Dr. Gregory Button, a U.T. professor of anthropology and recognized disaster research expert, has written a must-read essay about TVA's response to the Kingston coal ash disaster:

Equally troubling is the TVA's inept response to the disaster. A response so reckless it will undoubtedly be recorded in the annals of disaster history as what not to do in the wake of calamity.

[..]

The Agency's response has been more than simply flawed. The TVA's tactical response to the disaster has been to manufacture doubt and uncertainty to keep the public confused and avoid environmental compliance and accountability. Their ability to pursue this strategy calls into question the regulatory powers of state and federal agencies.

Click here for the rest of Dr. Button's commentary.

RELATED: Gregory Button spoke at an ETSPJ environmental journalism conference back in March. Here's our report on the conference, with excerpts and some video of his remarks (scroll down). He stated then that the so-called "recovery" process is often more harmful to the affected communities than the disaster's initiating event, and that social and political factors and imbalances of power are larger problems than the science and engineering.