Resynergi has developed an innovative way to recycle plastics. [Courtesy resynergi.com]
Resynergi, the innovative plastics-recycling company in Rohnert Park, announced this week its intentions to move operations out of state. Resynergi has been vying for city permission to conduct a new process for converting plastics to pyrolysis oil at its site at SOMO Village, a mixed-use campus shared by a school, an events center and various other businesses along a residential tract in the southeast part of the city.
The “microwave assisted pyrolysis” process uses high temperatures in an oxygen-free environment to break down plastics—a process that has raised alarms among some nearby residents and other SOMO Village businesses such as Credo High School, which contend a manufacturing plant is out of place in the neighborhood.
The company didn’t specify where its new location would be, but described seeking a better “community fit” in an industrially zoned area with the proper infrastructure for advanced plastics recycling. Resynergy also cited a friendlier regulatory environment and tax incentives as further reasons for moving out of state.
Brian Bauer, CEO of Resynergi, credited the “innovative spirit of California” as being a critical component of the company’s research and development. “Our time in Sonoma County allowed us to develop, refine and validate our technology,” Bauer said in the announcement. “We are deeply grateful to Sonoma County, SOMO Village and our local partners for their support during our critical R&D phase.”
Rohnert Park city staff approved Resynergi’s permit in December of 2024. But community opposition has continued to be voiced at city council meetings and other public forums. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District issued three permit-violation notices to the company in August, and the county Environmental Health Division and state agency CalRecycle informed Resynergi Sept. 16 it may need a solid-waste facility permit.
Resynergi contends its process is a safe and clean way to “transform hard-to-recycle plastics,” diverting such materials from landfills and oceans. “(Our) technology reduces fossil-based dependency by converting plastic waste into clean, reusable liquid hydrocarbons and creates a circular future for plastics,” the company said.
