The influence of the state government on the legal appeal process for the wind turbines planned on the Taunus ridge is likely to have a parliamentary aftermath.

The FDP in the state parliament will get to the bottom of the matter, announced faction leader René Rock on Friday.

"The two ministers must justify their actions."

Ewald Hetrodt

Correspondent for the Rhein-Main-Zeitung in Wiesbaden.

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As reported, Economics Minister Tarek Al-Wazir and Environment Minister Priska Hinz (both Die Grünen) instructed the Darmstadt Regional Council to remove aspects such as groundwater and monument protection from the grounds of appeal.

With that, those of state officials and a commissioned law firm fell under the table.

The Ministry of Economics stated that the appeal was only made because the Wiesbaden Administrative Court had declared the South Hessian partial plan for renewable energy to be null and void.

"The actions of the two ministers are monstrous," said Rock.

He recalled that the proceedings were also about the Hessian taxpayers' money.

If the country is defeated, there is a risk of compensation claims amounting to 34 million euros.

"Just let it fall down at the back"

The question arises, "whether 34 million euros in tax money should be slated to a wind power operator that is politically close to the Greens".

If the state government takes its task seriously, it must be its goal not to have to pay this sum.

“To do this, she has to trust her lawyers and let them cite all the relevant facts.” But the ministers would have “just let her fall down because the content doesn't suit them,” said Rock.

Carsten Gödel, chairman of the environmental and nature conservation association “Rettet den Taunuskamm” spoke of a “scandalous event”.

The ministries act with the aim of "losing the process for political reasons".

For this, compensation payments in the millions would be accepted.

That is unacceptable, said Gödel.

The mayor of Taunusstein, Sandro Zehner (CDU), stated that it was wise to go into the revision also on the part of the city.

Zehner called the position taken by Hinz “very absurd”.

She had the positions on the protection of groundwater drawn up by the state officials and the commissioned law firm deleted because she had received an expert opinion commissioned by her in which a contrary view was taken.

Thereafter, the planned wind farm does not conflict with any water law reasons.

Three drinking water tunnels endangered

Zehner pointed out that among the planned wind turbines there were three drinking water tunnels, which are crucial for the supply of his city with 30,000 inhabitants.

From discussions with the water procurement companies, he knows that there is no substitute if the water is contaminated, for example due to incidents during the construction or operation of wind turbines.

This would not only affect the citizens, but also large food companies such as Dittmann and Brita.

The endangerment of the groundwater is one of the reasons why the regional council rejected the application for the construction of the wind farm at the end of 2016.

The Berlin law firm Noerr, commissioned by the state, wanted to assert this point.

In a draft text of March 25, 2021 it is stated that the wind farm is planned on a special subsoil. The Taunus quartzite is a poorly cleaning layer of fissured rock that, as an aquifer, allows a relatively high flow rate and only has a limited filter function. The constellation is "unique in Hesse", says the draft text that was rejected by the Environment Minister.