North County residents rally ahead of workshop addressing battery storage site

SAN MARCOS, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) -- North County residents are raising concerns over a plan to place a battery storage facility in the area, and while the petition against the project has gained over 2,700 signatures, as of now, it's still moving forward.

Tuesday evening marked the third time residents rallied over the proposed Seguro Battery Energy Storage Site near the Eden Valley neighborhood in Escondido. The site is set to stretch around 22 acres along Country Club Drive and designed to have enough stored energy to power 250,000 homes for four hours.

“It’s not that we’re opposed to renewable energy, we’re opposed to adding hazard in a residential area," explained Ashley Robertson Bedard who helped spearhead the petition.

The facility is also equipped to help the state fulfill its goal of a carbon free energy grid by 2045.

Phyllis Laderman lives directly next door to the proposed site. FOX 5/KUSI first met her last December over mounting fire concerns. Present day, she says her fears are falling on deaf ears.

“We don't want to be the guinea pigs, we don’t want to live in a sacrifice zone," Laderman said. “We’re not actually fighting to save our way of life; we feel like we are fighting to save our lives...These batteries have the possibility of having chemical reactions.” 

Co-representatives from AES Corporation who owns the site hosted its third workshop Tuesday evening in San Marcos, this time, centered around the project's environmental concerns.

The main concerns center around the proximity which surrounds residential neighborhoods and is also located near Palomar Hospital.

‘We’re always taking the latest and greatest safety standards into account and designing the project accordingly, that way by the end of the day it's the safest one," explained Matt Guarniere, who is the Develpment Manager for the Seguro Project.

He also went on to explain that his team will conduct a series of fire-related drills and tests to hammer out the 'what-ifs' of a worst-case scenario.

Joe Rowley is a retired utility executive. He worries the technology is in its infancy and easily volatile.

"There’s really not a good handle to prevent the thermal runaway fires that occur at these facilities," he said.

The Seguro team is currently putting together its environmental impact report that will address these topics. They say there would be multiple required fire safety and mitigation measures in place, should it be built as planned.