REGION — As anxiety grows regarding the future of battery energy storage systems in San Diego County, recent discussions by county leaders indicate that permanent regulations for these projects will likely not be confirmed for another year.
There are currently 10 battery energy storage system projects — also known as BESS projects — under review by the county, which has been working to establish regulations for these facilities in unincorporated areas.
BESS facilities have been identified as an essential player in meeting San Diego County’s climate action goals, as they store energy from renewable sources such as wind and solar. However, many have emphasized the need for strong regulations to reduce the risk of fires, which can harm residents and the environment.
One project, the proposed Seguro Energy Storage facility near the boundaries of Escondido and San Marcos, has drawn particularly strong pushback from residents due to its proximity to residential areas such as Eden Valley and Palomar Hospital.
At a Dec. 11 meeting of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, Cal Fire and County Fire Chief Tony Mecham said the county could only adopt interim guidelines for the time being while the county awaits updates to the California fire code, which is expected to be released in the summer.
Mecham said an updated fire ordinance would likely not come before the Board of Supervisors until the end of the year.
“My highest priority is to protect not only the safety of the public, but the safety of the first responders. I think continuing to look at these projects on a project-by-project basis until we have an additional guidance document is certainly a good way to go forward,” Mecham said.
While waiting, the board agreed on a series of interim guidelines for BESS projects based on best practices outlined in the county’s current fire code.
The interim guidelines also incorporate new requirements, such as mandating applicants to hire a fire protection engineer to complete a technical study that accounts for each recommended best practice to mitigate future risk, per a staff report.
The county will also require a 100-foot minimum setback for projects adjacent to residences. Those proposed next to wildland areas must comply with the county’s defensible space ordinance, which also requires a minimum setback of 100 feet.
Other new guidelines require updated fire and explosion detection, alarming, control and suppression systems and gas detection systems, review of all new technology by a third party, and a hazard mitigation analysis to account for issues such as thermal runaway events, multi-system failures and temperature control failures.
Supervisor Jim Desmond, representing much of North County, supported the interim guidelines and said safety needs to be prioritized for all BESS projects.
“I’m not against these BESS projects, but when they’re catching fire and being proposed near homes and other sensitive areas, I think safety has to be the number-one priority for us and the public,” Desmond said. “I think these interim fire guidelines are gonna make these things safer until we get an ordinance to the board, which it sounds like would be a year from now.”
The board’s last action on this topic was in September, just days after a fire broke out at an SDG&E battery storage facility in Escondido. At its meeting, the board stopped short of a BESS moratorium but adopted additional requirements for fire suppression technical reports and/or disclosures to ensure new battery energy storage systems go “above and beyond” current code requirements.
The September fire was contained to just one of the site’s 24 cells and burned out on its own, but it did require the evacuation of several businesses and the closure of several schools near the industrial area.
At the board’s Dec. 11 meeting, some speakers urged the county to take decisive action to regulate BESS facilities.
“The guidelines won’t come out for several months, and there are open applications for more of these facilities. We need something to go off of right now,” said Stephani Baxter, vice chair of the Fallbrook Planning Group.
Others said the county should gather more input from stakeholders, including battery storage developers, before establishing regulations.
“What you decide today is being watched by other counties throughout California,” said Sean Wazlaw, director of development at NextEra Energy Resources. “Before you are guidelines that are not the product of sufficient stakeholder process.”
Mecham also surprised some board members by informing them that he has the sole authority as the county fire chief to set new regulations as he sees fit.
Supervisor Nora Vargas, who shocked the county just days later by announcing that she would not continue with a second term, recommended that the board return in 90 days to discuss a policy for BESS facilities.
However, Supervisor Monica Montgomery-Steppe said bringing the item back before the state guidelines were ready would be useless. Instead, she requested that the fire chief provide an update on the stakeholder engagement process in 90 days.
“I don’t want to be where we are now. We scrambled for this meeting, and now we’re saying we need to continue it 90 days — why?” she said. “If it’s about the state, then let’s wait on the state. If it’s about stakeholders, then let’s just say that.”
