A cement plant being built in a forested area in Mugla: local residents fighting for 30 years
Work continues at the integrated cement factory, construction of which began in 2021, in the Tekagac area between the BAYIR Neighborhood of Mentese district of Mugla and the Dectin Neighborhood of YATAGAN.
On the one hand, the people of the region and environmental organizations are fighting for the cancellation of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, while on the other hand, they are continuing their resistance in a tent they set up on April 13.
The first attempt to establish a cement factory in the Bayir Neighborhood began in 1992. Since then, the villagers have been fighting for the factory not to be built.
In November 2020, Yatağan and Menteşe Mayors issued a zoning status certificate and issued a building permit to the area where the cement factory will be established.
WORK BEGAN IN 2021
in 2021, construction machinery started to work to build a cement plant. Work is currently underway in the area where the factory will be established. Construction equipment is working intensively in the region. Trees in the area continue to be felled.
A villager woman said that they had been fighting against the cement factory for 30 years adding, “I don’t know where this factory came from again. I took care of this garden like a child, I raised it. No fruit will grow here when the cement powder comes tomorrow.”
There are two dams on the site of the cement factory and the mine that will be opened for raw materials. The villager said, “Can factories and mines be built where there are two dams? Is it not a shame for all that green?”
The same woman stated that they had always opposed the factory and the mine, adding: “We started opposing the factory at the age of 40. We’ve turned 70. We are still struggling.”
Villagers said that they would continue to fight.
Source: medyascope.tv/2022/06/09/muglada-ormanlik-alana-cimento-fabrikasi-kuruluyor-yerel-halk-30-yildir-mucadelede/
Excerpt translated and edited
