Board established to oversee Turkey's olive groves amid opposition criticism

A parliament commission, founded to discuss the contentious "Production Reform Draft Law," has decided to establish an "Olive Grove Preservation Board" following the removal of a controversial article that would ease the path to industrial activities on protected olive groves. 

The commission accepted 42 articles of the 76-article draft law in a late night session on May 31, where heated debates have been taking place for three days.

The newly formed board will supervise investments on oil groves and prepare reports on investment demands.

The board will be composed of nine members from related ministries, university agriculture faculties, chambers of agriculture, chambers of commerce, and exporter associations.

However, a member of the board from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) said it would be unable to protect olive groves. 

"Olive groves are no longer under legal protection. That has been ended. It is the same for meadows," CHP Bursa deputy Orhan Sarıbal said in a June 1 press conference attended by the other CHP members of the commission.

A proposed article, which called for the extracting of groves of one decare and with less than 15 olive trees from the legal definition of olive grove, was removed from the draft on May 31.

Other articles ban accommodation and tourism facilities from being built on olive groves, and the draft law includes a provision for industrial investments including mining. It stated that any industrial facility that produces chemical waste, dust or smoke that could harm olive trees cannot be built within 3 kilometers of olive groves. 

However, an article also states that the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock can permit industrial...