ROME (Reuters) – The Italian government has appealed against a law passed in December by the regional government in Sardinia, which set tight limits on the development of renewable projects on the island.
The appeal to the constitutional court, announced late on Tuesday by the cabinet, is the latest move in a tug-of-war between the central government and Sardinia over green energy development.
Sardinia’s resistance against green projects echoes a backlash registered in the Spanish region of Galicia against wind developers.
“Certain provisions of the regional law are in conflict with state and European legislation on energy and cultural and landscape heritage,” the government said in a statement, alleging Sardinia’s rules also violated the Italian constitution.
Sardinia President Alessandra Todde, from the opposition Five Star Movement, rebuffed the move by the rightist government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni saying the regional administration would defend itself before the judicial system.
Sardinia’s administration passed a bill last month indicating parts of the territory where green energy developers can benefit from a fast-track permitting process.
“The law… introduces particularly restrictive rules – such as 7-kilometre buffer zones around assets considered of value for natural, historic or cultural reasons – making almost 100% of the regional territory unsuitable,” Italian non-profit environmental organisation Legambiente said in recent report.
Alleanza per il fotovoltaico, a group of solar developers working in Italy, said in a statement that the regional law targeted not only new projects but also those already granted permits, setting a dangerous example for the other regional administrations.
The regional administration in Sardinia has sought to protect the island’s landscape, agriculture and tourism against what it calls ‘speculators’, buying cheap land for green projects to re-sell projects once approved.
(Reporting by Francesca Landini and Angelo Amante; Editing by Keith Weir)
