After being approached by a developer to build a 105 Megawatt battery project in the woods of Wendell and under a power line, the citizens approved a bylaw to protect the town from large battery storage projects by limiting their size and providing measures for public health, safety and welfare.

 

The bylaw was rejected by the Attorney General for incorrect drafting procedures and because it would be a "violation of the Dover Amendment." In December, the Wendell Selectboard decided to appeal that decision. We are following this story.  

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Wendell residents voted 100 to 1 at a Special Town Meeting to give their blessing to the addition of a general bylaw to deal with the licensing of battery energy storage systems, including those powered by lithium-ion batteries. The article, put forward by petition, was proposed by No Assault & Batteries, a local citizens’ committee formed in opposition to the battery storage facility that Lowell-based New Leaf Energy had proposed for Wendell Depot Road. The company eventually rescinded its proposal over the summer.

Under the general bylaw approved by Wendell voters, any battery energy storage system with a power rating greater than 1 megawatt and no more than 10 megawatts would require approval from the Wendell Licensing Board, to be made up of Selectboard members as well as one member appointed from the Conservation Commission, Board of Health, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Energy Committee, Municipal Light Board and Finance Committee. The bylaw also states that no battery energy storage proposal greater than 10 megawatts would be licensed in town. Read more in the Greenfield Recorder

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