Federal EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin returned to his home county Monday to address a controversial environmental issue that has stirred debate across Suffolk County.
Scott Munro, of the Hauppauge Fire District, says his department is worried about the risks firefighters could face if they had to battle a blaze at a lithium-ion battery storage facility.
“We have not really dealt with anything to this type of magnitude,” Munro explained. He added that traditional firefighting methods may not work, raising concerns about toxic runoff contaminating drinking water.
The Hauppauge Fire District is calling for a moratorium on a proposed 79-megawatt battery energy storage system (BESS) facility that LIPA and Key Capture Energy hope to build on Rabro Drive. Opponents say the site is too close to schools, homes, places of worship, and businesses, all within a mile.
Zeldin released the first-ever federal guidelines on battery energy storage systems.
“We are here to help,” Zeldin said. “We are putting out the guidelines based on our own experiences, our own lessons learned and the technical expertise that we have.”
A bipartisan crowd gathered to hear the EPA’s stance and to share their own concerns. Adrienne Esposito, with Citizen Campaign for the Environment said, “We were relieved today to hear the EPA say that they wanted to offer technical assistance and guidance. We think we have to have diversification in our energy resources.”
Others in attendance expressed fears.
“There is just too much danger!” one person said.
The newly released federal guidelines outline installation considerations, resources for fire planning and facts about recent BESS fires.
