North Hempstead mulls moratorium on large battery-storage systems

North Hempstead is mulling a one-year moratorium on allowing large battery storage systems, joining a growing number of municipalities to regulate the technology. 

The facilities store energy from renewable sources, like solar and wind, that can be used to meet elevated energy demands. They reduce dependence on gas plants, and are hailed by environmentalists for their clean air benefits.

But critics insist the facilities, which contain lithium-ion batteries, pose safety risks. Lithium-ion batteries can combust and produce fires that are difficult to contain. In 2023, the FDNY reported 268 such fires in New York City, many of them from e-bikes, which are powered by lithium-ion batteries.

The town board will hold a public hearing on the issue at its next meeting Tuesday. There are currently no pending projects to build battery energy storage facilities in North Hempstead, town officials said.

"We have to consider the safety of our volunteer firefighters," Supervisor Jennifer DeSena said in a statement. "Our volunteers are second to none, but this is heated hydrogen with toxic fumes, so we need to know how to train for the kind of threats they’d be facing."

Municipalities on Long Island have been considering moratoriums over the past year as fire officials raise concern about the technology's safety.

In May 2023, a fire broke out at a battery plant in East Hampton. The fire took 30 hours to put out, stoking fears about the facilities. Last month, Southampton Town extended its moratorium on battery energy storage systems through February. Also last month, Smithtown officials introduced a proposal for a six-month ban.

In April, the Town of Oyster Bay approved a six-month moratorium. But in Brookhaven, Supervisor Dan Panico said he is welcoming the facilities.

Margaret Galbraith, president of the environmental nonprofit Transition Town Port Washington, expressed concern about the North Hempstead proposal. She accused town officials of being reluctant to promote renewable energy initiatives.

"It’s also weird to have a moratorium when there’s nothing proposed. There’s no companies coming in trying to do battery storage," Galbraith said. "I wish our town was a little more forward-thinking, and planning, and not reactionary."

Last month, Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed updates to the New York Fire Code which would enable emergency crews to be better able to respond to fires caused by lithium-ion batteries.

Nassau County Chief Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro said it could take at least a year before Hochul’s recommendations are implemented. A moratorium would allow municipalities to rewrite "codes to catch up with the technology," he said.

"It’s not restricting commerce, it’s not restricting trade, it’s not restricting green energy ideas," said Uttaro, a 36-year volunteer firefighter in the Manhasset-Lakeville Fire Department. "It’s more or less letting us, in the code world, work with the manufacturers and the proponents of these devices to help make sure that there’s a safe way of protecting the structures they’re housed in, which also protects the neighborhoods where they’re placed."

By Joshua Needelman

joshua.needelman@newsday.com

Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.