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Mount Sinai-Coram Road

Civic association swears in at the June 3 meeting. Photo by Aidan Johnson

By Aidan Johnson

Dozens of residents attended the Mount Sinai Civic Association meeting June 3 to voice their safety concerns over a potential new battery energy storage system facility locally.

The facility, proposed by New Leaf Energy, would have a 20-year lifespan, after which the site would need to be restored to its pre-project condition.

The proposed area is adjacent to Mount Sinai-Coram Road and Route 25A on property owned by real estate agent Ray Manzoni. However, because this property is zoned as transitional business, New Leaf Energy’s application proposes the zone be changed to light industrial.

Former county Legislator Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai), who has been a vocal critic of the proposal, and Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico (R) also attended. While speaking, Panico addressed misinformation on social media that incorrectly told Mount Sinai residents that “the people in either Holbrook or Holtsville fought the battery storage there, and what they’re not getting is coming to Mount Sinai.”

Anker voiced common worries that residents had about the storage system facility.

“We just want to understand that what is going to happen is safe,” Anker said. “I don’t have a problem with renewable energy. We need the battery storage, we’re going to need that, but it’s the location,” she added, calling the proposed site the “worst intersection probably in Suffolk County.”

“Multiple accidents have happened there, the school district is close by, the water authority has a well right there, there’s a recreational path. There’s so many reasons we don’t need to change commercial to industrial,” she said.

Civic President Brad Arrington also discussed how LIPA, which owns an empty parcel of land next to the substation, could theoretically put a battery facility there without any input from the town government due to being immune from the local zoning authority.

“They could put a battery facility there which would carry the same risk that people are concerned about today, the difference being that when LIPA puts that in, they do not have to provide any community benefit, which is what has been proposed with this property,” Arrington said.

New Leaf is proposing an initial upfront payment of $340,000 — $85,000 per battery installation — with the allocation of this money to the school district, fire department and more not yet determined. The company also originally reserved $500 per megawatt, for a total of $10,000 annually, but raised it to $12,000 with a 2% annual increase to cover the current property taxes going to the school district.

Residents expressed concerns about what would happen if there was a fire at the facility, inquiring about the chemicals that would be emitted into the air and ground and how it would affect the surrounding area, including the school district and homes.

However, Arrington said the proposed facility would have lithium iron phosphate batteries, which “have a lower energy density, but have a far reduced rate of thermal runaway,” as opposed to the lithium NMC batteries that, while much more energy dense, are more prone to spontaneously catch on fire.

He also explained that a chain reaction would not take place, meaning that if thermal runaway does happen, it would be isolated in its own compartmentalized container.

Additionally, since the battery would have to burn itself out instead of being put out with water by the fire department, Arrington said that according to New Leaf, there wouldn’t be runoff into the ground. Also contamination with the soil and the off-gassing would be extremely limited.

Panico did not answer whether or not he supported the project, instead saying that he would review the application and talk to his colleagues, including Councilwoman Jane Bonner (R-Rocky Point), who represents the area.

Arrington said the town board would not take a vote to approve the project without input from the civic, which will hold a meeting for the civic members to vote in October.

Residents gather at the Heritage Center for a Mount Sinai Civic Association meeting. Photo courtesy Sarah Anker

By Sarah S. Anker

Over 100 residents gathered at the Heritage Center during a May 6 Mount Sinai Civic Association meeting to hear from New Leaf Energy, a battery storage company, about a proposed lithium-ion battery storage facility. 

According to the civic president, Brad Arrington, the plan to site the 20-megawatt battery storage system facility on a 1-acre parcel, located at the corner of Mount Sinai-Coram Road and Route 25A in Mount Sinai, has been in the works for seven years. Surprisingly, despite representing the area as a former Suffolk County legislator for the past 13 years, I only recently learned about this project.

Having facilitated the Green Homes and the Go Solar programs as the former director of Town of Brookhaven’s Office of Energy & Sustainability, I strongly support clean energy initiatives. However, I have concerns about the proposed location of this facility. Placing it on a 1-acre parcel with no buffers, near one of the county’s most accident-prone intersections, raises red flags. Additionally, the site is close to residential neighborhoods, a public walking path, an SCWA drinking water well and Mount Sinai schools.

I would have no problem if the siting were in an area that, if the units were to catch on fire, there would be less exposure to the highly toxic fumes emitted. After the East Hampton battery storage facility caught on fire, several towns — including Southampton, Southold and Huntington — moved forward with moratoriums. It is only common sense that more scrutiny be done to address the safety of these facilities and where they are placed. 

Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has created the Inter-Agency Fire Safety Working Group to review the issue of battery storage systems safety. As the working group investigates the fires that have occurred at three New York locations, a moratorium is needed in Brookhaven to ensure the safety of its residents. 

Over 20 years ago, a Home Depot was proposed to be built on the site that is now Mount Sinai’s centerpiece, the North Shore Heritage Park. We fought hard to create the park by collecting petitions, writing letters to our elected officials, wrapping green ribbons around our mailboxes and rallying our community together. Can you image if no one cared back then, and a Home Depot was built? Eighteen-wheeler trucks would snarl traffic, the green rolling hills would be black pavement and the memories of community concerts, holiday events, sports games and the springtime daffodil smiling face on the hill would be lost. 

Just as location, location, location is what the realtors say when emphasizing the value of real estate, let’s also consider the location of this project and the value we place on public safety and quality of life. Do we really want an industrial parcel located in the heart of our hometown? The project cannot move forward until the Town Board votes to change the zoning to light industrial. I encourage residents to attend upcoming Town Board meetings and provide input before a decision is made. Government is here for you when they hear from you. 

Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai) is a District 1 candidate for the New York State Senate and was formerly a Suffolk County legislator.  

File photo

Suffolk County Police Sixth Squad detectives are investigating a crash that killed a pedestrian in Coram on the evening of March 24.

Douglas Redmond was crossing Middle Country Road, 500 feet west of Mount Sinai-Coram Road, when he was struck by a 2009 Chevrolet Silverado at approximately 11:20 p.m. The driver of the Chevrolet, Tyler Miazga, stayed at the scene.

Redmond, 31, of Coram, was transported via Coram Rescue to John T. Mather Memorial Hospital in Port Jefferson, where he was pronounced dead.  Miazga, 29, of Coram, was not injured.

The vehicle was impounded for a safety check and the investigation is ongoing. Detectives are asking anyone with information on the crash to contact the Sixth Squad at 631-854-8652.