Two residents and a farmer, situated or living on the outskirts of an open pit mine, challenged a decision by the approval authorities that allowed company RWE Power AG to make excavation arrangements on the farmer’s property. In its decision the Higher Administrative Court stated that the applicants had not presented any further arguments or evidence, sufficient to overturn or challenge the accuracy of the decision of the lower court thereby dismissing the complaint as unfounded. The lower court had previously held that the legislature’s decision in favour of lignite production and its use for energy production was compatible with the constitutional requirement of climate protection. The court held that the applicants’ requests were largely based on climate policy demands with no basis in current law and should therefore be addressed to the legislature. The court said that the applicants failed to show alternative means (open-cast mines) to meet the necessary needs for brown coal.
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