Vol 2, No 3
March 2004
IN THIS EDITION:
Coming
up in the next issue -- How you can help ARRL promote the League's 90th
Anniversary
RESPOND TO BPL STORIES WITH A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
As an independent project for the
ARRL PR Committee, Rich Moseson, W2VU, wrote a sample letter that may be used
in response to local press stories about BPL. Letters that are factual, concise
and well written have the best chance of making it into print.
This letter will work well in
response to any BPL story that does not address the interference issue
and the concerns of ham radio operators.
To the Editor:
In
response to the recent article (insert
title/date) extolling the virtues of Broadband over Power Lines, or BPL,
you and your readers need to know that there is another, darker, side to the story.
For
all of its potential benefits, BPL also produces a huge amount of radio noise,
or interference, over a broad range of frequencies that can affect all sorts of
licensed radio services, from police, fire and emergency medical services to
international broadcasting and worldwide ham radio communications. In addition,
non-licensed but popular radio services, such as CB and radio-controlled
models, could also be affected.
Interference
to these services would be strong and continuous and could cover the
entire shortwave and low-VHF portions of the radio spectrum. Interference from
these services could knock out Internet access for any users within range
whenever any nearby transmitter goes on the air. Several federal agencies fear
that BPL interference could pose a danger to public safety and national
security.
BPL
system designers have tried to address the problem by notching certain
frequencies, but with only limited success. Yet BPL implementation cannot go
forward without solving it, because for very good and obvious reasons it is a
violation of FCC regulations for a BPL system to cause radio interference. If
BPL causes interference - and it does - the BPL system must be shut down.
For
the most part, proponents of BPL deny these problems exist or could exist ...
despite objective tests by ARRL - the National Association for Amateur Radio,
and others, showing that massive interference can and will be a huge problem
wherever BPL is deployed. Additional technical studies are ongoing. Utilities
deciding whether to implement BPL in various areas (or insert specific area) must ensure that licensed users of the
radio spectrum are fully protected - as FCC regulations require. This is the
only way to meet the continuing needs of the community and the nation for
efficient and effective radio communication on the shortwave and low VHF bands.
Sincerely,
TALKING BPL -- ANSWERS TO THE IMPORTANT AND FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS
After Rich Moseson, W2VU, graciously agreed to draft a
sample letter to the editor, he took on another project -- drafting talking
points on the issue of BPL and ham radio. This material may be used as a point
of reference when talking with reporters, during presentations, or in
discussions with others not familiar with the technology and the danger it
poses for Amateur Radio and other radio services, as well.
- What is BPL?
- BPL is short for Broadband over Power Lines.
It's called Power Line Communications, or PLC, in some places.
- Essentially, BPL is high-speed Internet service
delivered via electric power lines.
- What are the benefits of BPL?
- In densely populated areas, it would provide
consumers with a third option for high-speed Internet access, in addition
to cable Internet service and the phone company's high-speed DSL (digital
subscriber line) service.
- In sparsely populated areas, it could theoretically make high-speed
Internet access available in locations that do not currently have cable
or DSL broadband access. Theoretically.
- Why theoretically?
- Electric wires are designed to carry
electricity, not data. They cannot efficiently carry data very far, and a
utility installing BPL would have to invest in a network of fiber-optic
cables and amplifiers to bring the Internet signals to a distribution
point for the "last mile" to subscribers' homes. In addition, they'd have
to manually bypass every transformer along the lines, since data signals
cannot pass through transformers. This is all very expensive and it's
questionable whether cost-conscious utilities will make the investment in
sparsely populated areas where there is only the potential for one or two
subscribers in given area.
- Is BPL in use anywhere yet?
- There have been several test areas, generally
covering a neighborhood or other small area. Large-scale deployment of
BPL is only just beginning as of early 2004.
- What's the problem that ham radio operators have
with BPL?
- In a word, interference -- in both directions;
BPL interfering with ham radio communications and strong signals from
nearby ham transmitters shutting down BPL Internet service. And it's not
just hams. All users of the shortwave and low-VHF parts of the radio
spectrum could be affected.
- Power lines, unlike cable TV lines, are not
shielded. This means that any signal sent down those lines at radio
frequencies will "leak" from the power lines. That means they also
receive radio signals. Any nearby signals would be sent straight to a
customer's computer.
- The biggest problem is that these BPL systems
use frequencies between 2 MHz and 80 MHz. This includes the shortwave bands,
between 3 and 30 MHz, which are the only frequencies in the whole
radio spectrum on which worldwide communications are possible without
using satellites or other relays.
- Users of these frequencies include not only ham
operators but aircraft pilots, the military, ship-to-shore, international
broadcasters and others. At the high end of the range, you have many
emergency service agencies and the lower TV channels (2-4). While many of
these services operate away from residential areas where BPL may be installed,
even low-power radio signals in this frequency range may often travel
hundreds or even thousands of miles.
- Some of the radio uses/users affected by BPL on
2-80 MHz:
- TV channels 2, 3, 4 (56-80 MHz)
- Kids' walkie-talkies (27 & 49 MHz)
- Older cordless phones (49 MHz)
- Some wireless baby monitors (49 MHz)
- Radio-controlled cars, boats, planes (27, 49,
72 MHz)
- CB (Citizens Band) radio (27 MHz)
- International shortwave broadcasters (various
frequencies, 2-25 MHz)
- Amateur (ham) radio (various frequencies, 3-54
MHz)
- Military (various frequencies, 2-80 MHz)
- Police/Fire/EMS (30-50 MHz)
- Federal law enforcement (various frequencies,
2-80 MHz)
- Federal Emergency Management Agency / Dept of
Homeland Security (various frequencies, 2-80 MHz)
- Airlines / Air Traffic Control (2-22 MHz)
- Have any companies testing or installing BPL
systems tried to work with radio users?
- Yes, some have worked closely with radio users;
others have been completely uncooperative.
- Some companies have offered to "notch out" or
skip over frequencies used by certain radio services. But it hasn't been
very effective in tests so far and skipping over all of the frequencies
currently in use by other radio users would leave the BPL folks with "all
hole and no doughnut," so some users are certain to suffer regardless.
- Are there alternative approaches that won't
result in these interference problems?
- Yes, several companies are working on different
ways to achieve the same goal:
- The municipal utility in Owensboro, Kentucky,
is using wireless networking technology rather than power lines for the
"last mile" to customers' homes. With this system, laptop computers,
personal schedulers, etc, wouldn't even have to be plugged in to have
Internet access. With standard BPL, a device would need to be plugged
into a wall socket.
- Another company recently announced a BPL system
that uses frequencies near the area where wireless networks operate. In
these frequency ranges, there is much more "open space" with far fewer
users. In addition, radio waves at these frequencies don't normally
carry very far, so there'd be no possibility of signals causing
interference thousands of miles away, as they might with standard BPL in
the 2-80 MHz range.
- What makes the 2-80 MHz frequency range so
special?
- This covers the entire shortwave and low VHF
portions of the radio spectrum. These are the only frequencies
capable of supporting worldwide radio communications without relay
devices such as satellites. This is a unique part of the radio spectrum
that must be protected. Interference from BPL would cover all of these
frequencies all of the time with very strong signals.
- If BPL comes into use here and there are
interference problems, who would be responsible for ending the
interference?
- Technically speaking, the utility would bear
full responsibility for resolving the interference problem by taking any
necessary steps, up to and including shutting down the service in a given
area.
- BPL is not a licensed service, meaning that
neither the sponsoring utility nor the individual user would need a
license from the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC. Other users
of the same frequencies, such as broadcasters, police and fire
departments, and ham operators, must have FCC licenses.
- The law is very clear that if an unlicensed
service causes interference to a licensed service, then the unlicensed
service must resolve it or shut down. Likewise, an unlicensed service
must tolerate any interference it receives from a licensed service.
- Then what's the problem?
- Well, the law is one thing; reality is often
something else. Most people don't understand or want to understand the
technology involved. They just want it to work. If your Internet service
works fine except when I'm transmitting, then the logical conclusion is
that the interference must be my fault and that I'd better fix it or stop
transmitting. You can explain the law until you're blue in the face and
it still won't overcome what seems to be very clear logic.
- The biggest problem, though, is likely to be
interference from BPL to licensed radio services. Are you
going to shut down dozens or hundreds of people's Internet access because
of interference to a relatively few radio stations? Legally, yes, but it
won't win you any friends in the Court of Public Opinion. And we hams
don't want to have fights with our neighbors. We want them to enjoy their
broadband Internet service, but we also want to continue to be able to
operate our radio stations, and to be ready to help our neighbors in an
emergency, as we've been doing for decades.
- From the consumer's point of view, if you pay a
premium for high-speed Internet service, you expect it to be there when
you want it -- and not to possibly need to be shut down because the fire
department or the taxi company can't communicate when they're in your
neighborhood.
- The FCC says it's confident that the rules it's
proposing for BPL will permit any interference to be quickly tracked down
and resolved on a case-by-case basis. Do you think the FCC is wrong?
- There are three problems here:
- First, the FCC anticipates that any problems
will be resolved by notching out, or removing the signal from,
frequencies or bands of frequencies on which interference occurs. With
the ability of even low-powered signals to travel great distances on
shortwave frequencies, it is entirely possible that there will be
interference to someone somewhere on nearly every frequency. You
can't notch out everything or you'll have no spectrum left for the BPL
signal.
- Second, the interference problems need to be
addressed more seriously before there is any widespread deployment of
BPL. Once the genie is out of the bottle, it's going to be impossible to
get it back in. If there is widespread acceptance, as the FCC hopes, and
widespread interference, as we fear, it's highly unlikely that the FCC
is going to start shutting down systems and taking away people's
broadband Internet access, especially considering how much the FCC has
been promoting BPL as, in the words of one Commissioner, "broadband
Nirvana." The radio users will just have to suffer the consequences
regardless of the letter of the law, and a unique natural resource -- the
shortwave radio spectrum -- will be lost forever.
- Third, the FCC is relying on the utilities to
track down and resolve any interference problems. But power line
interference to radio users, even without BPL, is a significant problem,
and the FCC's Enforcement Bureau can tell you that power companies are
often very uncooperative in helping to resolve existing problems ... let
alone the hundreds or thousands of new complaints we expect if BPL is
put into widespread use.
- So, in a nutshell?
- Imagine that the police and fire departments
couldn't communicate while in your neighborhood because of interference
from BPL. Or that your cordless phone, or kids' walkie-talkies, or
radio-controlled models won't work anymore. Imagine that long-range
interference from BPL signals (even weak signals) made it difficult or
impossible for airline pilots, the military or federal emergency
management officials to communicate; that ham radio operators couldn't
practice and sharpen the skills they'll need in an emergency ... all for
one more way of getting fast Internet access in high-population
area or an economically dubious way for rural areas.
- Especially in light of last summer's massive
power blackout in the Northeast, and the realization that our nation's
power grid is held together with Band-Aids and Scotch Tape, we think the
power companied should leave the Internet business to communications
companies and focus their resources on strengthening and modernizing the
electric distribution system ... or as the president of our national ham
radio organization says, "the power companies need to forget BPL and
concentrate on PPL -- Power over Power Lines!"
DEADLINE APPROACHING FOR 2004 MCGAN AWARD NOMINATIONS
On May 21, the nomination period
for the 2004 Philip J. McGan Memorial Silver Antenna Award will close. Don't
pass up the chance to nominate someone you know, or get yourself nominated for
this annual honor. The McGan Award recognizes significant contributions in the
area of volunteer public relations on behalf of Amateur Radio. Members of the
League's Public Relations Committee judge the nominations, and the Board of
Directors will vote on the committee's recommendation at its July Board
meeting.
Please go to www.arrl.org/pio to download the nomination
form and find out more about the McGan Award.
A RELEASE TO HELP YOU PROMOTE EXAM DAYS WEEKEND
While not all ham clubs participate, if your club is gearing up for this
end-of-April event, it's just one more opportunity to publicize your efforts in
the press.
You
may wish to fill in the blanks and send in the release as it appears here, or
add additional local information that the media needs to be aware of.
Please report any media success stories to apitts@arrl.org.
For
More Information:
(Local
contact name)
(Contact
phone number/s)
(Contact e-mail address)
For
Immediate Release
RADIO ENTHUSIASTS TO TAKE PART IN NATIONAL EXAM DAYS WEEKEND
TOWN, State, date of
release -- Members of the (your club name) will be hosting a weekend of
Amateur Radio licensing examinations during National Exam Days, April 24-25.
The event is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the national
association for Amateur Radio, headquartered in Newington, Connecticut.
"There is a lot going on in Amateur Radio today," says
(your local contact). "Some get involved in Amateur Radio to meet new friends
or help their communities during times of disaster. Others enjoy the technical
challenges, and the excitement of communicating with other licensed operators
around the world."
Amateur
Radio enthusiasts come from virtually every age bracket and from every
profession. Today there are nearly 700,000 Amateur Radio operators in the
United States and more than 2.5 million worldwide. For more information on
Amateur Radio or the activities planned for the Exam Days weekend, contact
(your club name and phone number).
Visit the American Radio Relay League on the Web at www.arrl.org.
###
THE UNEXPECTED PR OPPORTUNITY -- YOU NEVER KNOW....
- Posted to the PR Reflector
by PR Committee Chairman Sherri Brower, W4STB -
You never know when you will have a PR opportunity.
This morning I attended a multi-county SKYWARN class that was held on a
community college campus. After the training session, several of us were
standing in the parking lot or walking around retrieving signs that said
"SKYWARN Training," and we were approached by a woman who asked,
"What's SKYWARN?"
One of the coordinators
briefly told her what it was and her comment was "I thought it was
something to do with anti-terrorism training." We all grinned and I added
that we do use radio and SKYWARN training for homeland defense issues since many times the speed and direction of the
wind is critical.
And now for the best part...you never know. She is a
school teacher (9th grade Science at present) and was on the campus
for continuing education courses. She asked if we did school presentations and
asked about the handhelds, the call sign tags, etc! Of course we said yes to
the presentations and one person had a QSL card handy. I was also able to
briefly tell her about the ARRL grants for schools and how radio can be
incorporated into most academic subjects.
Bottom line - the person who approaches you may not be
asking for travel directions, and you may be able to recruit new hams or at
least educate one more member of the public.
WEB SITE OF THE MONTH
The Web site of the "alt-usage-english" newsgroup (AUE)
offers a number of interesting links to online dictionaries, style guides and
plenty of other pages dedicated to the English language. Click here to
view the list of links.
Page last modified: 10:32 AM, 04 Oct 2004 ET
Page author: apitts@arrl.org
Copyright © 2004, American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
