Close to Home: Slow down on battery storage plans in Petaluma

In a rush for renewable energy, which is understandable considering the pace of global climate change, we must be careful to avoid potentially catastrophic problems. A case in point is two power-plant-size battery storage systems proposed in Petaluma.

One would be at the old Adobe Creek Golf Course, the other near the Vallejo Adobe.

These sites are near residential areas, Casa Grande High and a Kaiser medical facility, and only a few miles from downtown. Yet there are serious safety and environmental issues associated with lithium-ion battery storage. Construction of these enormous energy storage facilities should be put on hold until siting and safety criteria are established by state and local officials.

While these projects wind their way through the California Environmental Quality Act process to determine the need for mitigation, we want to be clear that we want nothing less than a full environmental impact report. The developers would prefer a less rigorous evaluation and fewer studies. Petaluma residents must demand a thorough evaluation of our questions and concerns.

In the short time large battery storage technology has been developed and deployed, a number of disturbing safety concerns have arisen, including fires, explosions and release of toxic gases. There have been over 40 recent accidents associated with lithium-ion battery facilities in the U.S. alone. A fire last year at PG&E’s Moss Landing storage site closed nearby Highway 1. Accidents have also been reported in Australia, the United Kingdom, South Korea and China. Many of the accidents were associated with facilities smaller than those proposed in Petaluma.

The Adobe Investments-Bolero Energy Storage facility at the golf course site would have 127 shipping-container-size enclosures holding millions of lithium-ion battery cells. The Borealis facility at the intersection of Adobe and Frates roads would be even larger. Combined, they would be among the largest battery storage sites in the world.

Battery energy storage systems, often called BESS projects, are coming under intense scrutiny, particularly those sited near residential areas and schools. In fact, two proposals in New York have been withdrawn or placed under a moratorium until appropriate regulations and criteria are developed by regulatory agencies. Once again, these facilities are much smaller than the Adobe Investments-Bolero and Borealis projects.

We urge residents to consider some of the dangers inherent in siting these facilities at the proposed locations:

— The sites are less than a quarter-mile apart. For all intents and purposes this can be viewed as a single 575-megawatt BESS facility, one of the largest in the world.

— The amount of energy stored in these facilities would be equivalent to almost 2,000 tons of TNT. An accident at either facility, let alone both, could be catastrophic.

— In a thermal runaway event, will firefighters have the training and resources to suppress a difficult-to-extinguish lithium-ion battery fire and prevent a wildfire?

— The proposed sites are 2.5 miles from the Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault. A September 2022 article in The Press Democrat reported that “scientists say it is the Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault line that is most likely to produce a major earthquake in the region in the coming years.” Can these facilities withstand a major earthquake?

— The Adobe Investments-Bolero site is beneath the flight path for the Petaluma Municipal Airport.

— The Borealis site is next to the Petaluma Adobe State Historic Park. The Mariano Vallejo adobe is the largest adobe building remaining in the United States.

We are not opposed to renewable energy and in fact are ardent supporters of economically sound and environmentally compatible renewable energy projects. We are, however, very concerned about the location of these projects. Petaluma has a unique history and culture. It should not become Sonoma County’s energy farm at the expense of our safety.

Both projects are subject to county approval. We are calling on Supervisor David Rabbitt to make certain that county permitting agencies conduct a comprehensive safety and environmental assessment with a comprehensive environmental impact report. Nothing less is acceptable. We also need Petaluma Mayor Kevin McDonnell and City Council members to vigorously support our position on this urgent matter.

These energy-storage facilities are simply too powerful, the technology too untested for mega-scale application, and these would be too close to neighborhoods and the Rodgers Creek fault. This new technology already has a questionable track record, and if we get this wrong a catastrophe could occur in Petaluma.

David Donnenfield and Joseph Petrillo are members of Citizens for Battery Transparency. They are residents of Petaluma.

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