JPS distributing free energy-efficient bulbs
JAMAICA Public Service (JPS) says it is now distributing free energy-efficient (fluorescent) light bulbs in selected parishes across the island.
Parishes earmarked for distribution of the bulbs are St Thomas, Hanover and St Mary, as those parishes do not have JPS eStores from which they can easily access energy-efficient products, the light and power company said in a release Friday.
In St Thomas hundreds of light bulbs were distributed to residents of the Springfield community, which has recently benefited from the installation of the Residential Advanced Metering Infrastructure (RAMI), the JPS said.
According to Parish Manager for St Thomas Oswald Smiley, lighting can account for roughly 20 per cent of an electricity bill.
“So this is one way of assisting our customers to move away from unhelpful practices and begin the development of an energy efficiency consciousness.”
Meanwhile, in Hanover the energy-efficient bulbs were distributed to customers carrying out transactions at the Customer Service Office in Lucea.
Parish Manager Antoinette Burton-Steer noted that “with fluorescent bulbs exhibiting efficiency of four times that of incandescent bulbs, customers have been given a jump-start on which to build their domestic energy-efficiency programme.”
St Mary parish manager Abdon Campbell said that reception to the distribution has been positive.
“Not only are customers beginning to see a decline in their bills due to the lowering of fuel costs on the world market, but now they are being reminded that they have the power to take down those bills even further,” said Campbell.
