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ATCO Electricity Meter Upgrades starting soon in Vegreville
Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser
Starting later this month ATCO employees will begin installing new electricity meters in the Town of Vegreville.
According to information supplied by ATCO, “The new meters will allow us to continue to provide safe and reliable electricity and expand on the services we can provide to you.”
Doris Kaufmann Woodcock, Manager of Media & Corporate Communications for ATCO, said the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) meter installations will being in February and start ramping up in April and May. “We expect the process to last through to about the end of 2024.”
Information provided by ATCO said exposure to radio frequency EMF from smart meters is very low as they emit relatively low power signals, transmit data in short bursts and when not transmitting a signal, they do not emit radiofrequency EMF.
As outlined in ATCO’s literature, “Our meters use a radio frequency to receive and transmit information, but the radio frequency emissions from our meters are minimal and aligned with Health Canada Standards. According to several studies, there are no health risks from our meters due to low power signals, proximity to you and your family and there are only short bursts of activity rather than continuous.
AMI meters or smart meters as they are commonly called, are digital electricity meters that measure how much electricity is used and when it is used. Using two-way communication, these meters digitally record and report consumption in real-time back to ATCO.
AMI meters eliminate the use of physical meter reads, resulting in lower operating costs for customers. AMI meters have been implemented all over North America including in Canada from the prairies to the territories.”
