Town of North Hempstead board Democrats blocked the passage of a one-year moratorium on battery energy storage system facilities after an hours-long public comment session with residents split on the issue.
The proposed one-year moratorium was the result of safety concerns prompted by fires at battery energy storage system facilities. Board members noted three specific facility fires in the state, one lasting for about a week. None reported injuries.
“I am about clean energy, I don’t think anybody on our board here isn’t about clean energy, but I want clean energy but that doesn’t come at the cost of the health of people and our children in the future,” Town Councilmember Edward Scott said, citing concerns over longlasting health effects from these fires.
Gov. Kathy Hochul created the Inter-Agency Fire Safety Working Group in July 2023 to address these concerns and develop policies to prevent fires and procedures to fight these fires.
The group released draft fire codes in July but has yet to implement state standards.
Nassau County Fire Marshal Captain Michael Mennella supported the town holding off on allowing battery energy storage system facilities in anticipation of changes to state laws. He recommended the town follow the state’s impending guidance.
“Is firefighting improving? It is improving. It is not there yet [to fight battery energy storage system facility fires],” Mennella said. “Yes, do we learn more about this stuff every day? Absolutely. As of yet, there is no universal consensus or protocol or methodology in the extinguishment of these fires.”
Mennella said facility fires would exhaust local fire departments, of which nearly all in the county are volunteer.
All the Democrats called for a task force to establish a plan for researching the issue if a moratorium was in place. DeSena said the moratorium would have given them that time for research, but no plan was provided.
Town Councilmember Robert Troiano, a Democrat, voted against the moratorium because he said it “kicks the can down the road.”
Town Councilmembers Mariann Dalimonte and Christine Liu, both Democrats, abstained from voting. All town Republicans voted for the moratorium, excluding town Councilmember David Adhami, who was not present.
Dalimonte said she would support a six-month moratorium rather than prolong the process, granting the town council the ability to extend it if needed. Scott said the moratorium could be ended at any time and potentially not reach the full year.
About two dozen residents spoke on the moratorium, with a nearly even split of individuals advocating for or against it.
Many who spoke against the moratorium were involved in environmental groups. Some focused on sustainable energy specifically and argued that the facilities were needed to support environmental sustainability. They also argued that it would diminish costs.
“The risks associated with battery storage are manageable and no more of a safety concern than those associated with the energy infrastructure we already have in place,” said Michael Guaqueta, a Long Island Progressive Coalition community organizer. “Indeed, the costs of our overreliance on the fossil fuel infrastructure are amorphous and exploitative.”
Tyler Volk, a professor emeritus of biology and environmental studies at New York University, said risks are associated with all energy sources but that battery use is the “direction that the world has to be going.”
Those supporting the moratorium echoed the safety concerns and public health issues presented by town board members about the fires.
