Santa Pola

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Santa Pola municipality
coat of arms Map of Spain
Santa Pola Coat of Arms
Santa Pola (Spain)
Finland road sign 311 (1994-2020) .svg
Basic data
Autonomous Community : Valencia
Province : Alicante
Comarca : Bajo Vinalopó
Coordinates 38 ° 11 ′  N , 0 ° 33 ′  W Coordinates: 38 ° 11 ′  N , 0 ° 33 ′  W
Height : 6  msnm
Area : 58.6 km²
Residents : 32,306 (Jan. 1, 2019)
Population density : 551.3 inhabitants / km²
Postal code : E-03130
Municipality number  ( INE ): 03121
Nearest airport : Alicante airport
administration
Mayor : Miguel Zaragoza Fernández ( PP )
Location of the municipality
Localització de Santa Pola respecte el País Valencià.png

Santa Pola is a Spanish coastal town on the Costa Blanca . It is part of the autonomous Valencian Community and the province of Alicante .

history

Santa Pola was laid out in ancient times by the Romans as a port for the further inland city of Ilici ( Elche ) and was therefore initially called Portus Ilicitanus . In 460 the vandals destroyed the last Western Roman fleet in the port ( Battle of Cartagena ).

fishing

Part of the port of Santa Pola

Santa Pola is one of the most important fishing ports on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. From 1950 to 1973 the Santa Pola fishing fleet was one of the largest in the Mediterranean. Over 130 fishing trawlers were fishing at that time. Even in the 1990s, 90 fishing boats were still registered in the port. In 2011 only 33 cutters go out to sea to cast their nets, after another 8 "patrones" gave up fishing in 2011. The reason is the increase in the price of marine diesel, the liter of which cost 39 cents in 2006, but costs 65 cents in 2011. At the same time, the prices for fish have remained stable. Trawlers from other countries can freely offer their fish in the fish auction hall in Santa Pola. The domestic fishery cannot cope with this competitive pressure. There are also bureaucratic difficulties for fishing. Since 2010, boats over 24 meters in length have had to keep electronic diaries and report their catch to Madrid every day. From 2012 these rules will also apply to ships that are already over 12 meters in length.

tourism

Tourist attractions are the fishing port and the fishing and shipping museum Museo del Mar , which is housed in the former fort in the city center. From Santa Pola ferries leave for the nearby island of Tabarca , which is, however, under the administration of the city of Alicante . Santa Pola's beaches are popular with windsurfers and kite surfers. There are numerous bars and restaurants on the beach promenade.

Salt lagoons

Salt is extracted in seawater salt pans around Santa Pola.

Biotopes

The salt lagoons of Santa Pola are also habitat for numerous species of birds, including flamingos . However, this biotope is endangered by the intensive development on this part of the Costa Blanca.

Mariano Rajoy

Mariano Rajoy , the former Prime Minister of Spain, took over the management of the land registry in Santa Pola after being voted out of office on June 20, 2018. He worked here from 1987 to 1989. The day before it had become completely surprising that, after leaving politics, he would return to the office he had never lost. According to reports, Rajoy receives 15,000 euros a month in the land registry, twice as much in his time as prime minister. The land registry manager is one of the highest paid professions in Spain. The prominent land registry manager will stay with Santa Pola for at least a year. Only then can he apply for a change of location.

Sons and daughters of the place

Web links

Commons : Santa Pola  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).
  2. ↑ Costa Blanca News: From Moncloa to Santa Pola . Ed .: Costa Blanca News. No. 1801 . Benidorm June 22, 2018, p. 21 .