Representation by Jeffrey Peter Mack
- Date submitted
- 25 February 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I am currently working with two of the foremost authorities on lithium-ion batteries, Dr Paul Christiansen of Leicester University and a governmental advisor on lithium-ion batteries; and Richard Dunbar Baker of Park Lodge International. We are currently training police, fire brigade, vehicle repairers and recovery agents on the very real dangers of traction battery damage in lithium-ion powered Electric Vehicles. We are doing this is association with the IMI, the NBRA and a leading recovery agent network, Nationwide Vehicle Assistance. How is this relevant? My biggest concern lies outside of the egregious acquisition of land, the accompanying destruction of wildlife and husbandry, the very real transportation nightmare that will ensue during construction in a predominantly rural setting, and the doubtful adequacy of the infrastructure to support such a venture. My biggest concern? The possible storage of excess energy in lithium-ion batteries and the consequences should any damage happen to those batteries. A similar solar farm in Kent will be storing their energy in lithium-ion batteries--and the exclusion zone (i.e., the evacuation zone should something happen to the batteries and they ignite) of 14 to 18 kilometre radius from the battery storage site. A similar radius in terms of the Mallard Pass Farm would engulf Stamford, Bourne, parts of Grantham and could potentially, given appropriate weather conditions, extend to Peterborough and Oakham. Why is this a concern? A lithium-ion battery that has gone into thermal overrun and ignites produces a fire cannot be extinguished until all the battery cells have discharged--and the first "smoke" that such a fire produces is, in fact, hydrogen fluoride gas. This substance is lethal in the smallest of doses--it combines with the moisture in the lungs of anyone who inhales it to produce hydrofluoric acid, which then dissolves the lung tissue. This cloud of gas is also flammable--the slightest spark would ignite a massive explosion that would keep accelerating until all the batteries had ignited. How will the Mallard Pass project deal with these eventualities? How do they propose to protect 1/4 to 1/2 a million people from serious injury and death should the batteries suffer a thermal runaway event? Those are the questions MUST BE ADDRESSED before the project should even be considered.