The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has granted a 60 day postponement of a Nuclear Regulatory Commission deadline for the public to intervene in the licensing of a nuclear power plant near Scottsboro, Al.

The Federal Register Notice for the extension of time to intervene was posted April 11. The NRC order is the direct result of a motion filed by BEST on April 2, based on a claim that the TVA application for an operating license was incomplete, mainly in regard to the seismic design of the proposed nuclear plants. The BEST complaint also cited inadequacies of TVA’s application related to hydrologic issues.

“We are really pleased with this postponement.” said BEST member Bill Reynolds, a Chattanooga resident. “It gives individuals and organizations concerned about the nuclear power plant more time to examine a complex and difficult-to-read environmental report put together by TVA as part of its application.”

In testimony before a Nuclear Regulatory Commission National Environmental Policy Act hearing on April 3 in Scottsboro, Al., BEST member Garry Morgan of Scottsboro cited possibly earthquake-susceptible geologic formations underlying the planned nuclear plant location. He showed NRC staff how rocks from the area, when dry, can crumble “like chocolate chip cookies” when squeezed in your hands. Mr. Morgan indicated that, when dry, the sinkhole-prone karst topography characteristic of the region can become unstable and potentially could lead to problems with the nuclear reactors targeted for the Bellefonte site. In its Final Safety Analysis Report, TVA identified a 100 foot wide, very deep, sinkhole within 200 feet of proposed Reactor Unit #3. (Ref.: TVA Application, Part 2, Final Safety Analysis Report.)

"The recent earthquake in southern Illinois highlights the possibility of seismic activity in the region and the possible adverse impacts earthquakes can have on the operation of the proposed Bellefonte nuclear reactors," said Dr. Ross McCluney of Chattanooga, a BEST founding member.

In the April 7 postponement order, NRC acknowledged how difficult it is for the public to access the documents needed to fully evaluate TVA’s application.

The Bellefonte application is but one of several that have been filed for a major new expansion of nuclear power generation in the southeastern U.S.

BEST has members from the Tullahoma/Sewanee and greater Chattanooga areas in Tennessee as well as from Scottsboro and Huntsville, Al. and Cohutta, Ga. The group is planning educational events, public meetings, fund raising, a membership drive and other activities to raise awareness about nuclear power.

In October 2007 TVA applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a license to build two Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactors on the Bellefonte Nuclear site in Hollywood, Al. near Scottsboro. The application was accepted for review by the NRC on Jan. 28.

The April 2 BEST motion to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission was an amendment to a previous letter calling for the suspension of TVA’s license application altogether.

BEST is a chapter of the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League. The League was founded in 1984 in opposition to a nuclear waste dump and has many chapters in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.