The controversy over Resynergi Inc.’s proposed plastics recycling facility in Rohnert Park continues to boil in public boards at the same time as officers look into the corporate’s allow historical past and consider permits nonetheless pending.
In a packed Rohnert Park Metropolis Council assembly Tuesday night time, greater than three dozen supporters and opponents of the power engaged in a marathon public remark session that lasted almost two hours. It was the fourth public discussion board in regards to the venture since a public discover went out in mid-July to oldsters of Credo Excessive College about Resynergi’s plan to arrange close by the most recent era of its novel system that makes use of microwaves to transform sure discarded plastic movie, bottles, caps and different objects right into a product that might be become gasoline or extra plastics. The corporate hosted an open home Aug. 6, Credo’s board held a listening to Aug. 11 and opponents packed the earlier Metropolis Council assembly public-comment interval, Sept. 2.
The council assembly was additionally Resynergi’s first main organized effort outdoors its Aug. 6 open home on the southeast Rohnert Park web site to rally public help, with a number of staff, native enterprise homeowners, close by residents and group members talking in favor of the power, positioned within the SOMO Village redevelopment of the previous HP and Agilent Applied sciences campus on the southeast fringe of town.
As this matter wasn’t on the agenda, Metropolis Council members listened intently however couldn’t make feedback or choices. Nor was it on council agendas for Sept. 16 or Sept. 23, Metropolis Clerk Sylvia Lopez Cuevas instructed the Journal.
A recurring theme within the feedback Tuesday was the executive use allow town issued in December 2024. Opponents have argued that metropolis allow was granted with out correct public assessment, and plant would pose important environmental and well being dangers.
Brad Baker, founding father of SOMO Village, a virtually 200-acre advanced the place Resynergi has been primarily based since simply after its founding in 2015, emphasised his deep roots in Sonoma County and private stake in the neighborhood’s well-being.
“I stay right here. I work right here. I’ve bronchial asthma. My aged mom has well being challenges, and our staff consists of folks with well being considerations,” Baker stated. “Clear air and clear water are private to us, and that by no means helps one thing that put them in a danger. And to that time, I believe that’s why our dedication is easy. We proceed to depend on unbiased regulators reminiscent of public service that was right here tonight, the Air Assets Board, to maintain this course of protected and clear. I care deeply about this group. I consider that we are able to meet the challenges like plastic waste with innovation, collaboration, integrity, simply as we’ve been doing at SOMO Village from the beginning.”
‘Most stringent assessment’
Brian Bauer, Resynergi’s CEO, spoke to the council in regards to the firm’s collaborative strategy and in depth regulatory assessment.
“We’ve been guided and validated by revered third-party professional companions, and undergone one of the crucial stringent assessment course of within the nation, with the Bay Space Air High quality Administration District,” Bauer stated. “Their work has been important, as a result of that’s a 3rd celebration. It’s not us talking. … Their work has helped us get to the protection stage that we’re at, and really created an impressive promise of expertise.”
Opponents cite lack of discover, well being dangers
Opponents, nonetheless, painted a starkly totally different image. Molly Rubardt, a resident of town’s “M” part north of SOMO Village, accused the corporate of circumventing correct allowing processes — noting violation notices from the Bay Space Air High quality Management Board and a stop-work discover from town — and never correctly notifying residents because the use allow was being evaluated final 12 months.
“So I’ve two asks, that you simply start the method to revoke the executive use allow and set a date for a public listening to so the general public might be heard,” Rubardt stated.
College proximity raises alarm
The ability’s proximity to Credo Excessive College emerged as a central concern amongst public audio system. Sean Kallaway described the venture as “a really massive science experiment proper in the midst of a neighborhood 800 ft from my daughter’s college within the enterprise park.”
And I’ve heard lots of people discuss their consolation stage and all these nice issues tonight about Resynergi. Which may be true. Once more, I’ve been on this 60 days. Any individual’s been on this for 10 years. Okay, I’m not an professional, okay, what I can say is, there’s issues which have jumped out to me that I’m very involved about. It looks like this complete factor has been simply secretly handed alongside. It’s by no means been a part of a public agenda merchandise, I suppose, in Rohnert Park in right here, you understand, it simply looks like, it simply feels somewhat insidious, the way in which that this complete factor has been coming ahead.”
Native resolution or native danger?
Supporters countered by emphasizing the power’s revolutionary strategy to plastic recycling. Leslie Lukacs, director of Zero Waste Sonoma, argued that Resynergi presents a neighborhood reply to a world downside.
“It is a native resolution for plastic, versus sending supplies to landfill or truly overseas, the place it goes to 3rd world nations and get sorted out by different nations the place they don’t have the identical environmental and security requirements. Discuss environmental justice once we handle this product, not inside our personal yard. So this can be a native resolution.”
Science, security, on a regular basis dangers
Scientific and security claims had been hotly contested.
Stephanie Bostock, a neighborhood emergency room nurse, argued that the power’s emissions can be far much less harmful than on a regular basis dangers, reminiscent of emissions from a street subsequent to a house, benzene from fuel stoves, particulates from fireplaces and way of life decisions reminiscent of consuming alcohol or consuming processed meat.
“These are dangers we already stay with and settle for as a result of they’re acquainted, but they’re far larger than emissions reviewed on this case,” Bostock stated.
Omar Figueroa, one other Credo mother or father and proprietor of a Sebastopol hashish legislation agency, warned about potential impacts on kids’s well being at not solely Credo but in addition on kids at close by Monte Vista Elementary and in properties at SOMO Village.
“They get into touching one’s lungs and making lasting injury, and no youngster must be requested to hold that lifelong burden,” Figueroa stated.
Supporters tout microwave expertise
Resynergi supporters emphasised the corporate’s microwave expertise as basically totally different from conventional plastic incineration.
“I’m not a scientist or an engineer, so sadly I can’t scientifically show synergies technological assertion,” stated Eric Reed, a current SOMO Village resident. “However what I can do is be cautious of misinformation and concern techniques and look to the varied authorities businesses to do their jobs to make sure that our group is just not compromised in any means.”
Maria Pozzi drew parallels to historic resistance to new applied sciences and challenged those that purchased properties near an industrial space.
“It comes right down to what was in that facility. To start with, you’re in an industrial space which you bought. However in that constructing previous to that, was referred to as Modern Molding,” Pozzi stated, referring to a plastic injection molding firm that had occupied the identical constructing earlier than Resynergi and made plastic architectural options and different objects.
Warning to the council
Kahleen Nowak, a resident of town’s “L” part for 12 years, pointedly critiqued the council, alleging inaction and lack of responsiveness to citizen inquiries in regards to the course of with Resynergi’s use allow.
“We demand integrity, transparency and belief,” Nowak stated, with raised voice and talking close to the tip of public feedback. “And if this council can’t ship, the group will recall. Will not be a menace. It’s the treatment.”
Mayor Gerard Giudice on the shut of 1 hour and 52 minutes of statements thanked these current for being civil.
“That is the way in which that it really works in America,” Giudice stated. “You all pay attention to one another respectfully.”
Firm responds to security questions
The Journal requested Resynergi executives after the assembly to reply questions posed at public conferences in regards to the security protocols to keep away from environmental and operational dangers reported at some conventional plastic pyrolysis services.
One security function, they stated, was the power’s distinctive expertise: superior microwave pyrolysis system — which permits it to course of as much as 5 tons of plastic every day with small-sized response chambers.
“These older methods use usually … resistive heating or flames on the surface of a vessel. So that they, so as to make their methods course of as a lot as they did, they needed to go to a lot bigger scales and far larger pressures. So the microwave system makes our course of inherently a lot, a lot safer than conventional pyrolysis,” Chief Technical Officer Sasha Kosek stated Thursday.
The ability has acquired approval from a nationally acknowledged testing laboratory, licensed as a Class 1, Division 2 “explosion proof system” and has labored intently with native hearth prevention engineers.
One other security function is the reactor chambers function beneath a slight vacuum with roughly 10 cubic ft of fuel inside at any time. “The full quantity of fuel contained in the system at any given time is about 10 cubic ft,” Kosek famous, evaluating this to a regular propane tank, which accommodates roughly 180 cubic ft of fuel.
A key security function is the continual monitoring system. “If there have been a leak, these fuel displays are ready, continuously measuring, and would instantly shut the method off,” Kosek stated.
Concerning hearth suppression, Kosek emphasised that “water is definitely a really efficient means of placing out a fireplace in this type of setting,” explaining how water turns to steam to displace oxygen and suppress fires.
The ability addresses suffocation considerations about launch of nitrogen. Kosek famous that the power makes use of a machine that pulls nitrogen out of the air, so the quantity of nitrogen saved on web site in our nitrogen era tank is “very low relative to the quantity of the constructing.”
On the important query of whether or not the method constitutes incineration, Kosek was clear: “A pyrolysis course of doesn’t contain oxidation. It’s, after all, simply thermal decomposition with out oxygen. So there’s no there’s no flame, no combustion, no incineration inside this course of.”
Bauer expressed confidence within the course of via the air district.
“There’s no purpose to consider we gained’t obtain our allow,” he stated.
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The Rohnert Park Metropolis Council listened to over 50 folks giving their opinion in regards to the proposed Resynergi plastic recycling facility Tuesday, September 9, 2025 throughout their common weekly assembly. (John Burgess / Press Democrat)
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The Rohnert Park Metropolis Council listened to over 50 folks giving their opinion in regards to the proposed Resynergi plastic recycling facility Tuesday, September 9, 2025 throughout their common weekly assembly. (John Burgess / Press Democrat)
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