An artist rendering of a large scale battery storage facility. Photo used with courtesy.

BY ADAM ATKINSONNorth Country This Week

POTSDAM -- The town board is proposing a 6-month moratorium on large-scale commercial battery energy storage systems so the current law dealing with the facilities can be modified with more safeguards for potential fires and other emergencies. 

The board approved a resolution proposing the moratorium at their meeting Friday, Sept. 18 and set a public hearing on the moratorium for Oct. 13 at 4:30 p.m. 

Town Code Enforcement Officer Chuck Bell told town board members at the meeting that the current town law regarding battery storage systems like those used in commercial storage farms was reasonably complete but that the moratorium was needed to look at including more safeguards for fire-related emergencies. 

"We have a law saying what you can and can't do and how you have to do it. I feel that our law is pretty detailed and I don't see any issue with our law," Bell said.  

"So this is just so we can get information from our fire departments on how they would handle (a fire)?" asked Deputy Supervisor Cindy Goliber. 

"To make sure that if a large energy storage thing comes in that we have a safety plan," Bell said. "Because otherwise we would run into a situation like they had in Chaumont where the fire burned for days." 

The code enforcement officer was referring to a multi-day fire at a battery storage facility in Jefferson County that took several days to suppress and created and released potentially harmful chemicals during the operation. 

"Part of the issue right now, because it's an emerging technology and because lithium batteries create their own oxygen, fire suppression is pretty challenging," Bell said. 

The moratorium would apply specifically to the construction, development or installation of commercial battery energy storage systems with a capacity in excess of 25 kilowatt hours. 

"Residential battery energy storage systems not designed to sell the stored energy will not fall under the scope of this moratorium," the resolution passed by the town said. 

Instead the moratorium deals primarily with the type of energy storage batteries utilized in commercial solar facilities and other large-scale alternative energy operations. 

Town officials hope the brief hold on development of these large battery banks will allow time for any necessary studies, meetings with fire officials and other agencies, environmental reviews and other necessary actions to inform modifications of the existing law. 

No new permits will be granted for battery storage systems during the moratorium, however previously granted permits will be honored and work on those projects will not be halted, the moratorium proposes.