Puerto Ricans go solar 

Ten months after Hurricane Maria, Adjuntas continues to intermittently lose power during extensive weather issues. The weather disturbs  power lines feeding the central mountains of Puerto Rico. About 20,000 people go dark without fresh water or AC. The few businesses and residences that do have power comes from solar energy. 
 

Budding movement to provide sustainable, renewable energy

The Adjuntas community call those places "cucubanos," an indigenous Puerto Rican firefly. They're part of budding movement to provide sustainable, renewable energy independent of the power grid. The U.S. territory is weaning themselves off a state-owned power company that remains dependent on imported petroleum. Power industry experts  are monitoring  a test of whether Puerto Rico can make a large-scale switch to renewable energy. Renewable energy  represent 4 percent of generation at Puerto Rico's power company. It’ll probably take years before solar could dominate the share of power. While Adjuntas has  solar-powered islands nearby, a community of mountainous homes in Las Piedras  lacks central power and is operating exclusively on solar energy. In this town, some solar users depend on businesses to donate solar equipment. Others are so desperate of the  continuing outages that they take it upon themselves to install their own solar systems.
 

Groups come together to aide 

The people of the community attended a three-day workshop to learn about the costs and lifespans of solar systems,  equipment, and precautions to consider. A German corporation donated and installed at least 15 solar microgrids across the island to help power hospitals, schools, and laundromats. The aim is to develop a resilient system that can operate regardless of the weather. The nonprofit environmental group Casa Pueblo installed systems at  hardware stores, a barber shop and several other retail stores that activists hope will serve as power refuge where the community can charge their phones and store medications during a storm if needed. In addition, about 30 homes also will be fitted with this same system. 

Federal officials are concerned about the  turmoil at Puerto Rico's Electric Power Authority, which has seen five directors since Hurricane Maria come and go. Depoliticizing the company, building an independent regulator and resolve its $9 billion public debt to privatize power generation and award concession for transmission and distribution.

If you want to move into the future and join the solar revolution, or if you want to find out what solar panels are right for you, go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. You can see how much a system will cost, and how much you can save over the next 20 years. For more information relating to going solar, don't forget to visit our solar blog section for more handy guides and articles.