New development in Akbelen: Court overturns decision

An important development has occurred in the struggle of environmental advocates defending Muğla's Akbelen Forest. A notable decision has been issued by a higher court regarding the legal process of the mining site that provides coal to the thermal power plants operated by YK Enerji, a partnership between Limak Holding and İÇTAŞ.

COURT OVERTURNS DISMISSAL

In the summer of 2023, a 780-decare area in the Akbelen Forest was destroyed to meet the coal needs of YK Enerji. The lawsuit filed with the request to cancel the environmental permits and license documents of the Kemerköy Thermal Power Plant, which uses coal from this area, had previously been dismissed by the Muğla 2nd Administrative Court.

However, the residents of İkizköy, determined to protect their forest, took the decision to a higher court. The 7th Administrative Case Chamber of the İzmir Regional Administrative Court identified procedural and legal irregularities in the local court's dismissal decision and ruled for the case to be re-examined. With this decision, the power plant's environmental permit and licensing process will be retried.

EACH DOCUMENT TO BE EVALUATED INDIVIDUALLY

With the decision of the İzmir Regional Administrative Court, the permit processes of the Kemerköy Thermal Power Plant will be evaluated one by one. Whether there were deficiencies in the granting of environmental permits will be examined in detail.

Pınar Gayretli, the lawyer for the environmental advocates, stated the following regarding the decision:

“This is a very important and appropriate decision taken by the Regional Administrative Court. The case will be heard again in Muğla. This time, we expect an expert examination to be conducted, the evidence we presented to be evaluated, and the deficiencies in the environmental permits and licensing process to be revealed.”

News Source: 12punto