Private Forest Owners v. Thuringia

The complainants, a group of forest property owners in the federal state of Thuringia, submitted a complaint to the German Constitutional Court. They argued that a section of the Thuringia Forest Act, prohibiting, without exception, the change of use of forest areas for the construction of wind turbines, thereby preventing any construction of wind turbines in forest areas. The land in question was damaged in part due to pest infestations and had to be cleared. The complainants were thus seeking for alternative uses of their land. The Constitutional Court held the section of the Thuringian Forest Act under review as incompatible with the German Grundgesetz (Basica Law; Constitution), declaring it null and void.