A US$300,000 agreement was recently signed between the Government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) towards the improvement of energy efficiency in the public sector. This comes against the backdrop of steep rises in oil prices over the last year. Prices have exceeded US$50 per barrel on the international market. And last year, the country's energy bill exceeded the US$1 billion mark for the first time.
Rising energy costs have always been the reactive trigger for conservation measures which slacken off as soon as oil prices start declining. The Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica which is the lead government agency for the implementation of the energy conservation agreement was itself established in 1979 as a response to the oil shocks of the 1970s.
The agreement with the UNDP is part of the government's overall Public Sector Energy Efficiency programme. The public sector is a major user of imported petroleum energy although the biggest users are in the bauxite industry, electricity generation and transportation sectors. Hospitals and the Hospital Energy Efficiency programme have been selected as the main beneficiaries of the UNDP financing. Two-thirds of the funds secured, US$200,000, will be allocated to the PCJ for energy conservation and water conservation projects in a number of hospitals. The remaining US$100,000 will be used for energy efficiency equipment and research work for a Green Paper on energy conservation.
Waste is a basic feature of public sector operations. Incentives for conserving resources tend to be less in tax-funded organizations with a guaranteed source of income from the public revenue than in income-supported institutions which can only survive if they can minimize expenditure and maximize earnings to make a profit. It is good to see the government leading the way for energy conservation in its own facilities.
The savings promise to be quite substantial. Cornwall Regional Hospital, for example, is projected to save 31 per cent of its electricity bill and 45 per cent of its fuel bill. And Bustamante Hospital for Children is expected to save more than 20 per cent of its energy bill. The public sector electricity bill stood at $4 billion in 2003 with hospitals accounting for nine per cent.
A serious energy conservation programme must be sold to the private sector, with appropriate incentives for participation. This is where the country's biggest use of energy takes place. In the use of electricity and of industrial fuels and vehicle fuels there is much room for greater efficiency and conservation, particularly among smaller enterprises where there may be less awareness and effort for energy conservation. Energy saved is profitability improved and a key part of corporate environmental stewardship. Domestic energy consumption should also be aggressively targeted for conservation measures now.
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