City of Boston Adopts Small Clean Energy Infrastructure Zoning
The City of Boston Zoning Commission this week adopted new zoning for Small Clean Energy Infrastructure to comply with the Massachusetts State Climate Act. This new zoning establishes a ‘Consolidated Local Permitting process’ in line with State law and Boston’s own climate resiliency goals. The new zoning and permitting process is an effort to decarbonize and transition our energy sources to be fully electric in the coming years. The new zoning also introduces regulations on dimensions and use for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS).
“As our communities continue to grow, so does the need to transition to cleaner, more sustainable energy sources. This new zoning will help expand our electric capacity, lower costs and ensure that current and future generations can enjoy our beautiful city,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. ”Boston has set clear goals to reduce carbon emissions by 2030, and we will continue taking big swings to improve quality of life for all our residents.”
“Not only is this a win for meeting our carbon neutrality goals, but it’s also another example of how we continue to reform our permitting process,” said Chief of Planning Kairos Shen. “Streamlining for clarity and predictability is essential to creating a more energy efficient city.”
"The benefits of clean energy and battery storage are clear: more affordable electricity, less pollution, and local control over our energy production," said Chief Climate Officer Brian Swett. "Improving how we permit clean energy infrastructure is a critical step in reducing Boston's emissions and achieving our shared climate action goals"
The State is requiring cities and towns to provide this opt-in consolidated permitting process for this type of infrastructure by October 1, 2026, aligning with the energy resilience goals of Boston’s 2030 Climate Action Plan and our goals of reducing carbon emissions by 2050. This kind of infrastructure can include things like solar panels, wind energy turbines, battery energy storage, and short energy transmission lines.
"Solar and storage are some of the cheapest and fastest energy we can build," said Massachusetts Energy Resources Commissioner Elizabeth Mahony. "The City of Boston is taking an important step forward in bringing more clean energy into Massachusetts to lower costs and reduce climate-warming emissions."
This new zoning and permitting process supports the City’s efforts to increase Boston’s grid capacity to keep costs low and reduce pollution for a healthier community. The Planning Department will now focus on creating design guidelines for this type of infrastructure that will ensure it is always consistent with neighborhood context and enhance the safety of public spaces.
In April, Mayor Michelle Wu announced the release of Boston's 2030 Climate Action Plan, a roadmap for how the City will achieve its carbon emissions reduction and climate resilience goals. These targets include reducing community-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality by 2050. The Plan includes 22 metrics that the City will track over the next five years through its Climate Action Plan Implementation Dashboard. In the Plan’s creation, the City of Boston prioritized community engagement in its environmental justice communities and will implement strategies to ensure that every neighborhood receives the public health, economic, and resilience benefits of climate action.
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About the Planning Department
The City of Boston’s Planning Department shapes growth that serves Boston’s residents and centers their needs. Our mission is to address our City’s greatest challenges: resilience, affordability, and equity, and to take real estate actions and prioritize planning, development, and urban design solutions that further these priorities. We seek to build trust with communities through transparent processes that embrace predictable growth and shape a more inclusive city for all. Learn more at bostonplans.org, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @BostonPlans.
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