County Supervisors Advance Proposal to Develop Battery Storage Standards

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 Wednesday to develop safety-related standards for battery energy storage facilities in the county’s unincorporated areas.

Supervisors directed Chief Administrative Officer Ebony Shelton to establish standards for battery energy storage system projects, including rules on where they can be located; design; and requirements for fire and explosion risks, emergency response, hazardous materials, toxic gases and noise.

Supervisors also directed Shelton to work with energy-storage applicants to ensure their project aligns with recommendations.

She will present safety-related options — including a possible ordinance that would temporarily pause any new applications — at a future board meeting.

Citing recent fires at battery energy storage facilities in Otay Mesa and Valley Center, Supervisor Jim Desmond said supervisors need to review the relatively new technology “a little more thoroughly.”

Desmond said he wanted to avoid locating energy-storage facilities near residential neighborhoods, schools, hospitals or other public areas.

County staff has worked to use comparable land-use definitions on new applications, which “gets us close on capturing the scope and scale of the battery storage projects … but it doesn’t necessarily account for their unique operating characteristics or public safety hazards,” Desmond said.

“I think it’s important to pump the brakes a little bit here, and work to establish specific definitions for development and safety standards,” said Desmond, adding he was “kind of the last person” who wants more government regulation.

Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer thanked Desmond for proposing “long overdue” development standards.

“There’s no question in my mind that we really have to do something about some of these battery facilities that have caught fire,” or ones that spew toxic fumes or are proposed for residential neighborhoods, she said. “They present a threat to many people in our community, to our environment.”

During a public comment period, supporters said new standards were needed to protect public health, homeowner insurance and property values.

One North County resident said the concern was not political.

“This is a humanitarian issue,” he said. “We’re talking about residents, we’re talking about people living close to these facilities … Please have a heart and think about this.”

Escondido resident Andrew McSparron said the projects shouldn’t be placed where there’s no possibility of emergency evacuation. While companies will claim the projects are safe, “my family and neighbors shouldn’t be guinea pigs for them,” he said.

Representatives with energy industry and environmental groups told supervisors that while safety standards were needed, a moratorium wasn’t a good idea.

Jen Lebron, spokeswoman for San Diego Community Power, said it was important to ensure that guidelines don’t have unintended consequences.

“A blanket moratorium on battery storage could have a chilling effect on the potential projects that are necessary to reduce the cost of power procurement, which could have a significant impact on families and businesses in the region,” she added.

Serena Pelka, of Climate Action Campaign, said battery-storage projects are critical piece of a clean energy future, and strengthens energy needs during blackouts.

“The only way to keep our grid stable is to continue adding storage at the same pace,” she said, adding the San Diego region could also lose out on employment opportunities.