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Battery storage (BESS) guidance recommended; commissioners emphasize emergency response and zoning
Summary
Consultants outlined a three-tier approach to battery energy storage systems (residential, commercial, utility-scale) and recommended adding decommissioning, hazard mitigation, road-use agreements, and clearer fencing/screening rules; commissioners proposed industrial zoning for large BESS and requested a site visit to learn emergency-response practices.
Kimley Horn advised commissioners that battery energy storage systems (BESS) should be regulated by scale and tied to clear commissioning/decommissioning and emergency-response provisions. The consultants proposed a three-tier framework: residential (Type 1), commercial/farm/municipal (Type 2), and utility-scale (Type 3) systems that require differing levels of review and safety measures.
"Type 1 are residential," the presenter said, describing how small home systems differ from large commercial or utility installations. For higher-capacity Type 2 and Type 3 systems, consultants recommended formal decommissioning plans and financial assurances, road-use agreements and bonding to repair rural roads, monitoring and reporting for vegetation and stormwater, and stronger coordination with local fire and emergency services on hazard response and training.
Commissioners repeatedly stressed safety and emergency preparedness as top priorities; several suggested siting large battery storage in industrially zoned areas rather than throughout agricultural zones. Commissioner (speaker 13) offered to organize a site visit to Yakima County facilities and fire chiefs to observe vegetation management, fencing, and responder training. Staff noted any field trip must avoid a quorum to comply with open-meeting rules.
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