Protect New Market Township from the Barr Battery Storage project
The Issue
A 200-megawatt battery energy storage facility is being proposed on approximately 35 acres of rural Highland County near Mad River Road and State Route 138. We believe this is the wrong location for a project of this size.
This isn’t about being against renewable energy or new technology. It’s about whether a large industrial battery facility belongs this close to our homes, farms, roads and community.
Large battery storage facilities come with risks that deserve serious consideration. The U.S. EPA recognizes that lithium-ion battery fires can be difficult to extinguish, can reignite hours or days later, and can release hazardous gases. Emergency planning may need to address air monitoring, evacuation or shelter-in-place procedures, firefighter safety and contaminated firefighting runoff.
These events may be uncommon, but uncommon is not the same as impossible. The people who would live beside this facility deserve to know what happens if something goes wrong before it is built, not afterward.
The proposed Barr Energy Storage project, being developed by NextEra Energy Resources, could store up to 200 MW of power. Construction could begin around 2028, with operation potentially beginning in 2030. These batteries will potentially be part of the Liberty township solar project.
Before this project is approved, our community deserves clear, independently verifiable answers:
How close will the batteries be to the nearest homes?
What happens during a worst-case battery fire or thermal runaway?
What gases could reach neighboring properties?
Is there a clear evacuation or shelter-in-place plan for nearby families?
Are our local fire departments equipped and trained for a large-scale battery emergency, and who pays for that training and equipment?
How will contaminated firefighting water be kept out of wells, streams and neighboring properties?
What will residents hear from the facility during normal operation and emergencies?
Could nearby property values be affected?
Who pays for cleanup if a serious incident occurs?
Who is financially responsible for removing the batteries and restoring the land when the facility eventually closes?
We should not have to prove that this facility will cause harm. The company proposing it should demonstrate, with site-specific evidence, that the location adequately protects the people already living here.
We are asking the Ohio Power Siting Board, Highland County Commissioners and other local officials to oppose the Barr Energy Storage facility at the proposed Mad River Road location and require consideration of alternatives that provide greater separation from homes and reduce risks to the surrounding community.
Once this facility is built, we cannot simply change our minds. Now is the time to speak up.
If you believe Highland County families deserve a meaningful say in what is built beside their homes, please sign, call the decision makers and share this petition.
DECISION MAKERS:
Highland Co. Commissioners: 937-393-1911
Ohio Power Sitting Board: 866-270-6772
Community Liaison For the Ohio Power Sitting Board - Julia Graham-Price: 614-971-2380
Proposed Solar Battery Storage Facility
MEETING DATE: THURSDAY, AUGUST 20
TIME: 5-7 PM
LOCATION: SOUTHERN STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
100 Hobart Drive, Hillsboro, OH 45133
269
The Issue
A 200-megawatt battery energy storage facility is being proposed on approximately 35 acres of rural Highland County near Mad River Road and State Route 138. We believe this is the wrong location for a project of this size.
This isn’t about being against renewable energy or new technology. It’s about whether a large industrial battery facility belongs this close to our homes, farms, roads and community.
Large battery storage facilities come with risks that deserve serious consideration. The U.S. EPA recognizes that lithium-ion battery fires can be difficult to extinguish, can reignite hours or days later, and can release hazardous gases. Emergency planning may need to address air monitoring, evacuation or shelter-in-place procedures, firefighter safety and contaminated firefighting runoff.
These events may be uncommon, but uncommon is not the same as impossible. The people who would live beside this facility deserve to know what happens if something goes wrong before it is built, not afterward.
The proposed Barr Energy Storage project, being developed by NextEra Energy Resources, could store up to 200 MW of power. Construction could begin around 2028, with operation potentially beginning in 2030. These batteries will potentially be part of the Liberty township solar project.
Before this project is approved, our community deserves clear, independently verifiable answers:
How close will the batteries be to the nearest homes?
What happens during a worst-case battery fire or thermal runaway?
What gases could reach neighboring properties?
Is there a clear evacuation or shelter-in-place plan for nearby families?
Are our local fire departments equipped and trained for a large-scale battery emergency, and who pays for that training and equipment?
How will contaminated firefighting water be kept out of wells, streams and neighboring properties?
What will residents hear from the facility during normal operation and emergencies?
Could nearby property values be affected?
Who pays for cleanup if a serious incident occurs?
Who is financially responsible for removing the batteries and restoring the land when the facility eventually closes?
We should not have to prove that this facility will cause harm. The company proposing it should demonstrate, with site-specific evidence, that the location adequately protects the people already living here.
We are asking the Ohio Power Siting Board, Highland County Commissioners and other local officials to oppose the Barr Energy Storage facility at the proposed Mad River Road location and require consideration of alternatives that provide greater separation from homes and reduce risks to the surrounding community.
Once this facility is built, we cannot simply change our minds. Now is the time to speak up.
If you believe Highland County families deserve a meaningful say in what is built beside their homes, please sign, call the decision makers and share this petition.
DECISION MAKERS:
Highland Co. Commissioners: 937-393-1911
Ohio Power Sitting Board: 866-270-6772
Community Liaison For the Ohio Power Sitting Board - Julia Graham-Price: 614-971-2380
Proposed Solar Battery Storage Facility
MEETING DATE: THURSDAY, AUGUST 20
TIME: 5-7 PM
LOCATION: SOUTHERN STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
100 Hobart Drive, Hillsboro, OH 45133
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Petition created on August 7, 2026