A group of about 50 concerned Amarillo citizens gathered Thursday evening at the Comanche Trail Church of Christ to ask questions of Rich Gagnon, deputy municipal director of technology for the city of Amarillo, about fears that ‘Amarillo joins a group of smart cities. Recent changes, such as the installation of smart meters from Xcel Energy and also smart meters from the City of Amarillo Water Department, have highlighted some issues.
It was a diverse group and ages ranged from young to old. The topic came up at a monthly meeting of Texas conservatives, who meet every third Thursday at the church to discuss election integrity. The group’s leader, Alex Deanda, Precinct 111, Randall County, walked around the group with a handheld microphone and let those who wanted to ask questions speak to Gagnon. The concerns stem from concern over Amarillo’s membership in a Smart City group, in which urban areas use different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data meant to effectively manage assets, resources and services. In return, the data is used to improve operations across the city.
However, the consensus of the group, led by a member of the Texas Conservatives, was the fear that something that starts out good could be used in the wrong way, possibly to control people’s use of more evil things. Legitimate questions were also raised about tying too many technologies together so that they are easily sabotaged or the fear that if one system fails, all of them will.
The citizens spoke anonymously and most did not want to be named. A woman who recently opted out of the Smart Meter for Xcel complained that she was forced to pay $166 to opt out and not receive it, plus an additional $16 per month for a service she already had. She said a week later, an Xcel employee came and plugged a magnetic device into her electric meter to check it. According to the woman, the man said, “A lot of people are opting out. He said he doesn’t understand why Xcel is doing this in the city.
Elisa Pardo, secretary of the group, encouraged participants to research electrical fires. Pardo said the smart meters used by Xcel are known to explode after a few years, if there is a power surge. She said fire departments are not in favor of it and power companies are not responsible for losses caused by the fire.
Gagnon assured the group that Amarillo has not committed to joining a smart city group to share information and has no plans to do so. He said if this issue was considered, it would have to go through the city council and be posted on the city agenda.
Other concerns from the group included the radiation the smart meter would emit. According to some viewers, radiation can be harmful to people, pets and plants.
The change to approve Xcel Energy’s meters and the city of Amarillo’s implementation of smart technology was made at a city council meeting. The city received funding from the State of Texas for the approval which was obtained under Mayor Ginger Nelson’s previous term.
A younger man said the smart system used “dirty electricity” to run the devices. He said the FEM regulates and monitors people through WiFi, smart phones and LED lights. He said he had just arrived from Miami, Florida, where they are getting into smart city technology.
The city’s technology expert assured the crowd that the city was transparent and that it was important to maintain local control. He said he doesn’t see this happening and no one else has access to our local information.
The next meeting of Texas Conservatives will be held on November 16 at 7 p.m. at Comanche Trails Church of Christ and will include a presentation by Dr. Douglas Frank on the seven steps to restoring election integrity. Frank has a doctorate in chemistry and is an associate of “My Pillow Guy,” Mike Lindell. He has worked with various activists to eliminate fraud in the electoral system. Meetings last one hour. For more information, go to www.conservativesoftexas.org or call Elisa Pardo, group secretary, at 806-282-6638.