It’s summer and so it’s hot. We know that and we have to live with it.
But the Tennessee Valley Authority tells us the heat has raised the temperature of the Tennessee River enough that TVA has had to cut down to 50 percent power at Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, near Athens, Ala.
TVA cannot add hot water from nuclear energy production to the river once the river’s temperature reaches 90 degrees. Doing so could lead to environmental sanctions.
TVA had already reduced power at two of the reactors at Browns Ferry. Power was lowered at the third reactor Wednesday.
That could mean slightly higher power bills down the road, as TVA has to pay millions of dollars for replacement power because of lost production at Browns Ferry.