Latino residents offered free tools to cut utility bills

A program is providing Spanish speaking residents in Novato free kits that contain energy- and water-saving devices such as LED light bulbs, “smart” power strips and faucet aerators.

The Marin County Community Development Agency is funding a campaign to inform residents with the help of North Marin Community Services and Latino volunteers. The kits, assembled by the Oakland nonprofit Rising Sun Center for Opportunity, can help cut utility bills.

“A lot of communities that may not speak English as a primary language are underserved because of a lack of communication, so this program shows how impactful it is to work with groups that have that trust in the community,” said Justina Caras, a manager at the center.

The campaign hopes to connect people with the center's “green house call” program, which gives the kits to Bay Area residents who fill out an online survey on their household size and how many lightbulbs are needed.

Before the pandemic, the program arranged for high school students to visit homes and install the kits' components.

The program has provided kits to more than 5,600 homes in Marin over the past 14 years, saving about 14 million kilowatt hours of electricity and more than 232 million lifetime gallons of water, according to the county.

“It has been really valuable to coordinate with Rising Sun and be able to share these resources within our community,” said Maria Jaramillo-Botero, Latino program director for North Marin Community Services, which is based in Novato. “This effort is important because a lot of the time members of our community, especially our Spanish-speaking community, are not aware of these programs.”

This campaign has registered 60 households in the program to date, according to the county.

Kellen Dammann, a program coordinator for the “sustainability team” at the Marin County Community Development Agency, emphasized that renters don't need approval from their landlords in order to install devices.

“It's a good foot in the door and it helps people save a little bit on their utility bills,” he said.

Dammann said the kits include a power strips that can cut off electricity to plugged-in devices when they are not being used, and a plug meter that can be programmed to be switched off by a user's cellphone.

Organizers value the energy kits at about $70. Dammann said that financial support comes from the Bay Area Regional Energy Network, which collects ratepayer dollars.

“Everyone who pays a PG&E bill or a utility bill pays the energy efficiency program,” he said. “You're basically getting your money back.”

Program registration is online at bit.ly/3sFGCQg.