Richland nuclear power plant under extra federal scrutiny

RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) - A nuclear power plant in southeast Washington will continue to be under extra government scrutiny.

The Tri-City Herald reports the Columbia Generating Station failed to be removed from the 2018 list of plants requiring increased oversight by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as the federal agency completed its annual assessment.

However, just one more inspection could move it onto the list of plants receiving only routine oversight based on its performance in 2017.

The commission announced this week that 83 of the nation's reactors met all safety and security performance objectives and would have standard oversight.

Energy Northwest's power plant near Richland fell into the second category, along with a dozen other plants that need to resolve one or two items of what the NRC described as "low safety significance."