Archived: History (with a capital "H") puts an end to the story of the photovoltaic plant spanning dozens of hectares in the Seddonai and Monte Siseri areas, close to the S'Incantu di Putifigari domus de janas. So close that it breaches the 500-meter protection zone surrounding the UNESCO World Heritage site.
The Ministry of the Environment has backtracked: first, in October, it granted the green light, then, a month later, the Culture Ministry's offices reconsidered. And yesterday, the official act: a decree revoking the approval. All in just a few months.
The measure issued by the Via del Mase commission was long-awaited. But given the uncertainties surrounding renewable energy legislation, it's always best to wait for an official ruling to see how it all pans out. And it has arrived.
The document states that in February, the Special Superintendency for the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) wrote: "In addition to the negative assessments expressed in the competent opinion, in light of current legislation (...) the facility in question cannot be built in any case, as it is located within the buffer area protecting the Necropolis of Monte Siseri and S'Incantu, included in the serial site "Art and Architecture in the Prehistory of Sardinia. The Domus de Janas," officially recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as of July 12, 2025."
Apparently, no one had noticed before. Except for the committees fighting renewable energy speculation in Sardinia. One of the movement's leaders, Maria Grazia Demontis, when she learned of the project's approval in October, announced: " If the green light comes even in highly protected areas, our only option is to file complaints with the Public Prosecutor's Office." Which, in the end, proved unnecessary.
The decree states that the problem (i.e., the approval of the project) was caused by an incorrect delineation of the protected area. And now , "following the correct determination of the buffer zones for the protected assets," the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) decree has been revoked. The photovoltaic panels are not authorized: the case has been closed.
The councilor
Francesco Spanedda, Councilor for Local Government, Finance, and Urban Planning, welcomes the measure: "We immediately denounced, and promptly appealed to the Regional Administrative Court, that this measure was a very serious act," he stated, "based on flawed assumptions and imposed from above without considering the inestimable value of the area. The Ministry had to admit that our concerns were well-founded: the landscape cannot be traded for a reckless energy transition."