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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNicola_Robinson_Summary of RECENT events_hazards at BESS installations_Attachment_20220503SUMMARY AND TIME-LINE OF RECENT EVENTS AT BESS INSTALLATIONS: In July of 2021 A Tesla Megapack part of a giant battery project in Victoria, Australia, caught on fire – creating a blaze that was almost impossible to control. The installation of the giant new battery packs was just completed and the system was undergoing testing when one of the Megapacks caught on fire: However, in this case, the bigger issue was toxic fumes emanating from the burning Megapack. The authorities issued a toxic air quality warning for Batesford, Bell Post Hill, Lovely Banks, Moorabool, and Geelong’s northern suburb due to the fire. The Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility Phase II in California September 4th, 2021 The world’s largest lithium ion battery is down, again, the impacted facility went online in December 2020 Less than a year after it entered service, the Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility in California was forced offline on September 4 when an unspecified number of batteries overheated. Moss Landing Phase I has been offline since that Sept. 4, 2021 incident. Vistra releases Moss Landing energy storage incident findings A software programming error in a heat suppression system caused the incident that damaged Vistra Corp.’s Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility in California, according to investigative findings released by the company. In February 16th 2022 This Energy Storage Facility Phase II in California set off fire alarms that activated a fault water suppression system, which – again – set off a cascading set of events that resulted in roughly ten battery packs melting down. February 16, 2022 John Fitzgerald Weaver Battery fire at Salt River Project in Arizona April 26th 2022. Anne Fischer Fire crews in Chandler, Arizona sent robots into a building at the Salt River Project where a 10 MW battery was smoldering. Fire crews in Chandler, Arizona sent robots into a building at the Salt River Project where a 10 MW battery was smoldering. April 26, 2022 Anne FischerThe Salt River Project, a 10 MW energy storage project that uses lithium-ion batteries, was dealt a blow last week when a fire broke out. Three years ago Peoria, Arizona fire fighters learned the hazards of battery fires first-hand when a fire at a battery facility left four fire fighters injured. Because the SRP (Salt River Project) facility had been smoldering for days, the fire fighters used an abundance of caution before entering the building. Keith Welch, Battalion Chief at Chandler Fire Department said, “We took a defensive strategy and for us that means we’re not going to open the door and go in without personnel to take a look because we know some of the potential hazards of the battery degradation and the off-gassing and the different hazards that can cause.” Due to potentially hazardous gases leaking from the building, businesses in the area were asked to evacuate Thursday night, as the robot opened the doors and entered the facility, allowing the gases to dissipate. The next day the robots were sent back in to measure gases before firefighters could enter. My summary comment. Respectfully and with great appreciation for the City Council and various city departments hearing us and our concerns, and as a result establishing a moratorium on BESS processes with the city for a period, there is no guarantee what the outcome will be, and time is short between now and the public hearing. Because a multibillion dollar, investing and energy company TENASKA, based in Nebraska, and with offices in many cities including in Canada, has its name and influence on the Pre-application, we cannot rest. The purpose of the above summary and timeline is to demonstrate the continued and very recent safety problems and hazards with these grid scale battery installations, as well as problems around software programming errors, as also referenced above. Does the city have the time and manpower to look into the history of problems, and the recent occurrences as we have? I understand that your staff will do a stellar job researching local land use tables, and zonings, but may not research publicly available information confirming the hazards? Energy companies and all involved try to convince us that the remote, computer monitoring is safe, and that all of these systems have been approved and are listed add-nauseum in the presentations under various safety code references. Despite the alleged safety measures in place since the BESS fire in Peoria, AZ in 2019, fires, as referenced, are still igniting in BESS units. This technology is hazardous, and the software that is supposed to monitor the system, is itself a safety issue. The proposal and pre-application for a BESS installation 50’ from our 140 household community needs to be stopped, and not allowed to move forward to the permitting process. And it would perhaps be the best policy for the city to maintain the moratorium indefinitely, or better still, and what is actually appropriate based on the absence of parcels of land appropriate for these installations, for the city to not create a line item in the land-use table for BESS? Thank you for hearing us. Nicola Robinson RN.