ARRL Shows IBEC’s BPL Systems Are Interfering, Violating FCC Rules

NEWINGTON, Conn., Jan. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — ARRL, the national
association for Amateur Radio has filed a complaint with the Federal
Communications Commission documenting ongoing harmful interference and egregious
rules violations by Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) systems installed by IBEC,
Inc. in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Indiana. The ARRL has requested that the FCC
“initiate immediately an enforcement proceeding regarding these BPL systems, and
cause them to cease operation until such time as they are each in full
compliance with the Commission’s Rules.”

Contrary to earlier representations to the ARRL and to statements in the online
BPL database, IBEC’s systems in these locations are not universally notching the
Amateur bands as is necessary in order to avoid emissions at levels that are
likely to cause harmful interference to licensed Amateur Radio stations. In
fact, measurements by ARRL staff and confirmed independently show that IBEC
systems are not even notching the aeronautical bands that the FCC rules require
BPL systems to avoid and are operating at power levels that cause radiation well
in excess of the FCC limits.

The ARRL even discovered IBEC BPL systems in operation that are not listed in
the online BPL database – another clear violation of the FCC rules, which
require listing 30 days prior to initiation of service.

“While IBEC was cooperative in the early stages of their BPL system development
and appeared to understand what was necessary to avoid harmful interference, it
appears that corners have been cut in the course of deployment,” observed ARRL
Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ. “IBEC is not playing by the rules
and their systems must cease operation until they are brought into compliance.”

Measurements taken in the area of Lovingston and Arrington, Virginia show that
the system is operating well in excess of maximum radiated emission limits and
without necessary notching. Measurements of radiated emissions from an IBEC
system in Martinsville, Indiana using power lines owned by the South Central
Indiana Rural Electric Membership Cooperative (SCI REMC) gave similar results.

IBEC systems were observed operating in Somerset, Pennsylvania and Fairfield,
Virginia well above permitted radiated emission levels, despite there being no
listing in the online BPL database anywhere in the vicinity of these locations.

ARRL General Counsel Christopher D. Imlay, W3KD observed, “The information
supplied to the FCC in support of this complaint amply justifies the
modifications of the BPL rules urged by ARRL, including the mandatory, full-time
notching of all Amateur Radio allocations by BPL systems.” This rulemaking
proceeding was reopened by the FCC as a belated response to an April 2008 order
by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit,
which ruled in favor of the ARRL in finding that the FCC had failed to comply
with the Administrative Procedure Act and had not provided a reasoned
justification for some of its decisions in adopting rules for BPL systems.

For more info see:

ARRL IBEC filing

www.arrl.org

SOURCE ARRL