An Ambient BPL power-line connection in Briarcliff Manor. The yellow object is a tap off the medium-voltage primary. The gray cabinet holds the electronics. [Alan Crosswell, N2YGK, Photo]
NEWINGTON, CT, Mar 17, 2005--The ARRL has charged BPL equipment maker Ambient Corporation and the FCC with being unwilling or unable to effectively deal with harmful interference stemming from a New York BPL pilot project. The League this week asked the Commission for the fourth time to shut down Ambient's Briarcliff Manor "non-compliant system without further delay" until Ambient addresses interference complaints. The League's latest salvo in the Briarcliff Manor BPL battle was in response to a February 10 letter from Bruce Franca, deputy chief of the FCC Office of Engineering and Technology (OET). Franca's letter concluded that FCC measurements in response to Amateur Radio complaints of harmful interference showed no changes were required to the BPL system.
An Ambient BPL power-line connection in Briarcliff Manor. The yellow object is a tap off the medium-voltage primary. The gray cabinet holds the electronics. [Alan Crosswell, N2YGK, Photo] |
"The Commission's failure to conduct a thorough investigation of this matter, and the tenor of your February 10, 2005, letter, lead to speculation that the Commission is really not interested in finding the interference that exists at Briarcliff Manor or at other BPL test sites or in enforcing the Part 15 rules," the ARRL responded. "Ambient's apparent tactic of making changes in the system after receiving interference complaints and then denying that the interference problems complained of ever existed is not helpful." Nor did it help, the League's filing continued, that Ambient's engineer refused last December to participate with ARRL in a demonstration of the interference. The League said it's no longer possible for the Commission or Ambient "to deny the ongoing, serious interference problems at Briarcliff Manor."
The League pointed out that a member of the FCC Enforcement Bureau's staff personally witnessed the interference from the Briarcliff Manor system at two locations that were the focus of complaints last December. Franca's February letter failed to acknowledge video documenting the visit and uploaded to the League's Web site, even though the ARRL has provided him with the URL. At that time, ARRL Laboratory staff members took measurements at various points in the system to document problems.
While subsequent ARRL measurements did turn up a reduction of BPL emissions in some areas, emissions that would "substantially preclude Amateur communications" remain, the ARRL said, and along Dalmeny Road, interference is still at levels essentially unchanged from those measured last December and appear throughout the 20-meter band.
ARRL Laboratory staff members most recently visited Briarcliff Manor on March 11, and the League's filing to the FCC and Ambient this week included a summary of their measurements and observations. At one point, RF emission levels from the BPL system exceeded the FCC's Part 15 permitted levels by up to 20 dB, the League said.
Elsewhere, emissions along Dalmeny Road--which the FCC did not revisit earlier this year--"continue to contribute 14 dB of degradation of ambient noise" on 20 meters. BPL interference also has been reported on 80 meters. The ARRL further faulted the FCC for not contacting the complainant, Westchester County ARES Emergency Coordinator Alan Crosswell, N2YGK, who routinely travels the roads in question and has experienced interference. Crosswell, who's also Westchester County RACES Officer, has documented BPL interference, complaints and related information on his "BPL in Briarcliff Manor" Web site.
The League said the FCC's continued refusal to shut down the Ambient Corporation's BPL system in Briarcliff Manor "highlights the completely arbitrary and baseless findings in the Commission's Report and Order in Docket 04-37, adopted last October 14.
ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, shared a copy of the ARRL's latest complaint to the FCC and Ambient with the New York State Emergency Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA), which has provided public funding to the Briarcliff Manor project. Utility Consolidated Edison and Ambient announced the NYSERDA funding award last June. Sumner reminded NYSERDA Director Gunnar Walmet of Walmet's statement last summer that the project would require Con Edison to "continually monitor possible radio interference" from the BPL demonstration.
"I respectfully submit that Con Ed has failed to meet your requirement," Sumner told Walmet. "It has been almost nine months since I first brought this situation to your attention. What is NYSERDA's response that I can share with our 152,000 members?"
In early January, the ARRL questioned Ambient's veracity and
technical competence and criticized the FCC for not shutting the system down. The
League requested then that the FCC rescind Ambient's WD2XEQ Part 5 Experimental
license for the BPL pilot project.
 Previous: The Amateur Amateur: Where Do Old Antennas Go? |  Next: Know The Five Words |