It was extremely disappointing that Town Council passed resolutions at its Nov. 28 meeting to support three battery energy storage systems (BESS) proposals. Council made these decisions in absence of a clearly defined mandate, without providing any detailed reasoning to support their position and in face of very strong public opposition; in particular to the Bethany (County Road 9) proposal. It should also be noted that the process followed was rushed, adopted a minimalist approach to transparency (Town and proponents) and provided no meaningful opportunity for concerned residents to express their concerns or to directly question Council.
Through their action, Council has provided the IESO full authority to approve all three facilities totalling up to 900 KH in energy battery storage capacity accounting for 56% of the province’s objective for new capacity in this phase of procurement. In stark contrast, Napanee accounts for 0.1% of the province’s population. To date, Council has made a disproportionate commitment (250 MW approved in Phase 1) to hosting BESS facilities in our community, while most other adjoining municipalities have emphatically said NO. These are the same communities that will directly benefit from BESS facilities located in Napanee.
It is critical for residents to understand that IESO has commenced a third round of BESS procurement. It is only reasonable for the Town of Greater Napanee to publicly announce that it will not entertain any additional BESS proposals for the next phase(s) of BESS procurement. Further supporting this position is that the current battery technology is new, with clearly documented risks. Adopting a temporary moratorium would provide time to assess the next generation of energy storage technology in the future if required. Finally, Council should take action to improve the level of transparency by hosting a public session to explain their longer-term strategic objectives specific to BESS and to allow concerned residents an opportunity to engage with Council and staff on this critical issue.
https://www.stopbessgrowthnapanee.ca/
Mike Stockfish
Napanee