BRIDGETOWN, Barbados--The ever-escalating and volatile price of oil and the high cost of importation have left Barbados and other island nations in the unenviable position of having the highest electricity prices in the world.
But a new shift towards renewables is driving down greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation, buildings’ heating and cooling, and transport, and saving taxpayer money in the process.
In addition to changing out streetlights and retrofitting the 13 government buildings, a project funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the European Union (EU) will also see the use of more electric vehicles in Barbados.
While the Barbados Government leads the renewables drive, everyone on the island is catching on. In addition to the solar panels and water heaters which can be seen on government buildings, hospitals, police stations and bus shelters, thousands of private homes also have them installed. And desalinisation plants are installing large photovoltaic arrays to help defray their own electricity cost.
“Of course, we must embrace the role of energy efficiency in this master plan because this is one of the low-hanging fruits for Barbados in the transition to clean energy,” said Head of the Green Economy and Resilience Section of the EU Peter Sturesson.
“This will assist in the reduction of the fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions and by that, lower the carbon footprint of the island.” ~ Caribbean360 ~
