What happened
An amendment to the Wetland Protection Regulation has created a regulatory category for artificial wetlands and opened the way for renewable energy generation facilities to be permitted within them.
Under the revised regulation, an artificial wetland is a storage facility with wetland characteristics that was constructed for recreation, drinking water, other water uses, treatment, agricultural irrigation-water supply or electricity production.
The change adds a provision to the rules governing sustainable-use zones. It states that renewable energy generation facilities may be authorised in artificial wetlands. The reported scope includes solar photovoltaic and hydropower installations.
The amendment was reported by Yeşil Ekonomi.
Why it matters
The revised framework gives project developers a potential permitting route for renewable generation at qualifying storage sites that meet the new artificial-wetland definition.
Developers considering such projects should first determine whether the proposed location has the required wetland characteristics and was created for one of the listed purposes. They should also assess how the sustainable-use-zone requirements apply to the planned facility.
