The Minister of Culture is to have the final word on classifying the ancient Roman site of Balsa as an area of public interest, thus protecting it from further damage by invasive agricultural practices.
The process has started with an entry in Diário da República on May 9, suggesting that a 233 hectare area near Luz da Tavira in the eastern Algarve should be protected, rather than the current 53 hectares.
The announcement has resulted from the efforts of the Regional Directorate of Culture for the Algarve which helped stop a Spanish fruit company installing greenhouses and digging irrigation trenches at Quinta da Torre D'Aires, potentially destroying parts of the ancient Roman port that lies under the ground.
This classification action comes after decades of damaging activity as the land has remained under private ownership and was never classified adequately as one of the Algarve’s hidden treasures.
The Regional Director of Culture said the request to hugely increase the protection zone partly resulted from the geophysical survey carried out by the Huelva based fruit grower, Surexport, in 2016.
This non-invasive survey showed some promising underground remains and early reports from a recent dig by local specialist company Archaeofactory has confirmed the area to be an historically important sit.
There is some protection already in place as three Special Protection Areas were established in 2011, but were close to useless as they allowed farming to continue as a water supply system has been installed to irrigate polytunnnels, fruit trees and vineyards.
There is now a period of public consultation and the Directorate General of Cultural Heritage will prepare the final assessment for the minister’s 'yes or no.'
But is this area the location of Balsa. Opinions vary with on-site archaeologist Vítor Dias commenting to Sul Informaçao that there has never been a systematic archaeological survey to define, once and for all, if Torre d'Aires, almost on the edge of the Ria Formosa, is the location of Balsa.
The result of the current archaeological dig may well sort fact from fiction.
If successful, this expanded classification area will be a major step forward for Balsa which has the potential to be a magnet for archaeologists, general tourists and those interested in the Algarve’s period of Roman occupation.
