Moss Landing Vistra Battery Fire Response

We are committed to doing our work with respect for the Moss Landing community and local stakeholders. Transparency and community engagement throughout the process are central to our approach.

Since the January 2025 fire in Moss Landing, EPA has been on-site providing technical assistance in the planning and preparation for battery removal. We are working to ensure that Vistra safely removes and disposes of batteries impacted by the fire.

• Administrative Record
• Community Safety
• Background and EPA’s Involvement
• What is Each Agency’s Role in the Fire Response?
• Battery Treatment, Transport & Disposal
• Documents

Administrative Record

The Administrative Record is made up of documents justifying why EPA took action at the site.

• The Administrative Record is available online.
• A paper copy of the Administrative Record can be found at:
  Castroville Branch Library
  11160 Speegle St.
  Castroville, CA 95012
  Please call for current hours of operation: (831) 769-8724.

Community Safety

Community safety throughout the project is our priority. Batteries damaged in a fire may be unstable and could catch fire again during work. We are overseeing Vistra as they take these safety steps:

1. Constant air monitoring and sampling around the property.
2. Keep a 24/7 private firefighting company on-site out of an abundance of caution. The company will be able to respond right away and coordinate with the local fire department if a fire starts.
3. Maintain an EPA-approved emergency response plan.

See fact sheets with visuals and more details about community safety, surface water collection, and truck routes. For more information on the battery removal process, see our Battery Treatment, Transport, and Disposal section.

Background and EPA’s Involvement

• On January 16, 2025, the Moss Landing 300 battery energy storage system at the Moss Landing Vistra power plant (Monterey County, Calif.) caught fire.
  • The 300-megawatt system held about 100,000 lithium-ion batteries.
  • About 55 percent of the batteries were damaged by the fire.
• Local agencies immediately requested our support for air monitoring. EPA deployed to the scene and did air monitoring January 17-20.
• The State of California also requested we oversee the battery removal process.

Learn More: Updates on EPA’s Response

What is Each Agency’s Role in the Fire Response?

EPA

• Oversee the safe removal of batteries from the property. Our oversight applies to:
  • activities within the fence line of the property, and
  • preparation of the batteries for transport to recycling or disposal facilities.
• Ensure transparency and community engagement throughout the battery removal work.
• Provide technical assistance to Vistra for battery:
  • removal,
  • transport,
  • recycling and disposal, and
  • closely coordinate with local and state governments to ensure information sharing, consistency and efficiency.

Vistra

• Respond to fire damage and safely remove damaged batteries. All work is being done under federal and state oversight.
• Vistra will perform and pay for the removal of the impacted lithium-ion batteries from the site under EPA’s oversight.
• Submit detailed work plans to EPA, implement comprehensive safety measures to protect nearby residents and workers during the cleanup process, and participate in community involvement activities to enable meaningful community engagement throughout the removal process.

State and Local Government

• Oversee all activities:
  • outside the property fence line, and
  • on the property that are not related to battery removal.

Monterey County Health Department

• Learn more about response activities in the community at the Monterey County website.

State of California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA)

• Collaborate with Monterey County on outside of the fence activities, such as community sampling.
• Coordinate with EPA on inside-the-fence activities.

Battery Treatment, Transport & Disposal

EPA will oversee the safe removal and disposal of batteries impacted by the fire.

De-energizing Batteries for Safety

• Under our technical guidance, Vistra will use various methods to de-energize the batteries before transport.
• Undamaged batteries will be de-energized.
• Some batteries may not be able to be de-energized. These will be treated on the property before disposal.

Shipping and Disposal

• We will ensure packaging and transportation follows the U.S. Department of Transportation safety regulations.
• Depending on the type of battery waste, recycling may be possible.

Documents

• EPA Factsheet: Surface Water Collection at Moss Landing (pdf) (311.59 KB, January 2026)
  This factsheet summarizes the surface water collection and management system for the battery staging area.
• EPA Factsheet: Truck Routes and Safety (pdf) (546.87 KB, January 2026)
  This factsheet explains how EPA is working to minimize impacts of truck traffic in the surrounding communities.
• & EPA Factsheet: Keeping the Community Safe (pdf) (466.79 KB, January 2026)
  This factsheet gives an overview of the various safety precautions EPA is taking to ensure worker safety, community safety, and environmental protection.
• EPA Presentation: Moss Landing Battery Fire Response (pdf) (3.69 MB, September 16, 2025)
  Slides from EPA’s presentation about the Moss Landing Battery Fire cleanup to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors on September 16, 2025.
• Moss Landing Battery Fire Community Involvement Plan (pdf) (4.25 MB, September 16, 2025)
  This Community Involvement Plan includes content based on research and personal interviews with Monterey-area community members, local government representatives, organizations and other stakeholders.
• Administrative Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent: Moss Landing Complex (pdf) (5.12 MB, July 17, 2025)
  Administrative Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent For Removal Action in the matter of Moss Landing Complex, Moss Landing, California - Vistra Corp. Moss Landing Energy Storage 1 LLC and Moss Landing Power Company LLC. CERCLA Docket No. 09-2025-08. On July 17, 2025, EPA and Vistra Corp. have entered into an enforceable agreement, called an Administrative Settlement Agreement and Order on Consent, under which Vistra will conduct and pay for on-site battery module removal under EPA’s oversight
• EPA Letter: Response to Monterey County Board of Supervisors (pdf) (740.96 KB, June 30, 2025)
  EPA Region 9 response letter to May 23, 2025 Monterey County Board of Supervisors’ letter entitled Support for U.S. EPA Oversight and CERCLA Coordination at the Moss Landing Site, Monterey County.
• Notice of Federal Response Action (NFRA) issued to Vistra Corp. (pdf) (186.47 KB, January 22, 2025)
  After the January 2025 battery fire at Moss Landing, EPA issued a Notice of Federal Response Action (NFRA) to Vistra Corp. on January 22, 2025, informing Vistra that a response action was necessary. This formal notice gave Vistra the opportunity to conduct a response and outlined work that needed to be done at the site