NRC issues report cards on Minn., Wis. nuke plants

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has issued its annual report cards on the nation's 100 commercial nuclear power plants, and it found room for improvement at two reactors in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin.

Xcel Energy's Prairie Island Unit 2 on the Mississippi River near Red Wing in Minnesota was assessed as needing to resolve one or more items of "low safety significance." The NRC says will give the reactor additional inspections and attention to follow up on corrective actions there.

The NRC says Xcel's Monticello nuclear plant on the Mississippi in central Minnesota and the NextEra Energy Resources Point Beach plant on Lake Michigan near Manitowoc, Wis., were rated one category lower with a "degraded level of performance." They'll get more inspections, senior management attention and other oversight.