Top Turkish court suspends law opening olive groves for energy facilities

Turkey’s Council of State ordered a stay of execution Oct. 28 for a controversial bill that opened olive groves across the country for the construction of energy facilities, amid disputes between local producers and energy firms looking to open new plants.

The top court argued that the provision contradicts the purpose of existing legislation, which protects olive groves and aims to increase the production of olives.

The new law has recently sparked staunch protests in Soma, the coal capital of the Aegean, which suffered the worst industrial disaster in Turkey's history in May, resulting in the deaths of 301 workers.

The construction company Kolin has been cutting down hundreds of olive trees to build a coal plant near the village of Yırca in Soma district, despite local opposition. Pictures of villagers being beaten and attacked with tear gas by guards hired by Kolin have prompted an outcry among activists.

Lawyers representing the olive producers who took the bill to appeal said they would now file a complaint against companies that do not respect the decision by continuing to cut down olive trees.

“The ruling creates a precedent. There can’t be any plant or mine placed in an olive grove,” said lawyer Hüseyin Enis Dinçeroğlu.

After controversy erupted over the new law, officials said Turkey needed the measure despite the fact it meant the destruction of olive groves.

In a statement last July, the Energy Ministry said the bill was necessary for the construction of Turkey’s first nuclear plant, which is planned to be built in the southern coast.

The previous regulation only allowed the construction of renewable energy facilities at a distance of at least three kilometers from...