Planning commission tables Vanguard Renewables’ conditional-use application for anaerobic digester; staff requests safety documentation

The Middletown Planning Commission on Nov. 12 heard a lengthy public hearing on a conditional-use application for a proposed anaerobic digestion facility on a ~28–29 acre parcel in Maid Industrial Park. The project, presented by Vanguard Renewables and an applicant entity identified in the packet as “Middletown AD1” (property owner John Westheimer), would process food and dairy waste in enclosed digesters to produce pipeline-quality renewable natural gas, liquid fertilizer and solids for bedding.

Planning staff opened the item by noting the site lies in the I-2 General Industrial District and that a gas transmission pipeline and a hazardous liquid pipeline cross the parcel. Staff confirmed the use is classified under the code as manufacturing/production with caustic or hazardous materials and said that, per the city’s conditional-use standards, the applicant must supply “a list of noxious matter or chemicals used during the manufacturing process and document the safety precautions that will be used to prevent potentially hazardous chemical reactions or contamination.” Staff told the commission that those documents were not included in the application packet.

Applicant representatives described the operation as fully…