In July 2019, protesters came to the village of Kirazlı, about forty kilometres away from Mount Ida, to protest against the construction of a new mine by Canadian company Alamos Gold, after the Forestry Department cleared thousands of trees to make way for the construction, despite this region being Forestry lands actively managed by the Ministry of Forests. Local people from Kirazli and other nearby villages, employed in forestry, agriculture and mining strongly support the project. Protesters began a Water and Conscience Watch on July 26. A Great Water and Conscience Meeting was then held on August 5, during which protesters entered the mining site and symbolically planted trees in front of the press. Images of the land which had been cleared of trees also caused outrage on social media. Artist Zülfü Livaneli wrote an open letter to UNESCO protesting about the destruction of the natural environment in the area.