Renewable Energy Fire Safety

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CFA supports planning authorities, designers, and operators of renewable energy facilities by providing guidance on bushfire risk and fire safety.

Guidelines and Model Requirements for Renewable Energy Facilities, v4 2023

To assist with this, CFA has developed the Design Guidelines and Model Requirements for Renewable Energy Facilities (PDF 12.8MB).

This guideline is regularly updated when required and contains CFA's expectations during the design phase of renewable energy facilities to ensure bushfires risk and safety measures are considered. This includes solar facilities, wind facilities, and facilities with large-scale battery energy storage system.

Fighting fires on renewable energy facilities.

CFA is also working with its members across Victoria on how to safely fight fires at renewable energy facilities. Below is a video of the Glenrowan, Winton and Wangaratta North Brigades going through the steps of how to fight a fire on the Glenrowan West Solar farm.

CFA has been working on new Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) on fighting fires at renewable energy facilities. Some are still being developed and others are out for consultation. These provide advice to CFA members about how to safely assess and suppress fires on renewable energy facilities.

CFA Guideline V4 (2023) Addendums

A Note on Fire Water Storage Tanks (July 2024)

AS 2419.1-2021 requires steel fire water tanks used as either full-capacity tanks, reduced-capacity tanks or break tanks, to conform with AS 2304. CFA advises that for renewable energy facilities, for fire water tanks of a capacity at or below 45,000L, not connected to a hydrant system, CFA will accept fire water tank construction in accordance with AS 2419.1-2005.

When should consultation with CFA occur?

While CFA’s guidelines provide general guidance, the design team should consult with CFA’s Specialist Risk and Fire Safety Unit early in the planning and facility design phase, well before the finalisation of planning applications and facility design. Consultation with CFA's Specialist Risk and Fire Safety Unit is encouraged at all stages of a project's life cycle.

What information does CFA need for initial consultation?

The availability of the following information (where possible) during initial consultation supports the provision of specific advice for facility planning and design.

  • The site address/land parcel information (such as a current VicPlan Property Planning Report).
  • Locality plan, showing the facility within the landscape.
  • Details of the facility, its type and size (such as the area and perimeter, potential vehicle access points, indicative number of solar panels/arrays, wind turbines, battery capacity/containers, power conversion equipment/units).
  • Site layout plans, showing the proposed location of site vehicle access points, internal roads, solar arrays/wind turbines/battery containers, fire water supplies, grid connection points/substations, buildings and vegetation (where available).
  • Specifications/technical data sheets on battery energy storage systems (where applicable and available).

Across Victoria battery energy storage systems are being proposed in local communities to enable the power network to support more rooftop solar.  Community or neighbourhood-scale battery energy storage systems range from 100kW to 5MW.

CFA has developed guidance to support consideration of fire risk for neighbourhood battery energy storage systems (PDF 380.8KB) from proposal development through to operation.  To ensure fire risk is effectively considered within neighbourhood battery proposals, engaging with CFA's Specialist Risk and Fire Safety Unit as early as possible is essential.

EPRI BESS Failure Event Database
San Diego, California - 15 May 2024
Bouldercombe, Queensland - 26 September 2023
Warwick, New York - 26 June 2023
Moss Landing, California - 20/21 September 2022
Chandler, Arizona - 18 April 2022
Monterey County, California - 4 September 2021
Moorabool, Victoria - 30 July 2021
Beijing, China - 16 April 2021
Liverpool, UK - 15 September 2020
Surprise, Arizona - 19 April 2019
Drogenbos, Belgium - 11 November 2017

CFA volunteers are experienced in fighting fires near Victoria’s 6,500 km of transmission lines. With safety as a priority, standard procedures guide operations around high-voltage lines and pylons. Alternatives to water, such as using heavy machinery to clear vegetation, help protect critical infrastructure, while firefighting aircraft can also operate near transmission lines when needed.

Although CFA does not approve new infrastructure or transmission line locations, we provide essential safety advice to authorities and remain focused on safeguarding communities and our members.

Find out more on Fighting fires around transmission lines.

CFA Guidelines for the Provision of Emergency Information (2019)

CFA recommends the provision of Emergency Information Books (PDF 1.9MB) for the use of emergency responders at all renewable energy facilities. Emergency Information Books contain key information for emergency responders arriving on-site during emergencies.

 

 

Page last updated:  Monday, 13 January 2025 12:04:53 PM

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