A group of Los Banos residents are speaking out against a proposed solar farm and battery energy storage facility and urging Merced County elected representatives to press pause before approving it.

The Merced County Planning Commission on Wednesday (Feb. 26) unanimously approved the environmental review and a conditional use permit for the construction, operation and maintenance of the 622-acre so-called Zeta solar and battery energy storage system project on a piece of private land about nine miles south of Los Banos.

The project, scheduled to be operational in summer 2027, is expected to generate 75 megawatts alternating current power and include energy storage capacity up to eight hours through lithium batteries. It’s located near and planned to connect to PG&E’s Mercy Springs substation on Poleline Road near Interstate 5.

Half a dozen residents from Los Banos drove 45 minutes to the planning commission meeting in Merced, to voice their opposition to the project. During public comment, they criticized the county’s public notification process and raised concerns about unknown health and potential safety risks the project could present.

“To move forward on this project with so many citizens pushing back is reckless and without regard,” Julie Creighton, one of the Los Banos residents, told the five-member, appointed commission. “You may only see a few faces here today in opposition to the Zeta BESS, but these faces represent many who are unable to attend and are in staunch opposition to the BESS. …”

Opponents Cite Moss Landing Fire as Concern

Most of the Los Banos residents who spoke referenced the major fire that broke out last month in Monterey County at the world’s largest lithium ion battery storage facility.

Cleanup of the fire began just this week, and researchers quickly sounded the alarm over environmental impacts and unknown health implications from the fire.

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Representatives from the company developing the Zeta project in Merced County, Longroad Energy, attended the planning commission meeting and told The Merced FOCUS the proposed project is “fundamentally different” from, and 17 times smaller than, the Moss Landing site.

Laren Cyphers, a Longroad Energy project developer, told the planning commission the Zeta project will be safer than the Moss Landing site because it will use newer technology, follow recent safety regulations and use fire-tested construction and spacing for the BESS.

“We do not push limits,” she told the commission and audience. “I hope this helps address some of the concerns.”

The audience yelled back: “Not at all!”

According to its website, Longroad already operates another larger facility to the north of the proposed one, known as the Vega solar facility.

Project Would Go on Fallow Farmland

The planning commission approved the project without much discussion. Kurt Spycher, the commission’s chair, said typically, he takes issue with projects like these if they’re proposed on fertile farmland.

But for the Zeta project, that’s not the case.

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The farmland is currently fallow and undeveloped, according to county reports. Additionally, the property is subject to an agreement with the San Luis Water District that restricts irrigation, and there’s currently no existing access to water, according to county reports. Since 2021, sheep have occasionally grazed on the land to control weeds.

The Los Banos residents in attendance also criticized the county’s efforts to notify the nearest residents to the project, local city officials and the broader public.

Creighton said the residents who live a half mile from the project site weren’t notified. County staff noted it followed state regulations for notification.

Cyphers and Spycher noted the Zeta project is consistent with California’s green energy goals.

The project will next go before the Merced County Board of Supervisors in the coming months for a final vote.

About the Author

Brianna Vaccari is the accountability and government watchdog reporter for the Central Valley Journalism Collaborative.