Kerr County commissioners and residents urge LCRA to coordinate on battery storage siting, cite wildfire and water risks
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Summary
Kerr County Commissioner Rich Paces and local residents told the Lower Colorado River Authority board it has refused coordination requests on battery energy storage system (BESS) siting, raised thermal-runaway and cybersecurity concerns, and asked LCRA to meet with the Hill Country Energy Subregional Planning Commission under Texas law.
Rich Paces, a Kerr County commissioner and president of the Hill Country Energy Subregional Planning Commission, told the Lower Colorado River Authority Board of Directors on Dec. 9 that his commission had provided four coordination notices asking LCRA to consult on proposed battery energy storage system (BESS) sites and that LCRA had refused to meet.
"We believe that LCRA has a moral obligation to coordinate planning for BESS with our subregional planning commission to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of our constituents," Paces said, citing the commission’s creation under Texas Local Government Code chapter 391 and pointing to section 391.009(c) as the statutory basis for coordination.
An unidentified public commenter later warned of cybersecurity and supply-chain risks tied to BESS components sourced overseas and referenced the Infrastructure Protection Act (cited in testimony as Chapter 117 of the Texas Business and Commerce Code) and Governor Greg Abbott’s executive order GA-48, saying hundreds of required attestations were missing in some ERCOT projects. The commenter described thermal-runaway lithium battery fires as a risk to air, soil and groundwater.
Jeff Burner, identified in the record as representing Flat Rock Creek, told the board that state fire marshal presentations showed a malfunction rate of about 2% and recounted a recent local explosion and fire he said forced nearby evacuations. He said one proposed facility would sit about 1,400 feet from Harper ISD and urged LCRA directors to meet with the subregional planning commission.
LCRA General Manager Phil Wilson responded that LCRA views itself as a political subdivision rather than a state agency and therefore does not treat the chapter 391 framework the same as a state agency would. Wilson also said LCRA’s interpretation of state law treats batteries as generation resources that the utility is required to interconnect under statute. He urged the speakers to work with ERCOT and the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) on questions of enforcement and said LCRA conducts its own attestations and equipment reviews "and we follow the law."
The board did not take formal action on the public comments at the meeting; directors thanked the speakers and encouraged continued dialogue, including sending representatives to a subregional planning commission meeting the following week.
What it means: The exchange highlights a legal and policy disagreement between local subregional planners and LCRA over whether LCRA is required to coordinate siting decisions for BESS under chapter 391 and whether LCRA must or may refuse interconnection requests. Petitioners framed the issue as one of public safety and environmental protection; LCRA said some questions of enforcement and classification fall to ERCOT and the PUCT.
Next steps: Petitioners asked LCRA to provide the specific statutory citations it is relying on and invited LCRA staff to attend the SRPC meeting in Kendall County; LCRA indicated it will respond to the request and continue dialogue.
