Carefully Forward

There is an enormous difference between caution and hysteria. Locally, the conversation about battery energy storage systems, also known as BESS, is rapidly moving in the wrong direction.

Southampton Town is absolutely correct to consider a moratorium on approving such projects to allow town officials to get up to speed on the details of BESS technology, what appropriate setbacks and other precautions are necessary, and what special conditions they might present, especially in case of malfunction. The facilities, which use batteries to store electricity produced by green sources, including solar panels and the offshore wind turbines set to be erected off Montauk this fall, are an essential part of the region’s, and the nation’s, future power infrastructure.

A recent incident in East Hampton amounts to bad timing for both the power companies and the smaller independent firms setting up the BESS facilities on the South Fork. But, in fact, a closer look might suggest that the entire incident, which sparked more panic than actual damage, can be seen in an entirely different light.

The fire at a battery storage facility in East Hampton on May 31 put it offline. It was caused by one of the batteries overheating — the very concern at the heart of the BESS worries.

But the fire was immediately extinguished by the building’s fire suppression systems. Local fire companies did respond, but they never even went into the building. There were some precautions, including closed roads and delayed trains, but they ended up being, in retrospect, an overreaction, though an overabundance of caution is probably necessary considering how new the technology is.

Southampton Town currently has two active applications for BESS facilities in the western half of town; more can be anticipated, probably at various points on the South Fork, in both towns. The recent fire in East Hampton shows there is reason for caution, and for officials who will decide where they might be placed to get up to speed.

But critics, and residents who have begun to describe BESS technology in apocalyptic language, miss three key points. First, the burning battery in East Hampton showed just how benign a malfunction can often be, and how effectively the systems designed to address such a glitch can work. The companies themselves are most affected by such an incident, and while we need to be extra attentive to any threats to our water table, it shows that such threats could well be overstated.

Second, the risk of fire and malfunction is precisely why the towns must be up to speed and able to find appropriate spots for these BESS facilities, away from environmentally sensitive sites and densely populated neighborhoods. But there’s no reason to believe there’s absolutely no site that’s safe. Appropriate setbacks and necessary infrastructure should suffice.

Finally, and most importantly, this is the electric future — generating power in less environmentally impactful ways means creating a brand new grid, one that includes new technology like BESS. Densely populated areas use more power, and so it only makes sense for these facilities to be located where the use is significant.

In other words: We must proceed cautiously, for sure. But we must proceed.