The U.S. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has released a study that outlines the safety and project planning implications facing battery energy storage systems from a land use decision-making perspective.
The study, titled Energy Storage Systems in Local Zoning Ordinances, aims to inform land-use decisions for energy storage projects by providing planning department officials with information about energy storage technologies and knowledge of the questions that should be asked during the review process so that energy storage projects can be deployed in a way that is beneficial to the electric power system and does not adversely affect local communities.
The report also includes an analysis of current energy storage zoning standards adopted by local jurisdictions.
In recent years, the deployment of battery energy storage systems to store power from solar power facilities has accelerated across the U.S., especially to provide power quickly during peak electricity demand.
This study claims that, to date, 10 U.S. states have passed legislation or taken administrative action requiring utilities to deploy a certain number of energy storage systems. In addition, some utilities have increased their investments in energy storage systems without receiving policy incentives. The report notes that about 24 percent of U.S. battery energy storage systems are deployed in Texas, but the state government does not offer energy storage incentives or policies.
The report also noted that the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed in 2021 provides $200 million in support funding for building and operating battery manufacturing plants in the U.S., while the Inflation Reduction Act passed in 2022 provides tax incentives for U.S.-based battery manufacturers and battery purchasers.
These factors have resulted in rapid growth in energy storage deployment. By the end of 2020, approximately 1.5GW of battery energy storage systems were deployed on the U.S. grid.
That number more than tripled in 2021, nearly doubled in 2022 and is expected to double again by 2023, according to data released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts that by the end of 2023, the U.S. grid will operate more than 18GW of battery energy storage systems, with contracts for more than 13GW of energy storage deployments to be signed in 2024.
The rapid growth in energy storage deployment also poses challenges for local planning and zoning officials, who are often responsible for deciding where to site energy storage assets and how to mitigate their impact on communities, according to the US Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Because battery energy storage systems are a new technology, these planners may lack the necessary information and familiarity to respond to proposed deployments of battery energy storage systems in their jurisdictions, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researchers noted.
The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory report notes that the safety of battery energy storage systems is a major concern for local authorities and developers, but also notes that while battery fires tend to be a high-profile safety event, they are relatively few compared to the number deployed.
According to data on fires in grid-connected battery storage systems published by the American Electric Power Research Institute, as of April 2023, 491 utility-scale projects operated in the US, with a total of 14 fire incidents, for a fire incidence rate of around 2.9 percent.
Some U.S. states are also adopting and enforcing fire codes and standards, and while many planners may not have the authority to enforce them, they may be aware of best practices for installing and operating battery energy storage systems, the study claims.
The authors of the report say that while safety is often the most pressing issue in the local zoning process for energy storage projects, local planners may have to address several other potential issues facing the community, such as noise, odor, and carbon emissions, visual impacts, and environmental impacts. Drawing on case studies from a variety of jurisdictions, this report outlines how planners can mitigate these impacts.
Overall, energy storage systems on the grid have great potential to be cleaner, more flexible, and more reliable, yet battery storage systems pose unique risks to communities and local planning officials.
The report's authors say that while in many cases the implementation of relevant codes and standards is beyond the purview of local planning and zoning officials, a working knowledge of these codes and standards can help planners know what questions to ask during the review process.
The authors of this report conclude, "By identifying the potential risks of battery energy storage systems and how to address them in fire and electrical codes and local zoning ordinances across the country, this work may be useful to local planning and zoning officials, who are tasked with developing project conditions and zoning ordinances within their jurisdictions to facilitate the development of these beneficial technologies while at the same time while mitigating their risks to residents."
