The use of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) as part of the national Australian electricity grid is rapidly growing due to its ability to bridge the gap between times of energy need and energy generation. Noise emission has emerged as a key environmental impact challenge in the development of BESS in Australia. The key focus of this paper is on the potential of noise reduction through different barrier configurations. Key influencing parameters have been examined to determine the most effective configurations. If a BESS site requires large noise reductions for the development to proceed, this paper provides potential barrier configurations with higher noise reduction potential than the traditional perimeter barrier. Two of the key takeaways from this paper are as follows: First, when selecting barrier configuration, it is important to consider the direction of receivers since it will impact its performance. Second, the barrier configurations that achieve the best noise reduction on average, across the assessed receiver directions and barrier heights, is the combination of having a barrier around the perimeter as well as between the rows. For a 6-meter-high barrier, this configuration has an average noise reduction over double that of a traditional perimeter barrier of equivalent height.

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