MACo: Utility Scale Batteries Have Issues Regardless of Solar Attachment

On March 8, 2023, Associate Policy Director Dominic Butchko submitted testimony to the House Environment and Transportation Committee in support of HB 1100 – Battery Storage and Solar Arrays Safety Training Grant Program and Fund with amendments.

This bill provides counties with the resources to train local fire departments on how to safely handle the hazards of utility scale batteries on solar installations. The purpose of utility scale batteries is to supplement energy production when the mechanisms in question are incapable of providing a continuous supply of power. However useful they may be, these batteries pose alarming public safety hazards—unlike a traditional fire, utility scale battery fires burn hotter and longer, and may discharge a mass of toxic chemicals. Accordingly, counties request that the General Assembly support training and education on the dangers of all utility scale batteries, not merely those connected to solar
installations.

From the MACo Testimony:

Utility scale batteries come with a slew of issues yet to be fully addressed by policy makers. In at least two instances, county officials were told by battery operators that if there is a fire in the area surrounding a solar installation (and its battery storage), to not respond with conventional first responders, and to instead evacuate the area immediately. Unlike a traditional fire, utility scale battery fires burn hotter and longer, and may discharge a mass of toxic chemicals. The equipment, resources, and effort required to extinguish one of these fires is scales of magnitude higher than what many county fire departments can reasonably handle.