The installation of a lithium battery energy storage system (BESS) in Armour is still many months away and the initiative still has several stages to go through before it’s finally constructed and becomes operational.
But when that day arrives, the Burk’s Falls and District Fire Department will know how to tackle a lithium battery fire if one were to occur.
Fire Chief Joe Readman says that prior to the arrival of any BESS equipment, all his volunteer firefighters will undergo online training and study fire tactics.
Once in place but before becoming operational, the firefighters would get an extensive tour of the site, examine the different components, and learn who to contact in an emergency, and that’s followed by annual training once the BESS is live.
The renewable energy company SolarBank Corporation of Toronto wants to install nine lithium storage units at 219 Peggs Mountain Rd. on 0.2 acres.
The units would store power from the grid and release it when there is demand for more energy.
See: Concern as Armour may become home to a lithium battery storage system
Ina Lila is the director of business development at SolarBank, and says “Safety is our top priority.”
She says safety standards for BESS units have improved significantly over the years and the number of incidents has drastically decreased.
Lila says the BESS proposed for Armour “is designed with a number of critical safety features to minimize fire risks” and also exceeds current safety requirements.
The manufacturer of the batteries is EVLO, which is a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec, and Lila says the company’s batteries have passed rigorous safety tests, adding “There have been no reported incidents of thermal runaways with their systems.”
A thermal runaway is an instance where a battery may heat up rapidly due to several reasons, and the significant temperature rise could cause an explosion or fire.
Lila says BESS fires are extremely rare, especially with the latest technologies, and SolarBank is planning to outfit its Armour proposal with the latest technologies that significantly reduce the risk of fire.
She adds the system has numerous safety features, including 24-7 monitoring and an advanced system that continuously tracks temperatures, hydrogen levels, and smoke “ensuring that unusual conditions are detected and addressed immediately.”
There is also a large buffer zone between where the units will be installed and where homes and buildings are located “to further reduce the risk of fire spreading outside the facility.”
Lila says the training the local firefighters receive before and after the system becomes operational makes them fully prepared in case of an incident.
She says the safety and well-being of the community is SolarBank’s highest priority, adding “Should a rare fire occur we are prepared and residents will always remain safe.”
Fire Chief Readman says there are a couple of factors about the proposal that “catch his attention.”
One is the proximity of the units to the forested land where it will be located and the other is that if a BESS unit catches fire during windy conditions, some Burk’s Falls residents may have to evacuate despite being about a kilometre from the site, because of what the smoke may carry.
Lithium battery fires can’t be put out says the chief.
Readman says one has to wait until it burns everything it can when self-contained, and then it goes out.
What he and his firefighters can do is lob water at the surrounding units and land mass to keep the fire from spreading. They can also activate the large fans on their trucks to keep the smoke going in a direction opposite from populated areas.
He says another consideration is that the BESS units are close to the Highway 11 north and south ramps and in the event of a fire, highway traffic may have to be redirected to keep the vehicle occupants away from the smoke.
Readman says since a lithium battery fire can last days, the local fire department would be at the site for that length of time.
Normally this means the Village of Burk’s Falls would be unprotected; however, Readman says, that’s where the mutual aid agreements the department has with neighbouring fire halls would be activated, and firefighters from those departments would ensure they would be available to address any fires in the Village.
Sometime later this year, SolarBank will host a public meeting about the BESS. Readman plans to be there to answer questions from the public if he’s asked.
In the meantime, Readman encourages members of the public to call the municipality or him with their questions or concerns.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter with Almaguin News. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.