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Planning & Zoning hearing continued after industry and fire-safety experts push for licensed engineer sign-off on BESS incidents
Summary
At the June 17 Planning & Zoning continuation, industry representatives and fire-safety experts recommended licensed fire-protection engineer sign-off for battery-energy-storage-system (BESS) after-action reports, urged extending the report window from 30 to 90 days, and discussed defensible-space, container certification (UL 9540) and NFPA 855 compliance; the Board asked staff to draft language and continued the hearing to July 1, 2025.
Planning Administrator Nicole Hay opened a continued public hearing on June 17, 2025 to address regulation amendments for solar collector facilities, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and wind energy facilities. The hearing focused on defensible-space requirements, container standards, incident reporting timelines, fence maintenance, coordination with fire districts and wind-height setbacks.
Jeremiah Garrick, Community Engagement & Strategy Manager with COSSA, told the Board the county should require licensed fire-protection engineer sign-off on after-action reports for BESS incidents and recommended extending the proposed 30-day completion timeline to 90 days. Garrick also said defensible-space requirements should apply to BESS installations in particular and that container units certified to UL 9540 operating under NFPA 855 controls should be acceptable when those standards are met.
Representatives from industry offered clarifications. Taylor Henderson of Outshine Energy and Drew McMann of ACM Energy both emphasized the practical scope of defensible-space measures, noting the requirement should not be interpreted to require clearing an entire solar field where the risk profile differs from BESS containers. Hans Rodvik from Xcel Energy described vegetation-control practices (including grazing) and urged that fences be required to be maintained and kept clear.
Andy Blum, a fire-protection engineer with Fire & Risk Alliance, provided technical context on incident response and containment practices for BESS. Blum said the industry’s operational practice is to electrically isolate and shut down the portion of a system affected by an event; electrically connected containers are frequently shut down together and, in some cases, adjacent containers are also taken offline as a precaution. He told the Board his experience has not shown soil or water contamination from fires at these facilities.
Board members discussed options for defensible space, fence-maintenance requirements, certification and re-opening procedures after an incident. Chairman Jon J. Becker voiced support for a 200-foot defensible space around BESS containers with a maintained, hard/clean surface (e.g., gravel or cleared zone). County Attorney Kathryn Sellars advised the Board that the Planning Department could require engineer sign-off and then use a County consultant to verify compliance before authorizing a re-opening; the Board directed staff to prepare draft regulatory language. The hearing was continued to July 1, 2025 to allow staff to return with proposed edits for public review and further comment.
Notable direct statements (as recorded in meeting minutes): - Jeremiah Garrick (COSSA): "The after action report being completed in 30 days would be too short of a time frame, and COSSA is suggesting 90 days." - Andy Blum (Fire & Risk Alliance): industry practice "is to shut down the portion that is affected... If containers are connected electrically, they shut down all containers that are connected electrically."
Next steps: Planning staff will draft suggested language on defensible space, incident reporting timelines, engineer sign-off procedures and fence maintenance and present that draft at the July 1, 2025 Board meeting for further consideration and public comment.
