MORE than 700 households in the St Catherine community of Red Pond have had their electricity supply regularised under the Jamaica Public Service’s (JPS) Community Renewal Programme.

The JPS, in a release yesterday, said in 2017, the programme intervened in the community by installing infrastructure, including poles and wiring, as well as offering loans for house wiring. The company, it said, had also embarked on a programme of public education around energy issues within the community, and supported the efforts toward behavioural change through a community facilitator.

The company also engaged residents in quarterly community meetings, and a well-received bulb swap project which saw JPS giving some community members 4 LED bulbs per household, in exchange for their incandescent bulbs. The company said it also engaged in fun initiatives to promote efficiency, including its Race to Save energy competition, which encouraged community-wide participation.

As a result of these efforts, a total of 746 households are now regularised.

“The transformation in Red Pond is evidence of what can be accomplished through social intervention and partnership. JPS stands ready to work alongside its customers to find the right solution to their energy needs and continues to encourage all persons to regularise their supply and to avail themselves of information on how to manage their electricity usage efficiently.