ERC leans toward allowing private battery storage but asks for more research on safety and siting
Loading...
Summary
Marathon County staff recommended drafting farmland-preservation ordinance language to allow private battery energy storage systems (BESS) under 1 MW and to treat commercial BESS as conditional uses; the committee requested more research on fire containment, emergency-response training, and model language from other counties.
Marathon County staff told the Environmental Resources Committee on March 31 that they will draft updates to the farmland preservation ordinance to address battery energy storage systems (BESS).
Staff explained two categories: private BESS (under 1 megawatt, on-site consumption only, no export) and commercial BESS (transmits or sells energy off-site or is 1 MW or larger). Staff recommended allowing private systems as a permitted use while prohibiting commercial BESS in the farmland preservation district or treating them through a conditional-use process. Staff also noted that if a BESS is part of a larger wind or solar project, county control is limited because the system is regulated at the project level.
Committee members asked practical questions about safety, siting and emergency response. Vice Chair Dickinson asked about the physical footprint of a 1 MW system; staff said it can be the size of "about 1 or 2 shipping containers" rather than a large field array. Other members asked whether containment and access requirements will be needed and whether local fire departments have the training and capacity to handle lithium-ion battery fires.
Emergency-management representation said an update will be brought to the Public Safety committee next week, including risks, local fire departments' capacity and a recommendation to coordinate a response plan with the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC). Staff committed to bringing additional research and example language from other counties before drafting final ordinance language.
Why it matters: BESS installations raise questions that cross planning, fire safety and county code. Committee members generally supported allowing small, private systems for farm resilience but asked staff to return with standards for containment, access and emergency training before committing to broad commercial permissions.
Next steps: staff will collect examples from other counties, coordinate with emergency management, and return with draft ordinance language and recommended safety stipulations.
