Arizona fire highlights challenges for energy storage
While we remain confident that Mr Feiner will “green light” the Eagle Energy Battery Storage system on the Knollwood Country Club property by whatever means possible, there are still many lingering and unanswered questions. We touched on the firematic side of things in our previous article. We’d like to continue with that as we’ve discovered more information than originally thought. Specifically, an article written and published by Jonathan Cooper for the AP News, entitled Arizona Fire Highlights Challenges For Energy Storage, about an Arizona fire in an energy storage facility. The unit in question has only 4 individual units compared to the one for the Knollwood Country Club, which consists of 7.
The Arizona Public Service has been an early adopter of battery storage technology seen as critical for the wider deployment of renewable energy and for a more resilient power grid. But an April fire and explosion at a massive battery site west of Phoenix that sent eight firefighters and a police officer to the hospital highlighted the challenges and risks that can arise as utilities prepare for the exponential growth of the technology.
“This is getting attention, and I think everyone realizes that too many safety incidents ... will be detrimental going forward,” said George Crabtree, director of the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research, a partnership of national laboratories, universities and companies funded by the U.S. Energy Department. “So I think it’s being taken very seriously.” These people are experts. Mr Feiner is not, nor chooses enlightenment from experts. And, to assume (we know) his decisions will err on the side of caution and safety, past experience proves that not to be the case.
Utility-scale batteries such as these are massive versions of the same lithium ion technology that can be found powering cellphones and laptops. When the batteries in these devices get too hot, a fire can start and trigger a phenomenon known as thermal runaway, in which the fire feeds on itself and is nearly impossible to stop until it consumes all the available fuel. According to Jay Apt, of the Carnegie Mellon University’s Electricity Industry Center, “Anytime you store a lot of energy in a small space you’ve got to be very cognizant of the controls that you have to put in place so that energy doesn’t get out when you don’t want it to,”
There have been three fires in similar setups owned by APS, causing them to continue pushing forward with their plans to develop more facilities. This issue has grown in severity and has been recognized by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to the point where they have developed an online training course for first responders. Mr Feiner may not care about the safety of our first responders but this issue is too serious to ignore. Apparently he doesn't care.
The Town Board held a Special Meeting where Mr Feiner decided to create a moratorium on all future similar proposals until a decision could be made at another meeting. Just not the Knollwood Country Club proposal. His excuse was that he wanted to be fair to the Knollwood Country Club. Baloney! In a difficult financial year, which still has the Edgemont Incorporation hanging over his head like mistletoe at a Santa's Village, we’re sure he’s still starry-eyed by the suggestion of being able to get $30,000 to $50,000 in property tax payments from this. Just because someone makes a proposal doesn't mean it has to be acted upon immediately or in fact, at all. Doing business the right way will help to make for A Better Greenburgh.
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