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Date: 2/22/2022
HADLEY – The Planning Board continued a public hearing during their Feb. 15 meeting to review the application of a standalone battery system designed to store energy and electricity produced by renewable sources.
This public hearing was opened on Jan. 18 and the board decided to continue the hearing because they were seeking a legal opinion from KP Law on whether a zoning bylaw adopted a decade ago could prevent this project. In the time between the meetings, the board learned through legal opinion that this project was not in compliance with the zoning bylaw for solar arrays in town.
The applicant, Zero-Point Battery Development of Worcester, now has requested an extension to review the news with their attorney. Zero-Point is looking to develop a 5-megawatt battery storage facility off Breckenridge Road, also know as the “gravel pit”.
Planning Board Chair Jim Maksimoski said at this point the next step in this process was to decide if the board wants to propose something at the Annual Town Meeting to amend the zoning bylaw on solar to allow batteries as it currently does not. The bylaw is also conflicting with the project as the current proposal from Zero-Point does not show any conversion of light to electricity as required by the law.
“I don’t have any opinion one way or the other to permit or not permit batteries separate from a solar battery site. What I would like to do is have each of us do some serious research to find out the pros and cons on plain battery storage sites for electricity because I just don’t know if it’s a good idea or a bad idea,” said Maksimoski.
Planning Board member Joe Zgrodnik agreed with Maksimoski’s point and added that the board needed to do their due diligence and become better informed as members of the board before they bring this to the town meeting.
“We need to look at this and do some research and find out some more information because the five of us are shooting from the hip,” Maksimoski added. “We need to know what we are talking about is what it comes down to.”
Tom Corbett, project manager from Zero-Point Battery, joined the meeting to talk more about the project. Corbett added that he has worked with other towns around the state on the permitting process of these projects. Corbett said that batteries like these are being installed throughout the state to support the gird and efficiencies of solar. Corbett added that these lithium iron phosphate batteries typically last close to 20 years and do not typically have any leaking issues.
Other than the concern for what the bylaw allows and does not allow, there was still not much of a concern for the project as it would not be located near any homes in town. It also uses a technique to protect groundwater contamination using propylene glycol to cool the batteries.
Corbett also added that solar development does not have any incentives from the state anymore and that people have been switching to battery storage.
“You’re going to see all of those coal plants being decommissioned and they’ll be putting in the battery beaker plants,” Corbett said. “The whole Northeast is going to be the poster child for battery storage and green efficiency.”
After their conversation the board ultimately decided on continuing this hearing in their March 15 meeting and they can return with more information on the proposal to decide if it is worth bringing a bylaw change to the Annual Town Meeting.