Californian city introduces temporary moratorium on battery storage sites

Escondido has become the first city in San Diego County, California, to prohibit battery energy storage sites until new land use policies and standards related to BESS are developed.

On October 9, the city council voted unanimously to put temporary restrictions in place for an initial 45-day period. Such measures may be extended for an additional 10 months and 15 days, and subsequently for an additional 12 months, the meeting agenda said.

The council argued that the city’s current zoning regulations do not contain criteria specifically for BESS facilities. It said that without adequate land use policies and standards in place, the city of Escondido cannot guarantee the implementation of Senate Bill 38, which requires every BESS facility in California to establish an emergency response and emergency action plan for the facility to protect surrounding residents, neighboring properties, emergency responders, and the environment.

“While the interim ordinance is in effect, the City intends to study and consider land use development policies and standards related to BESS facilities that should be added to the City’s General Plan and Zoning Regulations,” the agenda reads.

Calls for a ban on new BESS projects in San Diego County were made in the wake of a 17-day battery fire at the 250 MW/250 MWh Gateway Energy Storage Station in Otay Mesa in May 2024. On September 5, 2024, mandatory evacuation orders were issued in Escondido after a fire broke out at a BESS facility belonging to utility San Diego Gas & Electric.

However, a planning and land use session of the county authority, held on September 11, 2024, opted against passing ordinances to bring in a moratorium on new BESS projects and to require all such sites to be based on modular, containerized design. Instead, it decided to extend a requirement to include details of fire safety systems as part of planning applications.

“The outcome demonstrates that early efforts to educate staff and decision-makers can effectively counter public opposition driven by fear and misinformation,” the California Energy Storage Alliance said in response to the decision.

However, Escondido’s interim urgency ordinance came off the heels of a 4-1 vote held on August 28, which adopted a resolution opposing new large-scale BESS developments. This was done with reference to the 320 MW/1,280 MWh Seguro project being planned by utility AES, which is in close proximity to a residential neighborhood and a major hospital.

The August resolution outlined the Council’s concerns with “the proliferation of BESS projects in and around the City of Escondido, including negative economic impacts inconsistent with the City’s adopted 2023 to 2028 Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy and potential public health and safety risks associated with the ignition of fires, including ‘thermal runaways,’ from these facilities.”

According to the California Energy Commission’s California Energy Storage System survey, there are up to 27 commercial BESS sites within city limits.

Unless extended by the city council, the interim ordinance shall remain in effect until close of business on November 23, 2024.