We, the residents of Loyalist Township request that Council vote against the requests from Northland Power, Renewable Energy Systems Canada Inc. and Capstone Infrastructure Corporation to provide a “blanket municipal support resolution” for their proposed Battery Energy Storage System projects, to be located at Link Road and County Road 4 - 250MW (east side of County Road 4), 372 Jim Snow Drive - 400MW, and Millhaven Road at Caton Road - 200MW, as part of the RFP requirement established by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO). 

A report was already completed by the Development Services Division of Loyalist County where they state their recommendation is to move ahead to the next step of this process.  In two days, Monday November 27, the council will decide if they want to take the recommendations of the Development Services Division.  Part of the report states "As part of the IESO engagement requirements, open houses have been held by three of the proposed noted projects above, with the last project (Caton Mill) holding a virtual open house on November 29, 2023. Staff have attended the open houses held to date. Attendance from the public was limited and those in attendance held discussions with 
representatives from the proposed projects. To date, staff have not received any correspondence or questions from the public in regard to any of the proposed facilities."

Only homes within a very short distance (approximately 100m) are required to receive a registered letter stating the companies proposal.  Nothing was brought to the attention of any other Loyalist residents via mail, radio or the Loyalist County Facebook page.

We the undersigned feel that the proposed BESS projects should not be supported for the following reasons:

• Battery Energy Storage Systems are a relatively new technology and numerous facilities across the globe have had catastrophic failures. Currently there are many unknowns with these facilities and there are no established regulatory frameworks that operators are required to follow.  There have been 68 failures in the last 12 years. 
 
• If failure event occurs, toxic fumes would contaminate lakes, streams, wells and farmland. As stated in the report from the Development Services Division of Loyalist County in the event of a fire the batteries would be left to burn and energy would be focused on preventing nearby batteries from catching fire. 

FROM REPORT 
"Fire hazards has been a widespread topic in regard to these facilities due to concerns 
with the potential of lithium-iron batteries overheating. If a fire occurs, it would likely 
result in letting it burn due the amount of water needed to suppress the fire. Negative 
environmental impacts as a result of the continued burning have also been raised as a 
concern. Responses to the fire concerns have primarily been that a battery 
management system can detect issues early on and allow the operators of the facility to 
address the issue. In addition, containers are purposely distanced from each other to 
prevent the spreading of fire. An Emergency Response Plan would also be required to 
be prepared prior to operation." 

Please note that the response to fire concerns from the companies building the BES Stations is not a plan on what to do to help locals, it's not an answer to the level of contamination that could be expected but it is only an attempt at an assurance that they can stop a fire before it starts. 

There has been 11 BESS station that have caught fire this year alone. The companies building the BESS stations have little to no experience building or managing them. 
 
• Based on the size of the facilities proposed, the Township would not have the resources to be able to handle a catastrophic event, such as a fire.
 
• The proposed sites are large and would disrupt numerous species of plants and animals.
 
• Noise pollution and light pollution would affect wildlife and the reasonable enjoyment of their property by nearby homeowners.
 
• Neighbouring properties will be devalued.

• Sites are primarily chosen due to their 
proximity to existing transmission line infrastructure not due to safety or comfort of nearby homeowners. 

 • Overall risk to the municipality will increase Insurance cost, for the municipality and for the tax payer.
 
 • This is only the second BESS station Northland Power has built. Their primary focus has always been that of solar and wind energy. Renewable Energy Systems Canada Inc says on their website that "Everyone involved in a development project is treated with care and respect." and says about their relationship with landowners that "We'll handle everything throughout the development process while respecting your wishes and minimizing disturbance." Capstone Infrastructure lists no past builds of battery energy storage systems in their portfolio at all. They will be trying out their first one on Caton Road. 

 

Napannee residents fighting the same battle. Pictures from Napannee Beaver Newspaper