To Surveil or to Sustain: Perceptions of Smart Meters in Rural Jamaica

Abstract

This article explores perceptions of and experiences with smart technologies amongst rural households, policy makers and utility managers in Jamaica. The study primarily draws on data collected in a community referred to as Bridgeville in Westmoreland. Using the lens and principles of energy justice, the paper explores how the use of smart meters may complicate, shift or transform users’ and regulators’ relationship with electricity as a commodity and its associated infrastructure. Particular focus is given to consumers who utilize illegal or informal means to gain access to electricity. This project aims to enhance collective understandings of the social, economic and environmental impacts of informal electricity access on energy systems. The study also explores how the introduction of smart technologies may help to address these challenges or perpetuate them. To ground the study, a literature review on the proliferation of smart technologies and the concept of energy justice is undertaken. Lastly, a case study of Bridgeville and the wider energy policy, regulation and management landscape in Jamaica is detailed.