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TVA cooling system shutdown.

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Marlin:

--- Quote from: Charlie Murphy on May 31, 2011, 10:36 ---Im not seeing the big picture here. the "least trusted reactor plant" sounds a lot like being the "poorest billionaire". What are some repercussions for this?

--- End quote ---

   The public being stakeholders in the operation of a plant are influenced by the media for right or wrong. Stakeholders are the affected local population who in many areas hold a better opinion of nuclear than the public in general as the plants tend to be large contributors to the public coffers and employers in generally rural areas. Negative press can and has altered that opinion. Nuclear utilities are much better than they use to be about keeping the public informed but flawed and slanted press can be tough to counter.  

rumrunner:
Here in the 10 mile EPZ for BFN the population is supportive of the plant.  Sure, we have the usual suspects who live in foil-lined basements and hear helicopters at night, but they are a distinct minority.  TVAs biggest problem lately has been bungling their treatment of the local press in deference to the national media.  The Athens News-Courier is the local paper and they were left out of the big media event back in March.  As you can expect, this didn't go over well and even though TVA invited the paper for their own tour a few weeks later, the damage was done.  Now every article the Courier publishes about BFN has an air of snottiness about it.  As they say, don't start a fight with people who buy ink by the barrel.

This isn't the first time BFN has been on the NRC sierra list.  We endured an entire office building full of NRC inspectors for several years in the 80s and 90s.  Very much an Animal House 'thank you sir, may I have another' time.  I still prefer that to INPO swooping in to 'help'.  Of course, now they'll come loaded for bear too. 

I think the problems that are now manifesting themselves are rooted in the "whatever it takes to stay on-line" attitude previous management fostered for many years.  Those who work at BFN know what I am talking about.  I'm just glad I retired from TVA in 2008. 

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