Once again the Marshall County Plan Commission looked at a revision for the current county ordinance regarding utility battery storage units and once again it was tabled.
Marshall County Plan Director Ty Adley presented the board with an exhaustive report on the subject including current law, ordinances, and codes, federal and state, and their application as far as it applied to battery energy storage systems. Included was an overview of the various types of systems and how they operate, along with safety guidelines and emergency response outlines. Adley also compared several other communities around the country and how they have structured their ordinances.
At the end of the report, he gave the Commission a draft of the amended ordinance for Marshall County including previous revisions that were requested by the board.
Some of the items included the various zoning requirements which would make the units a “special use” in agricultural zones and a “permitted” use in industrial zones. It would exclude them from all other zones.
It would include responsibility for plans and training for emergency personnel for hazard mitigation and emergency response, assurance of no water and soil contamination, traffic levels, a decommissioning and restoration plan to return the property to its original state, and bonds to cover that decommissioning and restoration that would be reviewed every three years and would have to meet the approval of the Marshall County Commissioners.
During the public hearing, several had concerns for safety in the area of the units, noise, and felt that the units should be removed from all agricultural areas. A concern for the safety of the units was a major point with lithium-ion batteries being a particular concern. Steve Barry representing the Marshall County Farm Bureau said that the organization was not in favor of the units.
James Hingston, representing the energy company Tenaska, felt that several of the items included would be restrictive, including setbacks for each site. He stated that currently, the company’s other sites already conformed to the National Fire Protection Association code, the standard used in the state of Indiana, and said the setbacks suggested would make buildable land 100 times smaller. He also suggested that the three-year review of bonds for restoration should have a third-party review rather than just the Marshall County Commissioners.
John Grolich of the Marshall County Fire Association told the board that his group had met with Tenaska about their safety concerns and stated that after that meeting the association members were satisfied with the company’s plans for safety and the education of first responders.
Greg Hildebrand, President and CEO of the Marshall County Economic Development Corporation, highlighted the large capital investment would bring an increase in the county’s net assessed value, and attract more interest from corporations who all have a mandate to lower their carbon energy use.
At the end of the meeting, the commission felt that there was more time needed to assess the information Adley provided and to allow time for any further research or suggestions from the board and the public and tabled the issue.
There is a current moratorium on utility battery storage units until October of this year.
The board also tabled approval of the minutes from their executive session as one of the members wanted to amend them to include they had discussed battery storage units but since the discussion involved job performance and the rights of that person in such cases, it was decided the Commission’s legal counsel should first be consulted.
