Some here may recall I told you about the Alaskan city of Galena and its deal with Toshiba to build a small nuclear battery to provide electricity for the village along with hot water.

 

Toshiba has offered to build it free of charge as a demonstration project, eager to prove their design in difficult environmental conditions.  The reactor battery has an estimated lifespan of 30 years and requires almost no maintenance.  It's designed in such a way that should anything odd happen; equipment failures, earthquakes or whatever, the plant shuts down all by itself.  It has no moving parts.

 

Galena is a very small village on the Yukon river.  There is no road access.  Barges can get to the village about 4 months out of each year.  The people of Galena  support the project and gave their approval in 2004 and every 6 months since. 

 

Toshiba and Galena hope the feds might give them permission by 2011.