Diablo Canyon Preparedness: PG&E Issues 2024 Emergency Calendar for San Luis Obispo Residents

Cal Poly students and residents of San Luis Obispo have likely received a calendar for the 2024 year from PG&E with the title “Important Emergency Information.” The calendar is exclusive to San Luis Obispo County. 

“The federal government has a set of requirements that require all communities that have a nuclear power plant across the country meet,” Kelly Van Buren said. The nuclear power plant program manager for the county of San Luis Obispo in the Office of Emergency Services.

“The calendar is required by the federal government as one way that we provide that public education to everybody who lives in the emergency planning zone.” 

Diablo Canyon is the last remaining nuclear power plant in California. It’s located along the coastline between Morro Bay and Avila Beach and it produces approximately ten percent of the state’s power, according to a press release from PG&E. 

One of the functions of the calendar is that it lets residents know when the power plant tests its warning signs. 

“When our system was approved, they only approved us to test it once a year in a full test, and so they chose August based on bird migrations and all sorts of climate conditions,” Van Buren said. “So in the third, fourth, Saturday, and third Saturday, we sound all the sirens for a full siren sound, which is three minutes all at once. And we do that twice.”

Growl tests are conducted quarterly, while the annual siren test is conducted once per year in August. The growl tests can be heard from Cal Poly if people are actively listening for them, but Van Buren said most times the noise at Cal Poly drowns out the sound. 

“I think it’s just you know, I think for Cal Poly students especially, it’s good to know, the power plants there. Especially because it’s a great place for employment. It’s a risk, but it’s not a high risk. I think just be aware and read the calendar and then put it aside and we’re going to continue on with our daily lives and not overly worry about it.”