Northern California Solar Energy Association

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NorCal Solar and City of Walnut Creek Host Solar Tour

As Part of World’s Largest Grassroots Solar Event

Local Solar Tour is One of Nearly 700 Across U.S. For The

15^th Annual National Solar Tour Helping Americans Learn How to

Cut Energy Costs, Enjoy Tax Credits and Enjoy Energy Independence

Walnut Creek, CA – On October 2, 2010, the Northern California Solar Energy Association (NorCal Solar), in partnership with the City of Walnut Creek, hosts a self-guided open house tour of homes and businesses in central Contra Costa County using solar energy and other green features. The tour starts at the new Walnut Creek Library located at 1644 N. Broadway in Downtown Walnut Creek with solar energy how-to talks and demonstrations.  Detailed maps of the tour locations and free educational material will be available.

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., tour participants will be able to visita half dozen local sites with solar and green features including three private homes, a LEED-rated library, and a college campus with wind and solar systems and a solar engineering lab. Homeowners will be on hand to talk about real life with solar. There will also be information on new government rebates and tax incentives for solar.

NorCal Solar’s tour is one of 677 occurring all across the U.S. as part of National Solar Tour Day, an event produced by the non-profit American Solar Energy Society (ASES). The ASES National Solar Tour is the world's largest grassroots solar events. More than 160,000 participants will visit some 5,500 buildings in 3,200 communities.

“Our tour is bringing families and businesses real-life examples of how their neighbors are harnessing free energy from the sun to generate electricity, warm and cool their homes, heat water and slash monthly utility bills,” said Deborah C Donovan, a NorCal Solar volunteer who coordinated the Contra Costa tour.  “In the wake of one of the largest man-made environmental disasters in U.S. history, the Gulf oil spill, learning about clean, job-creating, energy options that provide tax breaks, lower energy bills and energy independence is an exciting step Contra Costa County residents can take to address America’s dangerous dependence on fossil fuels.”

NorCal Solar is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization whose mission is to foster the development and application of solar energy through the exchange of information.  Since 1975, NorCal Solar has served as an information portal for industry professionals, policymakers, advocacy groups, the media, and the general public. NorCal Solar is a Northern California chapter of ASES, a national organization dedicated to advancing the use of solar and other renewable energy sources for the benefit of the global environment.

For more information on NorCal’s Solar Tour go to www.norcalsolar.org/tour

To learn more about the 2010 ASES National Solar Tour go to http://nationalsolartour.org/