A new task force will recommend changes to the city’s zoning code to incorporate rules for battery energy storage systems. The 10-member task force will use a draft report prepared by the city’s zoning working group as a starting point for a comprehensive set of regulations to address siting, safety and other issues related to BESS infrastructure.

BESS facilities act as giant batteries, storing energy from the electrical grid and releasing it as needed. The technology is essential to New York’s efforts to move to clean energy since it can store renewable energy like wind and solar power that do not generate around the clock. Systems range from household units that store less than 80 kWh of electricity to large systems used by utilities that can store 600 kWh or more.

The issue of BESS infrastructure arose locally this year when the company Terra-Gen submitted a proposal for a 250 MW BESS at the site of the former John A, Coleman Catholic School in the Town of Ulster just over the Kingston city line on Hurley Avenue. Area residents have expressed concerns over safety based on incidents when runaway thermal reactions have caused intense, hard-to-control fires that emit toxic gas at BESS sites. The project is currently under review by the Ulster Town Board.

The Hurley Avenue proposal spurred the city to begin working towards proactively amending the city’s recently adopted form-based zoning code to incorporate rules for BESS sites within city limits. The work began at the zoning working group. The six-member body, which includes City Planner Suzanne Cahill and Director of Housing Initiatives Bartek Starodaj, was formed to evaluate the implementation of the new zoning code and recommend changes based on their observations. The team, in consultation with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), developed a draft set of recommendations to incorporate BESS infrastructure into the code that will serve as the basis for the task force’s work.

The draft regulations break down BESS systems into three tiers: residential units, commercial-grade systems used by larger businesses like supermarkets or shopping plazas and larger systems like the one proposed on Hurley Avenue that store energy for the electrical grid. The tier-three systems would be restricted to non-residential areas of the city. The larger BESS site would also have to file detailed plans covering issues like emergency response plans and decommissioning protocols. The tier-three systems would also require their owners to post a bond equal to 125 percent of the cost of dismantling the system and restoring the land it occupied.

“We believe this is the appropriate time for the Common Council to begin this work,” the working group wrote in a memo to Common Council President Andrea Shaut. “Establishing a regulatory framework before a project is proposed will provide clarity, predictability and an opportunity for thoughtful public engagement.”

In response, the council passed a resolution standing up the task force to shape the working group’s recommendations into a finished product for consideration by the council. The task force will consist of two members of the Common Council, city staff, representatives from the Conservation Advisory Committee and Climate Smart Action Committee and two city residents appointed by council President Andrea Shaut. Residents interested in joining the task force can apply at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CWZCNB9.