By now, we’ve all heard of “smart” electricity meters and a “smart” power grid. While some may see the concept as nothing more than a new way for Big Brother to get into our personal business, others see a natural continuation of technological evolution that will ultimately lead to cleaner, more efficient power systems and utility bills. lower audiences.

One thing most will agree on is that our energy infrastructure is outdated and inefficient. Made up of a mosaic of technology from different eras, there are parts of the electrical grid that date back to 1890. As our power lines and substations have aged, new technologies have emerged. Why, then, should we care about advancing this technology?

Most of you have probably heard of the “smart” meters that utilities are installing across the country. Unsurprisingly, there have been some health and privacy concerns associated with this new technology. Health concerns center around radiofrequency radiation generated by the meters communicating with a central computer system. The radiation generated is similar to that generated by cell phones or Wi-Fi routers, and some people believe that this type of radiation can contribute to cancer and other health problems. Verifiable research so far has been inconclusive, but since meters are located outside, unlike phones and routers, and communicate less than 1% of the time, any potential danger is significantly less than that posed by these devices. other technologies (cellular and Wi-Fi). Fi) that most people have willingly accepted.

There are others who are concerned about privacy issues. Smart meters are designed to both send and receive information, and some citizens are concerned about the meta-information that utilities will now have access to as a result of smart meters. For example, the measured data can be used to understand the types of devices people use in their homes, to map the movements of people from one room to another, or to know when people are not home and for how long. Privacy has become a touchy subject with the advent of “green” technology, and it’s not an insignificant concern. In truth, however, with the progress made in satellite imagery, the implementation of public cameras and facial recognition technology, the vast databases of personal phone calls and emails held by the NSA, and the numerous other intrusions into our lives personal information, smart meters in fact, may be the least of our privacy concerns.

How will smart grids work?

When we go beyond the perceived dangers, there are a number of very real benefits proposed by smart grid technology. An intelligent network can diagnose problems and automate solutions. For example, power outages can be automatically reported as soon as they occur. A work order can then be automatically generated and assigned to the nearest technician. In fact, some problems can be discovered and corrected even before an outage occurs. This could significantly reduce the cost of system maintenance and increase service recovery time in the event of an outage. That means better customer service and lower cost.

Usage data collected by smart meters can also be used to help consumers understand their own usage patterns and find ways to reduce energy use and lower their bills. That means lower bills and energy savings.

A smart grid will be more efficient, more profitable and less wasteful.

There are so many benefits to employing smart grid technology that there really is no reason to expect that the electrical grid will simply stop evolving and maintain the status quo.

If you consider the advances that have already been made in the past century, many of which were accompanied by concerns about health and property rights, the burgeoning smart grid is really nothing more than a continuation of the progress we’ve already made. If you weren’t worried about the waste created by power plants or the radiation generated by the high-voltage lines that run through almost every city, there’s little point in worrying about today’s advances, particularly in light of the fact that they’re likely to lead to a cleaner and safer electricity infrastructure.

New advances will come, and the technology that enables these advances will also continue to evolve. If a person wants to draw a line in the sand and say “this far and no further”, one could say that the line should have been drawn long ago.

Many will continue to maintain that there is no point in using electricity, or doing anything, if we are not interested in doing it to the best of our ability.