Did You Know...
Virginia based AES Corporation is seeking a "Conditional Use" permit from Santa Fe County, for an ~800 acre Utility Scale Lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage
and Solar Facility (Electric Power Facility).
This facility would also require a large substation, and above ground transmission lines.
A Lithium-Ion Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) poses the risk of a type of fire (thermal runaway fire) in which there is no way of extinguishing.
AES has had 3 such known fires in the past 5 years (as well as other companies).
BESS Failure Event Database
The proposed location for this facility
is NOT:
-
in an industrial area
-
in an area with pre-existing infrastructure
-
on previously developed land
-
in a remote area
Rather, the location is:
-
next to >10,000 people
-
going to require building ALL infrastructure from the ground up
-
going to destroy previously undisturbed land
-
In an area not zoned for this type of facility
​
This Is NOT Community Solar (a smaller facility which benefits communities)
This Is NOT Commercial Solar (an on-site solar installation for businesses, non-profits and governments as defined by the Solar Energy Industries Association)
​
This IS UTILITY SCALE Solar (electricity sold to wholesale utility buyers {ex: PNM} and is a PRIVATE/FOR PROFIT facility (profits the AES Corporation and landowner)!
The demolition of 800 plus acres for this facility will destroy the habitat for thousands of birds and animals and will displace and/or kill any wildlife
that lives in this location.
​
The completely fenced in facility would be in the direct path of a known Migratory Corridor used by countless birds and other mammals.
​
This facility (which contains toxic chemicals) will be built directly on top of an aquifer that supplies water to thousands of people.
New Mexico is the 5th least densely populated state and has thousands of miles of transmission line that a Utility Scale facility could tie in to.
Santa Fe County has no specific Code Regulations or Guidelines in place regarding Utility Scale Renewable Energy projects.
The county codes state an electric generating power facility is prohibited in a rural fringe zone. The AES Rancho Viejo facility is such a facility. The county hearing officer (who specializes in Santa Fe County codes and is a NM attorney) confirmed this location is not zoned for this AES Rancho Viejo facility, yet the permit application continues to move forward for approval.
This specific facility, which will be located in the middle of thousands of people, within a mile of the Turquoise Trail Charter School, and in a location where winds are commonplace, and typically blowing east towards Eldorado (~1 mile away), will have no manned personnel at night and the nearest full time Fire Station is more than 10 minutes away!
New Mexicans for Responsible Renewables
Support New Mexico in transitioning to clean energy, while avoiding unnecessary risks to our communities and further destruction to our environment.