The residents of Mount Sinai do not want a lithium ion battery storage facility in our neighborhood, across from our park and close to our school.
The residents of Holtsville put a petition together to stop the battery facility in their neighborhood and now it is being proposed to bring it to Mount Sinai. Below is an outline of the concerns from the residents of the Holtsville petition and we echo their concerns for Mount Sinai.

*revised MW 5/2* This project is for 4 separate battery installations on one site. Each installation has 5MW for a combined total of 20 MW. It would deliver 80 MWH for the grid.

**On 5/6 the Mount Sinai Civic Association addressed the concerns outlined in the petition taken from the Holtsville project. Please see the updated info below. If you feel the info provided changes your decision then please remove yourself from the petition. If the information does not impact your voice then no further action is necessary.**

This does not belong in our neighborhood, by our schools and near our park.

*taken from the previous petition*

Consider the following:

This does not belong in any residential area or near schools.

BESS lithium battery facilities are known to have fire, explosion, and toxicity risks (according to NYSERDA).

There is an increase in incidents with Li-ion Battery energy storage facilities. 7 Fires in since May 31, 2023 (4 Fires in NY alone).

Increased danger to our volunteer fire departments.

In the event of shelter in place, students would be displaced, which has proven to have many adverse effects. How does this affect the residents quality of life?

In the event of fire, evacuation would be impossible. In the event of fire, will runoff leach into our water supply?

What effect will toxins have on residents in the event of fire? No long term impacts haven’t been studied because this is new technology!

There is no way to put out the fire, it must burn!! What if it spreads?

Once a BESS is installed in a residential community, the precedent is set; a BESS can be installed in any residential area.

Increased utility costs to residents.

There is a lack of expertise, allowing approvals for installations like this within residential communities, without proper due diligence or community involvement.

Finding better energy solutions is imperative, but not if it compromises or threatens the residents and ecosystem of the towns of Islip and Brookhaven!

Any risk to our safety is an unacceptable risk!

Please join me in signing this petition so we can protect our community’s safety and preserve our precious environment for generations to come.

On 5/6 the Civic addressed these concerns here is their response to the Holtsville petition of outlined concerns

Here is additional information according to what we have gathered, including information from the Mount Sinai Fire Department.

• BESS lithium battery facilities are known to have fire, explosion, and toxicity risks (according to NYSERDA).
  
  • This is a misleading statement. Many things have all those risks, including other facilities that exist in the community. The question is what is the magnitude and likelihood of the risk. The project in question has design and technology built in to significantly minimize each of these risks.
  • Battery chemistry has a significant impact on each of these factors. The proposed facility would use LiFePO (Lithum Iron Phosphate). This chemistry is less energy-dense than Lithium-ion types, but has been demonstrated to be safer, is much less prone to overheating, and does not use toxic heavy metals such as cobalt and nickel.
  • There would be multiple layers of fire prevention design and technology.
  • Lithium battery explosions typically result from a build up of explosive gasses inside an enclosure. The proposed system would have an explosion mitigating design including various ventilations
  • We understand there is no toxicity risk during normal operations for the life of the facility.
• There is an increase in incidents with Li-ion Battery energy storage facilities. 7 Fires in since May 31, 2023 (4 Fires in NY alone).
  
  • This is a valid concern. However, the Tesla Powerwall XL2 that has been proposed for Mount Sinai has not been involved in these incidents (that we are aware of). The incidents have occurred with systems of different designs and chemistries.
• Increased danger to our volunteer fire departments.
  
  • While we cannot speak for the fire department, the Civic has been actively engaged with their leadership. After the fire department had discussions with the developer, the fire department did not express concerns about the facility, their ability to respond to an incident, safety for their members, or availability of equipment.
• In the event of shelter in place, students would be displaced, which has proven to have many adverse effects. How does this affect the residents quality of life?
  
  • This is a conflicting statement/question. Based on the information we have, it is not expected the school would be impacted in the event of an incident. Via independent testing, the exclusion area in the event of a thermal event is 100 feet, with a safe distance between 5-20 feet.
• In the event of fire, evacuation would be impossible. In the event of fire, will runoff leach into our water supply?
  
  • Evacuation is not expected to be necessary, per established safety plans for the Tesla Megapack XL2 proposed.
  • NO water should be used on the proposed system. NONE. This negates the fire fighting runoff question. In the event of a thermal event, the individual compartmentalized batteries are designed to self-extinguish in 4-6 hours. Adding water actually extends this process.
    
• What effect will toxins have on residents in the event of fire? No long term impacts haven’t been studied because this is new technology!
  
  • The battery chemistry in the proposed system does not use heavy metals such as cobalt and nickel found in other types of batteries.
  • The Tesla Megapack XL2 is designed to contain a fire if one occurs.
• There is no way to put out the fire, it must burn!! What if it spreads?
  
  • Spread of fire is highly unlikely based on the design features of the proposed system.
  • It is correct that best practices call to allow a battery to consume itself. Depending on the energy in the battery, that process takes 4-6 hours.
  • The Tesla Megapack XL2 that's proposed is designed with multiple features to separate each individual battery from others. In independent tests, a Tesla Megapack XL2 that was intentionally pushed beyond safety limits, a fire did not spread to other units as close as inches away.
• Once a BESS is installed in a residential community, the precedent is set; a BESS can be installed in any residential area.
  
  • This is not correct. The Town of Brookhaven board must approve the zoning and site plans for this type of project. Each project is approved or rejected based on it's own merits.
  • The Mount Sinai property is not zoned residential. It is zoned J - Transitional Business.
  • BESS must be located next to a electrical substation. Most substations are not located in residential areas.
  • BESS are already installed adjacent to and on the rooftops of residential buildings in New York City. This includes Tesla systems such as those proposed for Mount Sinai.
• Increased utility costs to residents.
  
  • False. Battery systems by themselves do not increase utility costs. The operator will buy and sell energy at the established rates.
  • A tangential link is the NYS Climate Act of 2019, which mandates a state-wide shift to clean energy sources.
• There is a lack of expertise, allowing approvals for installations like this within residential communities, without proper due diligence or community involvement.
  
  • There's no basis to claim a lack of expertise on the state or town level.
  • The Civic is actively engaged with the community, fire department, and school district to perform due diligence and ensure the community is aware and involved. The Civic has been discussing with the Memberships since January.
• Finding better energy solutions is imperative, but not if it compromises or threatens the residents and ecosystem of the towns of Islip and Brookhaven!
  
  • A benefit of BESS is that they serve to replace polluting "peaker" power plants. This helps reduce air pollution and improve air quality for all residents.