Renewable energy advocates have long called for building battery complexes to store intermittent solar and wind energy, but a recent fire that spewed toxic heavy metals all around a California battery storage facility that went up in flames have some leaders wondering whether the new technology is worth the risk and environmental cost.

A few weeks ago in Monterey a massive grid-scale battery-powered energy storage facility went up in flames, spewing burnt battery material into the air. Now, scientists at San Jose State University have found extremely high levels of toxic heavy metals — hundreds to thousands of times higher than before — in the area near the fire, despite the Environmental Protection Agencies initial claims that the fire did not release toxins.

“These nanoparticles are used in cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries, commonly referred to as ‘NMC’ (nickel manganese cobalt), clearly connecting the occurrence of the heavy metals to airborne cathode material from the Vistra battery fire,” wrote SJSU in a statement. “These heavy metals will chemically transform as they move through the environments and potentially through the food web, affecting local aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.”

“These findings and the research that follows are crucial not only to the impacted community but to the national and international community because of the need to store more power and thus build more and larger battery storage facilities,” said research team head and SJSU Professor Ivano Aiello. “This is a new and fast-growing technology, and we must understand the ecological impacts in the event that accidents like this happen again.”

When fully finished in 2021, the Vistra Corporation’s 400 megawatt battery center was the largest in the world, and operates under an agreement with Pacific Gas and Electric.

“The state's laudable immense buildout of intermittent renewable power has both lowered emissions and presented a reliability challenge. California produces an excess amount of renewable power during the day while the sun is up, but often struggles to meet demand as the sun goes down,” said Vistra CEO Curt Morgan at the time. “Our Moss Landing battery system helps to fill that reliability gap, storing the excess daytime power so it doesn't go to waste and then releasing it to the grid when it's needed most.”

PGE’s consumers already pay some of the highest energy rates in the United States at about 40 cents per kilowatt hour — more than double the national 17-cent average and approaching the 50-cent rate at which it’s cheaper to drive a sedan on costly California gasoline than on grid-supplied electrons. Should they be found liable for this fire and its contamination, as has happened with the wildfires that were sparked by its infrastructure, rates for its customers, which increased 127% between 2014 and 2024, could increase even faster than before.

KQED says residents have reported unusual breathing issues, metallic tastes in their mouths, headaches, nausea, nosebleeds, and low energy.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nickel exposure can cause rashes, respiratory problems, and “effects on the stomach, blood, liver, kidneys, immune system, reproduction, and development.” The CDC says high levels of manganese exposure can irritate the lungs, cause behavioral changes, induce neural and reproductive harm, and damage children’s brains and development. The CDC says cobalt exposure can cause respiratory, blood, thyroid, gastrointestinal, reproductive, and developmental harm and is likely a human carcinogen.

Assemblymember Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, shared her concern that the facility has done more harm to the environment than good.

“I am alarmed and deeply concerned to hear that high concentrations of heavy-metals have been identified within one of our most cherished and fragile ecosystems, Elkhorn Slough and its surrounding areas. These concentrations are directly linked to the battery energy storage fire,” said Addis on X. “True climate solutions must benefit — not harm — our communities and natural environment. We have to continue to fight for the inclusion of community voices and proper siting of battery energy storage facilities.”

Addis has followed up by announcing a bill that would require buffer zones between battery storage sites and communities or ecologically fragile areas, and require local engagement in permitting, instead of allowing state agencies to give approval on their own.

Vistra is currently seeking to build a new, larger 600 megawatt facility in scenic Morro Bay, but placed its local permit on pause in October as it sought approval through the state instead.

Addis’ bill, combined with public outcry and possible health and environmental consequences from the fire at its neighboring Moss Landing facility, could make it more difficult for Morro Bay and other battery storage projects across the state to move forward, and serve as a warning for similar projects nationwide.