We moved toward a more passive design approach when it comes to cooling cores and so forth.

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The model Southern is building, the AP1000, is totally new, with safety systems powered by gravity instead of electricity, a so-called passive design.

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In practice that generally means dramatically reducing energy consumption through passive design measures and installing a small amount of on-site energy generation, often solar.

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For the spy with a yen to be green, the house has low utility bills courtesy of a passive solar design, low-E windows and solar-generated water heater.

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Mr. Candris said that "if you are looking for a silver lining in the cloud called Fukushima, it's probably that it doesn't make sense to build anything but a design with passive features and an ability to withstand a complete loss of power" advantages which he said the AP1000 offers.

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They can take advantage of environmental characteristics, like cool climate, to design more-passive systems.

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The design allows for passive solar heating in the winter, has a metal roof for rainwater collection and uses an incinerating toilet to minimize water usage and avoid the need for sewage disposal, said Carrie Caverly, an architectural designer.

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Each of the reactors will be a small, modular, 125MW advanced light water reactor, which at the present time includes a design for the nuclear core and steam generator to be located at the same site, with passive safety designs.

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Nevada's first platinum-certified LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) buildings stand proudly here, constructed of recycled materials and rammed-earth walls, with passive cooling, renewable heating, reclaimed water and solar-electricity panels, all harvesting clean energy.

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