Letters

Last week, a letter was sent to the battery energy storage system “steering” committee formed last March. The committee’s efforts were to include “listening to and addressing ongoing public concerns, considering the recommendations of state working groups, identifying commonalities among neighboring municipalities, and exploring potential mitigation strategies and solutions. These efforts will be focused on the planning study and amendments to the town code.” The idea seeming to be to eliminate placing BESS in a residential community while finding suitable siting locations with proper zoning.

The questions asked in the letter were:

Is it possible to establish and inform us of your meeting schedule for the rest of this year? Today, one does not know when the committee will again meet, if ever, since committee meetings have been very infrequent. A schedule will allow community members to properly plan their own schedules to attend, or listen and watch, committee deliberations.

Since, at previous meetings, committee members in various contexts offered the conclusion that BESS would not be placed in a residential community, is there any objection that this initial conclusion be made to the Town Board and the public?

Recent industry comments have been made that while the BESS industry is thriving, industry profits are waning. As a result, new revenue models are being suggested by the industry and adopted by communities for the industry. Will any placement decisions made by the committee have this profit issue for the industry taken into consideration?

Canal BESS is a tricky and difficult issue that seems to never end. Amazingly, the Town Board still works weeks after a self-imposed deadline expired to determine whether the applicant for that dangerous site should be included in the extended moratorium on BESS. Is this apparent “special status” of Canal BESS dispositive for the committee’s deliberations on the placement of future BESS sites? Can you publicly state the committee’s understanding of this issue as it relates to your deliberations?

The committee’s task and its answers are difficult, but committee efforts have been noticed and admired. But how much more time is needed to form and inform conclusions? Can the committee explain the difficulty in acknowledging receipt of the letter?

As with the Town Board, this committee listens well, sees much, learns as much as it can from whomever it can, then debates and considers diligently, ad nauseam. Then, like the Town Board, it stops.

One finds it amazing that our indefatigable board is having a special public hearing to consider aquatic habitat restoration while not being able to decide where to place BESS to minimize harm to people. And it’s amazing that its specially founded committee may be doing the same.

Steve Crispinelli

Hampton Bays