The actions will allow these traditional constructions to be preserved and their protection against the effects of the marine environment to be strengthened.

Ports de les Illes Balears (PortsIB), an entity under the Ministry of the Sea and Water Cycle of the Government of the Balearic Islands, is carrying out the remodeling and rehabilitation works on two slipways located on Almirall Riera Alemany Avenue in the Port of Andratx. The budget for the works completed to date amounts to €36.141,49 (VAT included).

The visit to monitor the works was attended by the Minister of the Sea and the Water Cycle, Juan Manuel Lafuente; the Mayor of Andratx, Estefanía Gonzalvo; the Director General of Ports and Maritime Transport, Toni Mercant; the manager of PortsIB, Kico Villalonga, and the First Deputy Mayor of the City Council, Joan Forteza.

The actions aim to guarantee the conservation of these traditional constructions historically linked to the fishing and maritime activity of the municipality, which are highly exposed to the conditions of the marine environment, such as constant humidity, saline aerosols and salt crystallization processes.

In this regard, Councillor Lafuente highlighted that "this action allows us to preserve an emblematic element of Andratx's traditional maritime heritage and to act preventively against the effects that salinity and the passage of time have on these constructions so characteristic of our ports."

The mayor of Andratx, Estefanía Gonzalvo, expressed her gratitude for the project spearheaded by PortsIB and the Balearic Government, emphasizing that “these breakwaters are part of the maritime heritage and the traditional image of the Port of Andratx, and it is important to continue working to conserve and protect them from the ravages of time and the effects of the sea.” Gonzalvo also praised “the sensitivity shown towards these emblematic structures, so closely linked to the maritime history of the municipality.”

The work was carried out based on a technical diagnostic report prepared after a specific inspection of the escars, which detected various structural and surface pathologies. Among the main problems identified were localized cracks, fissures in the coatings, salt efflorescence, persistent dampness, and degradation of the marés stone and the original mortars.

Technical studies and laboratory analyses confirmed the presence of halite, sodium chloride or common salt, as the main agent of material degradation, a common phenomenon in constructions located on the seafront and especially exposed to environmental salinity.

So far, the actions carried out have consisted of the mechanical cleaning of the walls, the removal of encrusted salts, treatments to limit the migration of moisture and salts, as well as the placement of metal staples resistant to the marine environment to stabilize the detected cracks.

Currently, PortsIB is evaluating the application of a specific breathable coating that will protect the escars from future damage caused by salinity and, at the same time, improve their aesthetic integration and heritage conservation.

With this intervention, the Government reaffirms its commitment to the conservation of traditional maritime heritage and to the maintenance of port infrastructure in ports under regional management.