Feb 8, 2012 By Jeff Malik sca River Town Outreach Corps 3 min read

The increasing numbers of “smart meters” being installed around the country are a key component of a sleeker, modern energy grid. These electric meters are replacing the old style meter, which have to be read manually, by a meter reader. The new meters report your electricity (and increasingly gas and water) usage back to the power company via a radio transmitter. Rather than readings being taken once a month, smart meters report usage once every hour, or on even quicker intervals.

The hour-by-hour energy reporting allows a utility company to see what times of the day people are using the most electricity. In the summer months, it is usually the afternoon, when air conditioners are working hardest to cool off your home. In the winter months, it is often in the early morning hours, when it is coldest outside and your heating system is at full power. Energy companies can use this information to determine when to run their plants at full capacity, and when to cut back. For example, if the power company determines that the lowest energy use occurs between 10 am and noon, they can cut down on the amount of coal or gas burned. This saves the company money, produces less pollution, and conserves our natural resources. More importantly for you, utility companies are beginning to reward consumers for making smarter energy choices, by charging lower rates for electricity used during the off-hours.

These new meters are part of the larger movement to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and promote America’s energy independence. The meters will help consumers and power companies use less energy, regardless of whether that energy comes from coal, gas, nuclear, wind, solar, or hydropower. The meters, in conjunction with a variety of sensors on power lines and computer systems at power plants, could also help prevent power losses and blackouts, by predicting the times that energy demand will be highest. This will save utility companies money, and protect consumer peace of mind.

Across the country, some of the largest utility companies are installing these meters by the hundreds of thousands. By the end of the year, Centerpoint Energy will have more than two million smart meters in the greater Houston, Texas, area. Smart meters in Los Angeles allow industrial customers to purchase electricity at varying times, to help cut down on operating costs. Nationwide, the number of smart meters installed in homes could be as high as 65 million by 2020, according to the Institute for Energy Efficiency, a non-profit that researches energy related technology and issues.

This is more than an American idea, as countries around the world are working to provide renewable energy and gain energy independence for their nations. In Italy, utility company Enel, which is that country’s largest, installed smart meters in every one of its 27 million customers’ homes. The United Kingdom hopes to have smart meters in the entire country by 2020. Most other European nations are implementing, or in some cases, requiring by law, the installation of smart meters.

The smart meter has the capacity to create a more efficient energy grid, to promote responsible energy use, and to help the nation reach energy independence. Contact your local power company to see if smart meters are available in your service area.

Jeff Malik is project leader of the SCA River Town Outreach Corps, an organization focusing on sustainable economic development in the towns along the Monongahela River supported by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council and the Student Conservation Association. Contact him at jmalik@thesca.org.