Reactor shut down after fire at Calif. nuke plant; no radiation danger, plant says

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Germany Debates Subsidies for Solar Industry

....At the heart of the debate is the Renewable Energy Sources Act. It requires power companies to buy all the alternative energy produced by these systems, at a fixed above-market price, for 20 years.

This mechanism, known as a feed-in tariff, gives entrepreneurs a powerful incentive to install solar panels. With a locked-in customer base for their electricity, they can earn a reliable return on their investment. It has worked: homeowners rushed to clamp solar panels on their roofs and farmers planted them in fields where sheep once grazed.

The amount of electricity generated by these installations rose 60 percent in 2007 compared with 2006, faster than any other renewable energy (solar still generates just 0.6 percent of Germany’s total electricity, compared with 6.4 percent for wind).

This, in a country that gets an average of only 1,528 hours of sunshine a year, less than a third of the total daylight hours. That figure is comparable to London’s but it is one-third fewer sunshine hours than in Florence, Italy, and only half San Diego’s, making German solar installations less efficient, and their growth all the more remarkable.

With wind, biomass and other alternative energy also growing, Germany derives 14.2 percent of its electricity from renewable sources. That puts it ahead of a European Union target for countries to generate 12.5 percent of electricity from alternative sources by 2010.

San Luis Obispo County Nuclear Power Plant Emergency Response Information

This information is provided by the County of San Luis Obispo and Pacific Gas and Electric Company for response to an emergency that might result from operations at Diablo Canyon Power Plant.

This website contains information that you and your family should know, and explain the actions county officials might direct you to take in the event of an emergency at Diablo Canyon Power Plant. Reading this entire nuclear emergency information website is the best way to prepare for an emergency, but you can go directly to the section indicated for more information about specific topics.

If you print out these pages, this website contains vital information that can be taken with you in the unlikely event of an evacuation. All information contained herein can also be found in your current AT&T phone book.

The Early Warning System Sirens are tested annually. The 2007 annual siren test will be conducted on Saturday, August 25 . Quarterly siren low-power, growl tests will be conducted on the following dates: January 2 and 3, April 10 and 11, August 7 and 8, and October 9 and 10.

SIREN INFORMATION - If you Hear a Steady Siren for 3 to 5 Minutes, Go Indoors and Tune To A Local Radio or Television Station for information. When at Sea, Tune to Marine CH. 16.