Residents of Dolní Řasnice and Krásný Les in Czechia vote for wind farm construction

Residents of Dolní Řasnice and Krásný Les in the Liberec Region voted in referendums yesterday in favor of building wind turbines. They confirmed the results of an earlier poll. Had the referendums gone the other way, the municipalities would have had to pay W.E.B. Wind Energy, the company planning the construction, for the failed investment and breach of contract. Both referendums are valid and binding on the local councils.

Under the law, a referendum is valid if at least 35 percent of eligible voters take part. Its result is binding on the local council if a majority of those who vote support it and at least 25 percent of all eligible voters vote in favor.

In Dolní Řasnice, 443 people were eligible to vote. A total of 308 cast ballots, of which 305 were valid. They answered the question: “Do you agree that the Dolní Řasnice local council should take no further steps, within its powers, toward building wind turbines in the municipality?” A total of 234 residents voted “NO” and 71 voted “YES”. “I’m certainly glad the referendum took place calmly. I’d like to thank residents for turning out in such large numbers, and I’m glad they confirmed the result of the poll,” Mayor Marek Kratochvíl (Sportovci) told the Czech News Agency (ČTK). He said the referendum was held because some people had considered the earlier poll insufficiently transparent.