“We Are Youngstown”: A Portrait of Resistance
Against the SOBE Pyrolysis Plant
 

In the rustbelt heart of Ohio, the city of Youngstown stands as both a symbol of American industrial decline and of a people unwilling to surrender their future. For decades, Youngstown bore the brunt of steel mill closures and economic erosion. Yet even in hardship, this city has remained fiercely protective of its community. That protective instinct flared into action once again in 2023, when residents learned about a proposed facility under the name SOBE Thermal Energy Systems, LLC—a “plastics-to-energy” pyrolysis plant quietly advancing toward construction in the city’s working-class neighborhoods 1.
 

Though branded as “advanced recycling,” the project was no ordinary recycling facility. SOBE, operating under the broader umbrella of entities promoting so-called chemical recycling, would heat shredded tires at extreme temperatures to extract fuels and other byproducts. Despite the industry’s claims of innovation and sustainability, residents quickly recognized the proposed facility as part of a growing trend of greenwashing—dressing up pollution-intensive technologies in the language of climate solutions 2.
 

The facility’s location only deepened the community’s concerns. Placed near residential areas, schools, a food bank, and a women's shelter, the plant was slated to impact some of Youngstown’s most vulnerable residents—largely Black and low-income communities already overburdened by historical environmental neglect 3. With no public hearings required under existing Ohio EPA permitting rules, residents were blindsided. News broke not through community engagement, but through investigative journalism and grassroots discovery 4.
 

Enter SOBE Concerned Citizens, a local coalition formed almost overnight. A multi-generational, multi-racial group of Youngstown residents, activists, faith leaders, teachers, and mothers became the city’s environmental conscience. Drawing on lessons from the past—including the polluted legacies of the Mahoning River and the collapse of the steel industry—they stood firm: not again 5.
 

Their activism galvanized a broader environmental justice movement in the region. Organizations such as FracTracker Alliance, Moms Clean Air Force, and Anthropocene Alliance lent technical, legal, and moral support. Public demonstrations, teach-ins, media campaigns, and relentless petitioning followed. A well-organized Stop SOBE campaign took shape, mapping the plant’s proposed emissions, highlighting regulatory loopholes, and confronting the Ohio EPA for failing to uphold its environmental justice commitments 6.
 

Public scrutiny intensified after the local investigative news program "101 West", produced by WFMJ 21 News, aired a damning exposé titled “Exposing Danger of SOBE Pyrolysis.” The segment revealed troubling gaps in the process. The investigation also noted a disturbing lack of transparency in SOBE’s planning process and raised questions about whether state and local agencies had done due diligence in vetting the company7.
 

“101 West” also uncovered that the proposed SOBE process would involve burning plastic-derived fuel (obtained from a sister location in downriver Lowellville) and tire-derived fuel, emitting toxic byproducts such as benzene, dioxins, and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons)—many of which are known carcinogens 7. Disturbingly, the Ohio EPA had categorized the plant as a "boiler" rather than a waste incinerator, allowing it to avoid stricter permitting and emissions controls required by federal law. Experts interviewed during the investigation emphasized that the plant's operations were more akin to incineration than recycling—challenging its core claims of environmental benefit.
 

In late 2023 and into 2024, the grassroots resistance grew louder. Armed with these revelations, residents packed city meetings, launched petitions, challenged regulatory bodies, and gave emotional testimony about what this facility could mean for their children and their future.
 

One mother, a founding member of the SOBE Concerned Citizens group, said it plainly: “We’re not against innovation. We’re against being sacrificed.” That sentiment became the heartbeat of the movement 8.
 

By early 2025, the fate of the plant remained uncertain—but the community’s resolve had already shifted the narrative. National media attention, growing legal scrutiny, and a swelling chorus of support have placed Youngstown in the spotlight as a modern-day battleground for environmental justice.
 

The story of the SOBE pyrolysis plant isn’t just about a single facility. It’s a story of what happens when a community chooses resistance over resignation. It’s about how ordinary people—armed with memory, research, and righteous anger—can expose injustice masked as progress.
 

And in Youngstown, that resistance has a name. Its name is We Are Youngstown.
 

Note: “SOBE” is reportedly named after the owner’s two daughters—a personal touch that stands in sharp contrast to the community-wide impact the plant would have.

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Update July 25, 2025: SOBE Faces Court Judgement, More Legal Issues
https://businessjournaldaily.com/sobe-faces-court-judgement-more-legal-issues/

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SOBE Energy loses $468,000 federal suit
Heating, cooling firm also is accused of passing bad check
https://www.vindy.com/news/local-news/2025/07/sobe-energy-loses-468000-federal-suit/

 

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Footnotes

1. Moms Clean Air Force. Advanced Recycling and SOBE in Youngstown, Ohio. https://www.momscleanairforce.org/advanced-recycling-youngstown-ohio/

2. FracTracker Alliance. Youngstown Residents Stand Against Pyrolysis Plant. https://www.fractracker.org/2024/05/youngstown-residents-stand-against-pyrolysis-plant-a-communitys-fight-for-environmental-justice/

3. Oil and Gas Watch. In Eastern Ohio, Environmental Justice Fight Brews Over a Tires-to-Energy Plant. https://news.oilandgaswatch.org/post/in-eastern-ohio-environmental-justice-fight-brews-over-a-tires-to-energy-plant

4. Exposure Studios. The SOBE Pyrolysis Fight: Understanding the Impact on Youngstown and the Role of the Ohio EPA. https://www.exposurestudios.org/post/the-sobe-pyrolysis-fight-understanding-the-impact-on-youngstown-and-the-role-of-the-ohio-epa

5. SOBE Concerned Citizens and Anthropocene Alliance. https://anthropocenealliance.org/sobe-concerned-citizens/

6. Stop SOBE. Campaign Timeline. https://www.stop-sobe.com/campaign-timeline

7. WFMJ 21 News – 101 West. Exposing Danger of SOBE Pyrolysis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4pdG2H9uZE

8. Community interview notes and organizing documentation. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lwG_afqNuP2uj-ouERcYHJ7JGujDejaU/edit?usp=sharing