The Tennessee Valley Authority began in the 1930s with great fanfare, to promote “navigation, conservation and flood control.”
It has done wonders in all those areas – but the “tail” turned out to wag the “dog,” as TVA became our big, diverse producer of electric power for a seven-state area.
When hydroelectric power generated by turbines at TVA dams proved insufficient to meet the growing Tennessee Valley’s needs, other forms of electricity generation were developed – coal-burning steam plants, gas-fired generators and nuclear reactors.
Now, TVA is very much engaged in meeting our big electricity demands by finishing some nuclear power-generating facilities – and planning eventually to close some coal-burning generating plants that have objectionable emissions fouling our air.
Specifically, the long-delayed Bellefonte Nuclear Plant will be completed and put into service, and the oldest coal units at Widows Creek Fossil Plant will be closed.
There will be other adjustments, too. When? TVA plans to close nine of its 59 coal-fired units by 2015, including six at Widows Creek in Alabama, two at the John Sevier plant outside Rogersville, Tenn., and one at the Shawnee plant near Paducah, Ky.
TVA President Tom Kilgore said nuclear and gas-fired generators will help meet growing electricity needs. He said tough decisions are being made to provide essential power and minimize unemployment as adjustments occur.
We all want power to be “up” and pollution “down,” for service to be “increased” and costs “decreased.” Balancing those goals will be difficult, but constructive efforts are being made.