Public fear and NIMBY opposition to battery energy storage systems, compounded by legitimate safety concerns from real incidents, are slowing the buildout of storage infrastructure that communities need both for renewable energy integration and local resilience.

• Illustrative Example: The 2024 Moss Landing Vistra battery storage facility fire in Monterey County (which raised serious public health and safety concerns for nearby residents) became a concrete local reference point that participants cited as intensifying community resistance to future BESS siting across the Central Coast region.