Entry to Aydın village banned amid protests against geothermal plant project
Photo: MA
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Residents of the Mezeköy village in the Köşk district of the southwestern province of Aydın have been protesting against a geothermal power plant project for over a month.
The Köşk District Governor's Office on Monday (August 22) banned entry and exit to the village for seven days to "ensure public order and security."
The villagers resisting the project criticized the ban in a statement, saying, the governor "banned entries and exits so that our village can be plundered more easily."
The ban came on the same day the gendarmerie detained 18 villagers and removed a tent they had set up on the village square. Afterwards, dozers once again entered the construction site.
The detained villagers were released a day later.
Releasing a video on Twitter yesterday, the villagers said, "Vehicles of the company continue working. Our village is full of gendarmes, they have been on the streets all day. Are we invaders?"
Şirket araçları çalışmaya devam ediyor. Köyümüz jandarma dolu, gün boyu sokaklarda dolaştılar. Biz işgalci miyiz? #MezeköyJESeDireniyor pic.twitter.com/KtDzKC8D4q
— Mezeköy-Uzundere JES'e Karşı (@MezekoyJ) August 23, 2022
The project
Work started to build a geothermal power plant three kilometers away from the Mezeköy village following the expropriation as per a presidential decree issued on April 19, 2021.
After the decree, the Ministry of Environment issued a report that "environmental impact assessment (EIA) report is not necessary."
Some 200 decares of land were expropriated before the deadline to appeal against the decision expired.
The villagers filed lawsuits against both the EIA and expropriation decisions, and did not allow the construction work to start.
There are olive groves and fig trees in the expropriated land, which has "1st class agricultural area" status.
The Mezeköy village, which has 120 households and about 300 dwellers, and the Uzundere village, where 700 people live, will be affected by the project. (TY/VK)