posted June 16, 2008
It is beyond my belief that David Freeman had the nerve to come back to Chattanooga last week spouting his misguided comments about TVA’s nuclear power program. It was under his leadership, while chairman, that led TVA to abandon its nuclear construction of the many planned nuclear plants that were on the drawing board and some on the way to be a reality.
Because of his decision a couple of plants already under construction and nearing completion were never finished and TVA lost billions of dollars that had already been spent on equipment and completed construction.
The Bellefonte nuclear plant in Alabama, for instance, was about 93% complete when terminated. This loss, along with others, affected future power rates to TVA ratepayers.
Dave Freeman has always been anti-nuclear and, because of his short sightedness he, in my opinion, set TVA and this region back 20 years. Freeman, before coming to TVA, was an advisor to President Carter on Energy and the Environment, and these two men did everything in their power to stop all nuclear generation in the United States. Consequently it was decided that no nuclear power plants nationwide would be allowed to be built and this unwise decision has lasted for the past 29 years.
Only this year it was decided that nuclear power generation was the way to go in the future with the decision to complete Watts Bar 2. If the TVA and other utilities in the nation had built nuclear plants during this time, this nation would not be in the power shortage we are in today.
More than two-thirds of all nuclear plants ordered after January 1970 were eventually canceled. Since this nation had not built nuclear plants like most all other countries, baseload power generation here fell back mostly to the old coal-fired plants. Then, because of the many environmental restrictions on these type plants, it has cost many millions of dollars to retrofit the old coal units. This meant higher power rates to not only this area but the whole nation. Renewable resources, such as solar and wind, alone cannot meet TVA’s growing demand for electricity.
Nuclear is the low-emission baseload option for the future.
Maybe with the new decision to allow nuclear construction that we could see more efficient plants and lower power rates in the future.
At the present time the United States produces 19% of it electricity generation from nuclear. France produces 78% of it electrical energy from nuclear power, Great Britain as well as the European Union provides 30% from nuclear generation.
Jack W. Anderson
Retired TVA Engineering Manager
jacka@comcast.net
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David Freeman was appointed by Jimmy Carter, which is all you need to know about him. I also see he heads up the, "Hydrogen Car Company," whatever that is. Would appear that Mr. Freeman might have an ulterior motive in opposing nuclear energy. Or else he was overly influenced by another Jane Fonda movie.
Can't wait to get people like him back in office, I loved those five block gas lines and even-odd rationing days.
And just for the record I drive a four cylinder Honda Accord.
Douglas Jones
Chattanooga
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