A local court has ruled to halt the construction of a wind power plant in Ovacık village, which lies within the Urla district of the Aegean province of Izmir, after villagers protested against the felling of trees in a forest, Hürriyet Daily News reported.
Recently, the court had stopped the execution temporarily after the court launched an inspection of the region by a panel of experts. Protests sparked among villagers in June and multiple court cases were filed on behalf of the villagers. Residents of Ovacık had been standing watch at the forested area against construction, while after the first court decision, 20 trees were felled, the article said.
The new court decision highlighted the contradiction between the ministry’s construction plan and the Municipality of Izmir’s environmental planning, and pointed to the „potential irreparable damage that the construction could cause in the woodland, and the status of the village as the ‘first state-designated natural protected area,’“ as well as the impact on the harmony, unity and sustainability in the forest.
