Open letter to the people working for BC Hydro:
I guess it’s my turn to feel the pressure. I learned yesterday of several people who had had their power disconnected due to their decision not to pay their legacy fees. Like the woman who called me last month, almost in tears, after receiving an automated “courtesy call” saying she would be disconnected if she didn’t pay up in full within 24 hours, I know that my husband and I can’t do without electricity.
It was a sad day when the BC Utilities Commission agreed to your exorbitant fee of almost $35 per month to read our very intelligent (but not “Smart”) meter every second month. It is interesting that Quebec residents who’ve opted to keep a safe meter (analogue or digital) on their homes pay only about $5 monthly for this same service.
Many people have buckled under the financial pressure of these fees and succumbed to having the SmartMeter installed, despite the myriad of health issues studied by independent scientists and shown to be directly related to microwave radio frequencies; the fire hazard possibilities; and, of course, privacy and security issues.
I am not one of these people, but I am paying 8.5 per cent of my net pension payment each month for this legacy fee. The woman I referred to earlier did not know where she would get the money to pay her overdue fee. She told me it would have to come from her grocery and household budget. But I guess those SmartMeters need to be paid for.
I know that there are real flesh and blood people who may read this letter at the corporate office: This is not the kind of legacy I wish to leave to the people I serve; do you?
Shelley Corbin