SENIOR firefighters in Staffordshire are being trained on how to manage incidents involving battery energy storage systems as more planning applications for the developments come forward across the county.
Risks associated with the developments have sparked concerns for residents and councillors alike.
Chief Fire Officer Rob Barber gave details of Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s response to the surge in battery energy storage system (BESS) proposals at this month’s fire performance meeting.
As well as advising developers on fire safety aspects of their proposals, the service is working to ensure its staff are able to respond to any future incidents involving the technology.
Deputy Staffordshire Commissioner Dave Evans said:
“As we push to deal with some of our environmental impacts they are increasingly going to come through the planning system, so there is a question around the role of the fire service when it comes to being a consultee at planning.”
Chief Fire Officer Rob Barber said:
“With battery energy storage systems we’re not a statutory consultee. Nor do we want to be a statutory consultee, because with the amount of planning applications that are coming through across the country we would be absolutely swamped and our fire safety teams would not be able to cope with the amount of demand that would come in.
“If we got increased funding and we could increase the size of our teams it might be a different position. But given the current resource allocation throughout the county, we wouldn’t be able to cope with that.
“What we do do is work with the planning authorities. We recommend how those facilities should be designed, what the access and water supplies should look like and where they should be in terms of location to neighbouring properties or residential areas.”
The Chief Fire Officer said there were set requirements laid out for developers thinking of bringing forward BESS proposals.
“There are a lot of myths around battery energy storage systems and a lot of concern from residents because they see things on the internet and fires in America. But they are designed completely different.
“The one that’s referenced a lot in planning applications is a fire in California and that was a facility that wasn’t purpose-built, it was an existing building that had been converted into a battery energy storage system with very different technology to that in the UK.
“I wouldn’t want people to think we’re not alive to all the risks of battery energy storage systems – we are and we do provide information. It’s a planning authority’s responsibility to go through that with the developers.
“We have a standard letter we send out to planning authorities to make sure all of our conditions are met, and there are about 12 conditions. The planning authority have got the information to then go back to the developer with and tick off all the points – if there’s any concern about that we’re always happy to send our fire safety officers out to liaise with the developer and planning committee.
“What I can’t say is the risk is mitigated to zero. You will never get to that position with any infrastructure project.
“But on the other side of the coin we are training all our officers to keep up with the latest technology – all our tactical commanders are getting trained up to understand what the cabinets look like, where the safety systems are in those cabinets and how to mitigate any risk of fire spread should an incident occur.”
