Local residents and rights organisations in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority Kulp (Pasur) district of Diyarbakır (Amed) province are protesting against a controversial solar energy project that could devastate traditional livestock farming and force villagers to migrate. The 25-hectare project, granted environmental approval, is being legally challenged.
The Diyarbakır Bar Association, the Ecology Association, and the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (TMMOB) conducted an on-site investigation into the solar power plant planned in the Ağaçlı (Cixse), Kaynak (Kuruç), and Narlıca (Avdeges) neighbourhoods. The facility, covering communal grazing lands, is expected to house 31,000 solar panels, with some installations just 48 metres from residential areas.
According to experts, the project threatens the region’s main livelihood—livestock farming—by cutting off access to vital grazing lands. The investigation also highlighted risks to local biodiversity, with concerns that wildlife in the area would suffer severe habitat loss.
Residents argue that they were never consulted before the project was approved and are determined to fight the decision through legal means. The Diyarbakır Bar Association condemned the project, calling it an unjust commercial exploitation of essential agricultural land. “At a time when food security is a growing global issue, eliminating vital grazing areas for private gain is unacceptable,” the association stated. Legal action has been initiated, and protests are expected to continue.
