aware that all LPEA Co-op members have been paying $1.42 per month to have our meters manually read. This amounts to about $58,000 per month and almost $700,000 per year. However, the vast majority of our meters were read via the power lines. At the October 2014 board meeting, I asked CEO Michael Dreyspring and the board where all that money had gone. I didn’t receive an answer.

Please, join us at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 26 at Durango Public Library for a free screening of “Take Back Your Power.” Josh del Sol’s award-winning documentary uncovers shocking evidence of in-home privacy invasions, increased utility bills, health and environmental harm, fires and unprecedented hacking vulnerability and lights the path toward solutions. Visit www.takebackyourpower.net.

Laura Refka

Pagosa Springs