The Promise of Battery Storage: Engaging Communities for Equity, Health, Climate and Economic Benefits
Just Solutions
by Beto Lugo Martinez and Elena Krieger
August 05, 2026
Popping up everywhere from rural fields in Texas to a retired coal plant site in North Carolina, a record-setting 18 gigawatts of giant batteries were built in 2025. More are projected for 2026 and beyond—including numerous proposals in the Kansas City region for battery storage at old industrial sites and on agricultural land. These systems hold promise: they can improve electricity reliability, replace polluting peaker plants, reduce system costs, and help integrate variable renewable energy like wind and solar. But battery systems pose risks—in particular, thermal runaway and fire, and hazardous waste at their end of life—and their potential to provide direct benefits to nearby communities often goes untapped. With U.S. battery storage capacity poised to nearly quadruple in the next five years, a key question emerges: how can these projects be developed in partnership with the surrounding community to minimize risks and realize the full equity, public health, climate, and economic benefits of energy storage?
