Court Rejects Residents' Lawsuit to Halt Mega Solar Project in Nara

NARA, Mar 26 (News On Japan) - The Nara District Court on March 25th dismissed a lawsuit filed by residents seeking to halt the construction of a large-scale solar power facility in the town of Heguri, Nara Prefecture.

The case involved a so-called "mega solar" project, which plans to install approximately 50,000 solar panels. A total of 980 residents living in the surrounding area filed suit against the developer and the prefectural government.

The plaintiffs argued that the risk of landslides caused by heavy rainfall had not been sufficiently considered. They demanded an injunction against the construction from the developer and requested that the prefecture revoke its approval of the project.

In its ruling on March 25th, the court stated that the capacity of a newly planned regulating reservoir—a key point of contention—"cannot be deemed non-compliant with standards." It further concluded that "the prefecture’s approval of the project does not constitute an abuse or overreach of administrative discretion, and therefore the claim for an injunction premised on illegality is without merit."

The residents plan to appeal the decision.

Source: YOMIURI

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