August 21, 2025: The head of the US Environmental Protection Agency has slammed New York’s expansion of battery storage systems in the face of widespread public unease as another “delusional green goal”.

EPA administrator Lee Zeldin said on August 18 he understood concerns in the wake of widespread damage caused by lithium battery fires at BESS facilities in the US.

Speaking at a press conference in support of Long Islanders, Zeldin said New York State officials had been working to expedite approvals of BESS installations in densely populated areas, especially in New York City and its suburbs.

“Many New Yorkers, especially in New York City and on Long Island, have made their voices clear — they do not want BESS systems built in their neighbourhoods,” Zeldin said.

“Residents are looking across the country at dangerous lithium battery fires at BESS facilities… and they are concerned with New York’s partisan push to fill yet another delusional ‘green’ goal, which the state itself admits it cannot meet.”

A major two-day fire earlier this year at Vistra’s Moss Landing BESS in California — and reported by Batteries International — was among those singled out by the EPA.

Zeldin said the state’s banning of the safe extraction of natural gas, gas hook-ups on new construction, and gas stoves, while aiming to end the sale of gas-powered vehicles, continued to put the safety and well-being of New Yorkers second to its climate change agenda.

“At the very least, we want to provide all of the information we know on BESS to utilities, first responders, permitting bodies and any member of the public who wants to get better educated on this critical issue.”

According to the EPA, 6,000 storage projects have been interconnected to New York State’s electric grid since 2019, creating about 440MW of storage capacity, with an additional 1.3GW under contract. New York’s current goal is to reach 6GW of installed storage capacity by 2030.

To support its goals, the state most recently enacted the Renewable Action through Project Interconnection and Deployment (RAPID) Act as part of the fiscal 2025 state budget.

The EPA said RAPID and predecessor legislation dramatically expanded state power to override local opposition for major renewable projects, including battery storage facilities of 25 MW or larger — even when communities raised safety concerns.