TVA's middle-age crisis

Journal Article · Fri Apr 22 04:00:00 EST 1983 · Ed. Res. Rep.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6166661

Nugent, T

Fifty years ago, Franklin D. Roosevelt's corporation clothed with the power of government but possessed of the flexibility and initiative of a private enterprise had a traumatic birth. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was a unique social and economic experiment designed to improve the quality of life in a 41,000-square-mile, 650-mile-long Tennessee River watershed that was also an economically depressed area. After bringing jobs and prosperity, albeit not without conflict, to the seven states it serves, TVA has fallen on hard times. Its problems command national attention because they often mirror the problems of the nation's electric industry: higher rates, declining demand for electricity, and heavy investment in nuclear power that has not paid off. In addition, TVA suffers from internal squabbles over goals and a past reputation as polluter. TVA's future includes pushing ahead on its seven-year-old program of helping homeowners and businesses conserve energy, continuing the battle to improve the environment (although critics wonder if TVA's recent pro-environment attitude will last), and working to regain the region's old loyalty and belief that TVA is us. 19 references, 2 figures, 3 tables.

• OSTI ID: 6166661
• Journal Information: Ed. Res. Rep.; (United States), Journal Name: Ed. Res. Rep.; (United States) Vol. 1:15; ISSN EDRRA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290200 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Economics & Sociology
296000* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Electric Power
530100 -- Environmental-Social Aspects of Energy Technologies-- Social & Economic Studies-- (-1989)
ELECTRIC UTILITIES
FORECASTING
MANAGEMENT
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
PERFORMANCE
PUBLIC UTILITIES
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
US ORGANIZATIONS