中國儲能網(wǎng)訊：Kelly Sarber是Strategic Management的首席執(zhí)行官兼NY-BEST(紐約電池產(chǎn)業(yè)貿(mào)易組織)的副主席。Scott M. Bryant是Fire & Alliance的總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官。
Kelly Sarber is CEO of Strategic Management and vice chair of NY-BEST, a battery industry trade group in New York. Scott M. Bryant is president and CEO of Fire & Alliance.
隨著儲能開發(fā)商繼續(xù)加大實施公用事業(yè)規(guī)模電池項目的力度,采取強有力和積極的宣傳和教育變得越來越重要,因為社區(qū)支持已成為獲得其他批準(zhǔn)的先決條件。隨著政策與政治的碰撞,像紐約州這樣的州正在考慮將加強圍繞安全的宣傳作為獲得其他必要條件(包括電力購買協(xié)議和地方許可,如區(qū)劃和消防法規(guī)執(zhí)行)的先決條件。
As energy storage developers continue to ramp up efforts to implement utility-scale battery projects, adopting strong and proactive outreach and education is becoming more important since community support has become a precursor to securing other approvals. As policies collide with politics, states like New York are considering requiring stronger outreach around safety as necessary to set the stage to gain other entitlements including power purchase agreements and local permissions like zoning and fire code enforcement.
在最近幾個地點發(fā)生火災(zāi)之前,包括紐約和加利福尼亞在內(nèi),儲能項目被視為有些“良性”的,其對氣候友好的益處超過任何感知的負面影響。不幸的是,隨著最近一系列火災(zāi)的發(fā)生,公眾開始質(zhì)疑由于事件廣為報道導(dǎo)致的對安全要求的感知缺失,這些項目不會產(chǎn)生影響的看法不再成立。在每種情況下,沒有人受傷,持續(xù)時間很短,一旦出現(xiàn)熱異常,設(shè)備的行為都如預(yù)期。但由此產(chǎn)生的新聞報道和相關(guān)的社區(qū)關(guān)切引發(fā)了對信息差和事故發(fā)生前沒有響應(yīng)者宣傳的質(zhì)疑。這種對媒體實時反應(yīng)不足的專家反應(yīng)增加了社區(qū)的關(guān)切,突顯了該行業(yè)有必要做好準(zhǔn)備,為新聞周期提供背景和事實信息。
Prior to recent fires at a number of sites, including in New York and California, energy storage projects were treated as somewhat “benign” with their climate-friendly benefits outweighing any perceived negative impacts. Unfortunately, with the recent spate of fires, the perception of these projects as having no impact no longer rings true, as the public begins to question the perceived lack of safety requirements due to incidents being widely covered in the news. In each case no one was hurt, the duration was small and the equipment acted as planned once there were thermal abnormalities. But the resulting news coverage and corresponding community concerns raised questions around information gaps and lack of first responder outreach prior to the incidents. This lack of expert responses to the media in real time served to increase community concerns, highlighting the need for the industry to be better prepared to provide context and factual information for inclusion in the press cycle.
由于這些進展,我們的儲能行業(yè)組織NY-BEST正在與紐約州最近召集的一個特別工作組合作,就消防安全和社區(qū)宣傳提供行業(yè)最佳實踐。我們早期的一些討論強調(diào)了與系統(tǒng)設(shè)計、運行特性相關(guān)的透明度,以及加強第一響應(yīng)者規(guī)劃的要求,以在項目剛宣布時幫助獲得社區(qū)支持。NY-BEST關(guān)于消防安全提出的新政策包括標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化的應(yīng)急預(yù)案,旨在規(guī)定這些設(shè)施可能發(fā)生的每種合理情景以及解決這些情景的危險和適當(dāng)?shù)膽?yīng)對策略。全國范疇內(nèi)的第一響應(yīng)者社區(qū)需要接受同等水平的培訓(xùn)標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化,而不僅僅是在城市地區(qū)。
Due to these developments, our energy storage trade group, NY-BEST, is working collaboratively with a recently convened New York State task force to provide industry best practices for fire safety and community outreach. Some of our early discussions highlight increased transparency related to system design, operating characteristics, and strengthening requirements for first responder planning to assist with community support when projects are first announced. New policies offered by NY-BEST around fire safety include standardization of emergency response plans meant to capture every reasonable scenario that occurs at these facilities along with the hazards and appropriate response tactics for solving them. Training for the first responder community needs to undergo the same level of standardization around the nation and not just in urban locations.
儲能行業(yè)的開發(fā)商應(yīng)統(tǒng)一準(zhǔn)備消防部門的成員,使用這些培訓(xùn)平臺中概述的新的穩(wěn)健應(yīng)急預(yù)案來管理這些低頻高危事件。此外,一旦這些設(shè)施發(fā)生事故,運營商必須有義務(wù)在合理的時間框架內(nèi)分享根本原因分析,以使行業(yè)能夠解決出現(xiàn)的任何可能改進安全性的缺陷。這將使應(yīng)急管理官員及其所在的選舉領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層能夠快速響應(yīng)、學(xué)習(xí)和實施應(yīng)急策略,以防止類似事件的發(fā)生。披露不能由律師驅(qū)動,而必須由安全和對這些設(shè)施所在社區(qū)的尊重來驅(qū)動。
Developers in the storage industry should uniformly prepare members of the fire services to manage these low frequency, high hazard events using the new and robust emergency response plans outlined in these training platforms. In addition, once an incident occurs at these facilities, the operator must be obligated to share a root cause analysis within a reasonable time frame to allow the industry to address any shortcomings that emerge that can improve safety for future installations. This will enable the emergency response officials and the elected leadership they work for to quickly respond, learn and implement mitigation tactics to prevent similar events. Disclosure cannot be driven by lawyers but must be driven by safety and respect for the communities in which these facilities reside.
2019年,美國發(fā)生的首起重大儲能火災(zāi)事故發(fā)生在亞利桑那州的麥基肯電池儲能系統(tǒng)中,當(dāng)時剛頒布了規(guī)管固定能源儲存的全國消防保護協(xié)會(NFPA)855號法規(guī)。NFPA用不到兩年的時間對這些設(shè)備施加了重大安全控制。
One of the first significant energy storage fire incidents in the U.S. occurred in 2019 at the McMicken Battery Energy Storage System in Arizona shortly after the inception of National Fire Protection Agency, or NFPA, 855 which regulates stationary energy storage. It took the NFPA less than two years to place significant safety controls on these installations.
幾個月前NFPA 855技術(shù)委員會的會議具體關(guān)注監(jiān)管機構(gòu)和社區(qū)成員的擔(dān)憂。公眾需要理解,這些專家有持續(xù)、強有力的安全承諾,旨在了解為什么以及如何發(fā)生事故,并有靈活性實施可能導(dǎo)致更安全操作的法規(guī)改進。
The meeting of the NFPA 855 technical committee a few months ago focused specifically on the concerns of regulators and community members. The public needs to appreciate there is a continuing, strong commitment to safety from these experts with the intent to understand why and how incidents occur and to have flexibility to implement code improvements that may lead to safer operations.
NFPA 855全國技術(shù)委員會一直在努力要求對儲能系統(tǒng)進行大規(guī)模消防測試、爆炸控制和安全功能,以自主方式運行,每個組件都同等重要。在2026年發(fā)布的修訂周期中,有望看到更好識別和表征電池儲存失效引起的火災(zāi)或煙霧所產(chǎn)生排放類型的要求,這將推動相關(guān)官員根據(jù)當(dāng)?shù)叵婪ㄒ?guī)批準(zhǔn)系統(tǒng)。將儲能系統(tǒng)的冗余性從2小時增加到24小時的需求也已提議提交NFPA委員會以納入標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。預(yù)計此更改將通過并作為NFPA 855下一次更新的一部分發(fā)布。
NFPA 855’s national technical committee has worked diligently to require large-scale fire testing, explosions controls and safety features for energy storage systems to operate in an autonomous fashion, with each component equally important. In the revision cycle to be published in 2026, expect to see requirements to better identify and characterize the types of emissions created by fires or fumes from battery storage failures, which will drive system approvals by relevant officials under the local fire code. The need to increase redundancy in energy storage systems from two hours to 24 hours has also been proposed to the NFPA committee for adoption into the standard. It is anticipated this change will pass and be published as part of the next update to NFPA 855.
從實際角度來看,對負責(zé)在電池安裝現(xiàn)場應(yīng)對緊急情況的第一響應(yīng)者和當(dāng)?shù)叵啦块T來說,擁有最高水平、配備最新控制措施的特定培訓(xùn)和事故響應(yīng)計劃至關(guān)重要。這種承諾需要由開發(fā)商及其關(guān)鍵消防安全顧問承擔(dān),以與當(dāng)?shù)叵啦块T合作并培訓(xùn)他們使用這些最佳實踐。作為開發(fā)商,這是獲得這些項目公眾支持的第一步。同樣重要的是,向更廣泛的社區(qū)傳達這些技術(shù)規(guī)定的法規(guī)和標(biāo)準(zhǔn)如何降低任何風(fēng)險和危害,同時展示如果確定或發(fā)現(xiàn)需要新的控制或要求,我們承諾改進監(jiān)管環(huán)境。
From a practical standpoint, it is paramount that first responders and local fire departments tasked with responding to emergencies at battery installations have specific training and incident response plans that are of the highest caliber with the latest controls. This commitment needs to fall on the developer and their key fire safety consultant to use these best practices in working with and training local fire departments. As a developer, it is the first, crucial step in securing public support for these projects. Equally important, is the communication to the broader community of how these technically prescribed codes and standards will alleviate any risks and hazards while also demonstrating commitments to make improvements to the regulatory environment if new controls or requirements are deemed or discovered to be necessary.
開發(fā)商外聯(lián)的關(guān)鍵意圖是確保社區(qū)成員意識到、參與并支持電池項目。對于典型的大型獨立電池安裝來說,成本達幾億美元,宣傳是一項非常值得進行的投資,因為它將為項目的發(fā)展軌跡奠定基礎(chǔ)。人們很快就會理解電池的需求及其發(fā)揮的作用。如果從使用和安全的角度考慮該地點是可接受的,社區(qū)通常會轉(zhuǎn)向探索包括就業(yè)、稅收、能源彈性和支持綠色能源轉(zhuǎn)型的好處。
The key intention of developer outreach is to make sure that community members are aware of, involved in, and supportive of the battery project. With capital costs for a typical large, stand-alone battery installation in the several hundred-million-dollar range, outreach is an investment that is well worth making as it will set the stage for a project’s development trajectory. People quickly understand the need for batteries and the role that they play. If the location is considered acceptable from a use and safety standpoint, communities typically will pivot to explore benefits including jobs, taxes, energy resiliency and support for the green energy transition.
經(jīng)驗表明,如果社區(qū)和開發(fā)商之間保持開放的溝通,與消防部門保持持續(xù)的信息流動,并坦率地討論儲能事故的風(fēng)險與人們每天面臨的相關(guān)風(fēng)險相比,大多數(shù)人會得出儲能項目可以安全運行的結(jié)論。更好的是,如果發(fā)生事故,他們會安心地知道有適當(dāng)?shù)念A(yù)案到位,并且當(dāng)?shù)氐捻憫?yīng)人員得到了保護和培訓(xùn)。
Experience shows that most people will conclude that energy storage projects can be operated safely if there has been a process of open communication between the community and developer, ongoing information flow with the fire department, and frank discussions of the risks of an energy storage incident as compared to relatable risks that people face every day. Better still, they will feel comfortable in the knowledge that appropriate plans are in place, and local responders are protected and trained, if an incident were to occur.
一旦社區(qū)感覺到安全性和任何其他影響(如區(qū)劃使用、外觀、噪音等)得到解決,并且他們對這些風(fēng)險感到舒適并選擇接受輕微的影響,儲能的好處就會更容易看到。盡管每個社區(qū)都有其獨特的特征,但通常時間和關(guān)系的建立會就實質(zhì)問題取得公平的辯論。盡管我們面臨其他不利因素,但我們的行業(yè)通過強調(diào)安全以獲得社區(qū)支持的投資,應(yīng)該能夠克服一些這些發(fā)展挑戰(zhàn),實現(xiàn)項目的成功開發(fā)、建設(shè)和運營。
Once communities feel that safety and any other impacts — zoning use, aesthetics, noise, etc. — are addressed, and they become comfortable with these risks and choose to accept slight impacts, the benefits of energy storage can be better appreciated. While each community has their own unique characteristics, generally time and relationship building will earn a fair debate on merits. While we face other headwinds, our industry should be able to navigate some of these development challenges by investing in community support through an emphasis on safety, leading to successful project development, construction and operations.
