A Chilean appeals court on Monday suspended a plan to build five dams and hydroelectric plants in the country’s Patagonia region.

The court ruling came in response to actions filed by environmental groups and legislators arguing that the government commission that approved the $3.2 billion dam project last month had not taken into account a technical review.

The ruling temporarily halts the government’s approval process for the project, which set off large protests around the country in recent weeks.

Opponents applauded the ruling, hoping it was a step toward scuttling it altogether.

Amanda W. Maxwell, Latin America advocate for the Natural Resources Defense Council, based in New York, said the ruling was significant because the court was “the first authority in Chile to stand up to the behemoth project and to the intense political pressure to get it built.” She said the ruling indicated that the court “values the rule of law over private business interests, and sees no need to rush to build the dams.”