Councillor Requests Look at EV Charging Ordinance

By Adam Swift

Councillor-at-Large Anthony Zambuto wants to ensure the city is ahead of the game when it comes to safety for electric vehicle charging.

At Monday night’s council meeting, Zambuto proposed the city draft an ordinance or special legislation establishing regulations for the licensure of the indoor storage of electric vehicles.

Zambuto said he was spurred to action by recent news reports of electric vehicle batteries combusting and causing fires.

“I’m sure that any of us that have watched the news have seen that this has become a serious problem,” said Zambuto.

The problem was especially acute following Hurricane Ian in Florida in the fall, where a number of lithium ion batteries were damaged by salt water.

“Electric vehicles that have been submerged in water, especially saltwater, have a potential risk of experiencing a high-voltage electrical battery fire,” stated Victoria Hutchison, a project manager at the Fire Protection Research Foundation, the research affiliate of National Fire Protection Agency. “First responders should be prepared to respond to a potential fire and should handle EVs that may have been submerged with greater caution.”

In Revere, Zambuto noted the city governs the storage of flammable materials in garages.

“I just think that it is time that we come up with an ordinance that is going to protect the people who have electric vehicles,” said Zambuto. “We may be a trendsetter here if we come up with an ordinance that’s going to make people safer, because people across the country are seeing their vehicles spontaneously combust.”

Councillor-at-Large Steven Morabito said that while it is still very early in the process, the city also has to consider that a lot of the electric vehicle batteries are being charged with nonspecific outlets, creating a greater potential for danger.

“There is a specific outlet that cars need to charge them indoors,” said Morabito. “So that’s something we need to look at, if someone is rewiring their house, if they have an indoor garage, we have to look at that and how they are wiring it and if it’s going to be specific for an electric car, as well.”

In other business Monday night, Councillor-at-Large Marc Silvestri requested that the mayor ask the state delegation to refile a bond bill for the installation of sound barriers along Rte. 1 North and South if necessary.

“I spoke with state Representative (Jessica) Giannino on this and she let me know that she has put a motion in that they act on this, and if the administration doesn’t by the first of the year, then it will have to be refiled,” said Silvestri. “I just wanted to keep it up and moving, I know we are moving into a new administration and I just wanted to keep this relevant.”

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