Münster (dpa / lnw) – Because of the lack of distance to residential buildings, the North Rhine-Westphalian Higher Administrative Court stopped the approval of two new wind turbines in Olpe. An OVG spokeswoman confirmed a corresponding urgent decision by the court on Wednesday. The district administrator of the district of Olpe approved the construction of the 230 meter high wind turbines on the grounds that they would be built in a concentration zone shown in the land use plan. So far, systems half as high have stood at the site (Az.: 7 B 304/22.AK, decision of June 28, 2022).
The OVG rejected this argument in an urgent procedure. According to the court, the concentration plan never came into force due to an incorrect announcement. “Obviously, the district of Olpe deliberately ignored this when granting the permit in order to still enable SL Windenergie GmbH to repower. Because the administrative court in Arnsberg had already determined the ineffectiveness of the land use plan in 2020,” said Harry Neumann, NRW state chairman of the Verein Naturschutzinitiative, in a statement. The association had filed an objection to the approval.
The new black-green state government has announced in its coalition agreement that it intends to gradually abolish the 1000 meter distance rule for wind turbines. If the legal situation changes, the district of Olpe could then apply to change the urgent decision of June 28th.
