[AReU] BROADBAND OVER POWER LINES-A CALL TO ARMS!!!!!1

Fri, 30 Apr 2004 19:55:14 -0400

Looks like it's time to "fish or cut bait". Even President Bush is
advocating BPL use.

Every amateur radio operator needs to let their thoughts be known. If you
want the
HF bands to ever be useful again like they are today then you must act to
prevent
BPL from being implemented. Even is it is implemented, our outcry may
mediate
a great deal of the inevitable interference to our HF bands.

I have patched together several text files from the ARRL letter for you
folks that
don't have internet access to help you in composing a letter to your
congressman.

If you need further help, feel free to contact me and I will do what I can.

The text files from the ARRL letter follow:

BPL - A Call To Arms

On April 26, President Bush told the American Association of Community
Colleges Annual Convention in Minneapolis: "There needs to be technical
standards to make possible new broadband technologies, such as the use
of high-speed communication directly over power lines. Power lines were
for electricity; power lines can be used for broadband technology. So
the technical standards need to be changed to encourage that."

Mr. Bush is wrong.

Using power lines to distribute broadband services (called Broadband
over Power Lines, or BPL) is a bad idea that should not be encouraged.

Federally licensed Amateur Radio operators need to tell him so -- and
also need to enlist their Members of Congress in reversing this bad
administration policy.

The samples shown on the bottom of this page will tell you what
you need to do to respond to the White House and to Congress. Do it now!
We need thousands of responses from all parts of the country, right away,
if we are to make an impression. There is also a link listed that will
tell you the name and address of your representatives and senators.

Here is our basic argument:

Power lines were designed to transmit electrical energy. They were not
designed to transmit broadband signals, which is fact are radio-frequency
(RF) signals. When a broadband signal is put on a power line, much of the
RF energy leaks off the line and radiates, causing interference to nearby
radio receivers. Interference has been documented at test sites throughout
the country and overseas where BPL is in operation. Recordings of actual
interference at several test sites are available at www.arrl.org/bpl.

The nation's 680,000 radio amateurs are especially concerned about this
interference because it affects the short waves -- a unique portion of
the radio spectrum that supports long-distance, intercontinental radio
communication. Licensed radio amateurs use these frequencies for
hurricane reporting, disaster and emergency relief, and many other
purposes in accordance with FCC regulations. The Amateur Radio Service
is the only 100% failsafe emergency communications capability in the
world. No matter what happens, radio amateurs will be able to communicate
with one another without having to rely on the expensive and vulnerable
infrastructure -- but we cannot maintain our emergency networks if BPL
is deployed and interferes with the weak radio signals we are trying to
hear.

In addition to amateur operation, the short waves are used for
international broadcasting, aeronautical, maritime, and other services
including the military. Depending on the frequencies in use, BPL
interference also could wipe out radio communication for many of our
nation's First Responders -- police, fire, and emergency medical
personnel -- who use low-band VHF radios operating in the 30-50
megahertz (MHz) range. Radio amateurs support expanded broadband
services to consumers at lower cost. Indeed, they tend to be early
adopters of new technology. However, there are ways to deliver
broadband that do not pollute the radio spectrum as BPL does.
These include fiber-to-the-home, cable, DSL, and Broadband Wireless
Access. None of these technologies causes interference to short wave
radio.

BPL is sometimes touted as a solution for rural areas. It is not. A
BPL signal only carries a few thousand feet down a power line and
then must be repeated. This requires a lot of hardware and will
not be economic in areas with low population densities.

The FCC recognizes the interference potential of BPL and is in the
midst of a rulemaking proceeding, ET Docket No. 04-37, that proposes
new requirements and measurement guidelines for BPL systems. However,
the FCC proposals do not go nearly far enough to protect over-the-air
radio communication services. In short, BPL has a major disadvantage
that is not shared by other broadband technologies and that outweighs
whatever benefit it may offer. National broadband telecommunications
policy should not include support for BPL, but should focus on other,
more appropriate technologies. Please write or call -- right now!
Don't put it off. We need thousands of responses to reach the White
House and Congress in the next few days.

David Sumner, K1ZZ
Chief Executive Officer, ARRL
April 27, 2004

The following is a site to obtain the names of your representatives and
senators.

http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/

The following is a sample letter to send to your senator:

DRAFT LETTER TO SENATOR

[date]
Senator ______________
[See www.senate.gov for addresses]
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Sen. ____________:
On April 26, President Bush told the American Association of Community
Colleges Annual Convention in Minneapolis: "There needs to be technical
standards to make possible new broadband technologies, such as the use
of high-speed communication directly over power lines. Power lines were
for electricity; power lines can be used for broadband technology. So
the technical standards need to be changed to encourage that."

Mr. Bush is wrong. Although universal broadband service is a worthy goal,
using power lines to distribute broadband services (called Broadband over
Power Lines, or BPL) is a bad idea that should not be encouraged. There
are better ways to do it. As a federally licensed Amateur Radio operator
who has passed a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) examination in
radio communication technology, I can tell you why.

Power lines were designed to transmit electrical energy. They were not
designed to transmit broadband signals, which is fact are radio-frequency
(RF) signals. When a broadband signal is put on a power line, much of
the RF energy leaks off the line and radiates, causing interference to
nearby radio receivers. Interference has been documented at test sites
throughout the country and overseas where BPL is in operation. Recordings
of actual interference at several test sites are available at
www.arrl.org/bpl. The nation's 680,000 radio amateurs are especially
concerned about this interference because it affects the short waves -- a
unique portion of the radio spectrum that supports long-distance,
intercontinental radio communication. Licensed radio amateurs use these
frequencies for hurricane reporting, disaster and emergency relief,
and many other purposes in accordance with FCC regulations. The Amateur
Radio Service is the only 100% failsafe emergency communications
capability in the world. No matter what happens, radio amateurs
will be able to communicate with one another without having to rely
on the expensive and vulnerable infrastructure -- but we cannot
maintain our emergency networks if BPL is deployed and interferes
with the weak radio signals we are trying to hear.

In addition to amateur operation, the short waves are used for international
broadcasting, aeronautical, maritime, and other services including the
military. Depending on the frequencies in use, BPL interference also
could wipe out radio communication for many of our nation's First
Responders -- police, fire, and emergency medical personnel -- who
use low-band VHF radios operating in the 30-50 megahertz (MHz) range.

Radio amateurs support expanded broadband services to consumers at
lower cost. Indeed, they tend to be early adopters of new technology.
However, there are ways to deliver broadband that do not pollute the
radio spectrum as BPL does.
These include fiber-to-the-home, cable, DSL, and Broadband Wireless
Access. None of these technologies causes interference to short wave
radio. BPL is sometimes touted as a solution for rural areas. It is not.
A BPL signal only carries a few thousand feet down a power line and
then must be repeated. This requires a lot of hardware and will not
be economic in areas with low population densities.

The FCC recognizes the interference potential of BPL and is in the
midst of a rulemaking proceeding, ET Docket No. 04-37, that proposes
new requirements and measurement guidelines for BPL systems. However,
the FCC proposals do not go nearly far enough to protect over-the-air
radio communication services. In short, BPL has a major disadvantage
that is not shared by other broadband technologies and that outweighs
whatever benefit it may offer. National broadband telecommunications
policy should not include support for BPL, but should focus on other,
more appropriate technologies. By encouraging broadband over power
lines, the administration is heading in the wrong direction. Please
do what you can to change its course.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[Address]
[Telephone and/or email]

The following is a sample letter to send to our representative:

DRAFT LETTER TO REPRESENTATIVE

[date]
Rep. ______________
[See www.house.gov for addresses]
Washington, DC 20515
Dear [Mr./Ms.] ____________:
On April 26, President Bush told the American Association of Community
Colleges Annual Convention in Minneapolis: "There needs to be technical
standards to make possible new broadband technologies, such as the use
of high-speed communication directly over power lines. Power lines were
for electricity; power lines can be used for broadband technology. So
the technical standards need to be changed to encourage that."
Mr. Bush is wrong. Using power lines to distribute broadband services
(called Broadband over Power Lines, or BPL) is a bad idea that should
not be encouraged. As a federally licensed Amateur Radio operator who
has passed a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) examination in
radio communication technology, I can tell you why.

Power lines were designed to transmit electrical energy. They were not
designed to transmit broadband signals, which is fact are radio-frequency
(RF) signals. When a broadband signal is put on a power line, much of the
RF energy leaks off the line and radiates, causing interference to
nearby radio receivers. Interference has been documented at test sites
throughout the country and overseas where BPL is in operation.
Recordings of actual interference at several test sites are available
at www.arrl.org/bpl. The nation's 680,000 radio amateurs are especially
concerned about this interference because it affects the short waves --
a unique portion of the radio spectrum that supports long-distance,
intercontinental radio communication. Licensed radio amateurs use these
frequencies for hurricane reporting, disaster and emergency relief, and
many other purposes in accordance with FCC regulations. The Amateur
Radio Service is the only 100% failsafe emergency communications
capability in the world. No matter what happens, radio amateurs
will be able to communicate with one another without having to rely
on the expensive and vulnerable infrastructure -- but we cannot
maintain our emergency networks if BPL is deployed and interferes
with the weak radio signals we are trying to hear.
In addition to amateur operation, the short waves are used for
international broadcasting, aeronautical, maritime, and other services
including the military. Depending on the frequencies in use, BPL
interference also could wipe out radio communication for many of
our nation's First Responders -- police, fire, and emergency medical
personnel -- who use low-band VHF radios operating in the 30-50
megahertz (MHz) range. Radio amateurs support expanded broadband
services to consumers at lower cost. Indeed, they tend to be early
adopters of new technology. However, there are ways to deliver
broadband that do not pollute the radio spectrum as BPL does.
These include fiber-to-the-home, cable, DSL, and Broadband Wireless
Access. None of these technologies causes interference to short wave
radio. BPL is sometimes touted as a solution for rural areas. It is
not. A BPL signal only carries a few thousand feet down a power line
and then must be repeated. This requires a lot of hardware and will
not be economic in areas with low population densities.
The FCC recognizes the interference potential of BPL and is in the
midst of a rulemaking proceeding, ET Docket No. 04-37, that proposes
new requirements and measurement guidelines for BPL systems. However,
the FCC proposals do not go nearly far enough to protect over-the-air
radio communication services. In short, BPL has a major disadvantage
that is not shared by other broadband technologies and that outweighs
whatever benefit it may offer. National broadband telecommunications
policy should not include support for BPL, but should focus on other,
more appropriate technologies. By encouraging broadband over power
lines, the administration is heading in the wrong direction.
Please do what you can to change its course.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
[Name]
[Address]
[Telephone and/or email]