Members of Youngstown City Council are working on the next steps in their fight to stop a pyrolysis plant from coming to the city.

During a Monday afternoon meeting, Youngstown Council's Committee on Climate Change, Environment & Sustainable Technology, the committee discussed the possibility of appointing an "expert witness" in its efforts to appeal the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) decision to issue a permit for SOBE Thermal Energy Solutions to use pyrolysis in downtown Youngstown.

The issue will be brought to the next City Council meeting where council members will vote on whether or not to appoint this expert witness.

At this time, it is unknown who this expert witness is and city officials told us they could not comment due to this matter being pending litigation.

Youngstown officials have been working since 2023 to prevent SOBE from coming into the city. A year long moratorium established in late 2023 was extended by another year back in November of 2024.

According to the Ohio EPA, SOBE wants to install a Thermolyzer (pyrolysis) unit to process tire chips. The unit will produce a synthetic gas that would serve as a supplemental fuel in two existing natural gas-fired boilers that are already installed, operating and permitted.

You can read much more about the city's fight against SOBE in our related coverage below.

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