(FORTUNE Magazine) – The soft-spoken mayor of Stedtfeld, a small town (pop. 600) in the former East Germany, has found that protecting the community's environment is as tough under the new capitalist system as it was under the communists. Christian Kockert, 34, who is taking a sabbatical from his regular job as pastor of the local Saint Margaretha Lutheran Church, has lost his battle with General Motors' Opel subsidiary, which wants to come into town and build an extension of the factory it runs in neighboring Eisenach. The addition would occupy a six-acre valley owned by Stedtfeld, land the mayor had targeted for a recreation center. Says he: ''I wanted to prevent Stedtfeld from being turned into an industrial suburb.'' Kockert fought a similar battle when he was pastor, vainly opposing the pollution created by the then state-run auto factory in Eisenach that turned out Wartburg cars. The town council elected him mayor in February. But a stormy town meeting in September made it clear that the general electorate didn't like what Kockert was doing. Reason: The Opel addition promises 1,000 jobs. As in the rest of this half of Germany, unemployment stands at 30%. Kockert backed down and agreed to sell the land. The price has yet to be fixed. Many townsfolk are suggesting that Kockert resign. To which he rejoins, ''If they think that they can just go along without me, they've got another think coming.''