Construction of Tesla’s first European plant has stalled in Germany due to a new problem facing an American electric car manufacturer. The Administrative Court of Frankfurt an der Oder has suspended deforestation for the construction site due to the threat to snakes and lizards living in this area reports edition Tagesspiegel.
The American manufacturer of electric cars previously received permission from local authorities for additional felling of almost 83 hectares of forest for the construction of storage facilities and laying sewer communications. However, environmentalists from the Nature Conservation and Biodiversity Union (NABU) and the Green League opposed the permit. They stated that the work could lead to the destruction of populations of coppers and nimble lizards.
Tesla assured that in preparation for construction work, all the animals had already been captured and relocated in two months. However, ecologists found it impossible to complete such a large-scale work in a short time. The head of NABU Christian Schroeder, referring to experts, pointed out that it is impossible to catch all animals even after two years of intensive fishing.
This is not the first problem that Tesla has faced in Germany. Earlier, local residents have already complained about the American company to local authorities about deforestation, and also expressed concerns about the reduction of water resources due to a large enterprise nearby. The company had to make concessions to environmentalists and revise plans for water intake and waste emissions.