Federal regulators are calling for additional investigations of the Browns Ferry nuclear power plant after detecting a serious safety violation there.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said it rejected the Tennessee Valley Authority's appeal of a highly significant red-level violation at its facility in Athens, Ala. The violation was issued following the discovery last October of a stuck valve at the plant.

TVA said in its appeal that the valve was part of the residual heat removal system and played no safety-related role. NRC disagreed, saying the malfunctioning valve could have led the reactor's core to overheat.

"Potentially at the time the valve was inoperable, had there been a scenario where there was a fire at the plant, the valve would have been essential for cooling the reactor," NRC spokesman Joey Ledford said. "There was the potential for damage to the reactor's core occurring had there been a fire."

Because there were no fires during the time the valve was inoperable, Ledford said the public was never in danger.

TVA spokesman Ray Golden said even in the event of a fire, the plant had multiple safeguards in place to compensate for problems like the stuck valve.

"We do recognize the red finding is serious," he said. "We've already put in place a response team to address NRC's concerns."

Nevertheless, NRC has planned intensive investigations for the facility.

"We will be looking at the safety culture, the maintenance programs, the operation programs, the engineering programs and everything related to the plant and its operation," Ledford said. "The inspections will be beginning within the next few weeks and will last for several months."

Golden said TVA will be paying for the inspections. He said he is unsure how much they will cost (Dennis Sherer, Florence [Ala.] Times Daily, Aug. 18). -- PK