The Tennessee Valley Authority has met the requirements imposed by federal regulators after a residual heat removal system pump was found to be inoperable in 2010.Because the pump had not been functional since late 2007, and because the RHR system is considered a subsystem of the emergency core cooling system, the violation resulted in a red finding, the NRC's most serious. Last summer, TVA officials said they had budgeted $130 million for safety-related improvements at the plant. That investment seems to be paying off, with NRC officials telling a public meeting in nearby Athens, Ala., Thursday that TVA had successfully addressed the finding and the safety issues surrounding it, the Huntsville Times reported.Nonetheless, unit 1 will remain in the multiple/repetitive degraded cornerstone column of the NRC's oversight matrix for the time being. NRC officials said the plant had made significant improvements, but an enhanced inspection schedule will continue as the agency watches for sustained performance.Browns Ferry is the second largest nuclear plant in the country, with three General Electric type 4 boiling water reactors together generating about 3,300 megawatts. Unit 2 at the plant is currently in the degraded cornerstone column of the NRC action matrix because of white findings dating to 2012. Unit 3 is in the regulatory response column because of a white performance indicator dating to the same year.
Anonymous comments will be moderated. Join for free and post now!
