NRC finds problems at TVA nuclear plant

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators are raising new concerns about the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Brown’s Ferry nuclear plant in North Alabama.

In a letter released today, inspectors from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission found that equipment used to automatically shut down the plant’s reactors in an emergency was not properly protected from fire hazards. The NRC described the findings as significant “apparent violations.” But it was waiting for more information to make a final determination.

Brown’s Ferry was shut down in 1985 over safety and management lapses. After billions of dollars in improvements, two reactors were restarted in the 1990s and the final unit was restarted in 2007.

A TVA spokesman had no immediate comment.