The Virgin Islands Energy Office-Weatherization Assistance Program
The VI Weatherization Assistance Program’s (VI WAP) goal is to improve energy efficiency for low-income families, particularly for the elderly, people with disabilities, and families with children under 5 years old, by improving the energy efficiency of their homes while ensuring their health and safety.
What can VI WAP do for you if you are eligible?
If eligible for this program, you may have your inefficient household appliances replaced with energy efficient CFL’s, an Energy Star Refrigerator, a Hot Water Heater Timer, Low-flow showerhead, aerators, and client education material.
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Click here for details on eligibility and how to apply.
VIenergized
Feds Deliver funds to Energy Office
The Virgin Island Energy Office Thursday was awarded $566,172 of a projected $1.4 million in Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding to weatherize 430 homes over the next three years.
Bevan Smith Jr. Energy Office Director, stated “The Virgin Islands Weatherization Assistance Program (VIWAP) will provide services for the elderly (60 years or older), disabled, families with children five years old or younger, and those households with high energy burdens or energy use. The Energy Office has designated 3 percent of its weatherization funding to address health and safety issues in the homes, including gas and electrical safety”.
While the stateside weatherization program has been around for 35 years, this is the first time the federal government has funded the program in the Virgin Islands. The Virgin Island program will focus on energy efficiency in the homes.
The VIWAP Grants Program Coordinator Aminah Saleem stated “This program is going to make a big difference in the lives of many elderly and disabled families. The cost of electricity, which is 28 cent a KWH, makes it difficult for many of these families to make ends meet especially those living on a fixed income. VIWAP it is going to focus on making low income homes energy efficiency by changing inefficient lighting with CFL, replacing inefficient refrigerators with energy star refrigerators, placing timers on water heaters and installing low flow shower heads and aerators. There is also going to be a lot of client education in order to change some of the energy wasting habits that we all have.”
The Energy Office, which is a division of the Governor’s Office, is designating the program VIenergized. Virgin Islanders have traditionally conserved energy because of the high price of electricity. This program will help those, who may not have been able to afford it before, to go another step forward and invest in energy efficient appliances.
homes in St. Croix, 100 homes in St. Thomas and 38 homes in St. John. The DOE will release an additional $700,000 after the VIWAP plan is shown to be working. For more information contact the Virgin Island Energy Office at 713-8436 on St. Croix and ask for Lamar Milligan or 714-8436 on St. Thomas.
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