On Wednesday 13th October, the Maresme Waste Consortium and the company Baula Arqueologia SL signed a contract for archaeological work at the Ca la Madrona site as part of the first phase of construction of the Mataró-Maresme Circular Park.
During the work to remove pre-existing industrial material from the site of the first phase of the Circular Park at the end of 2020, archaeological remains of Roman origin were found, which led to a halt in the tendering process for the planned construction works. Since then, work has been carried out on the removal of earth to reach the stratum of the site that will allow the archaeological work to be carried out, and this work can now begin.
The archaeological work will serve to inventory and record the findings that may result from the manual excavation of the site through the corresponding scientific report, as is legally required for any archaeological intervention. Thus, the intervention will make it possible to know the scope, quality and value of the findings and the impact they may have on the construction of the Park.
The duration of the field work on the site is expected to be four months, with more than 20 qualified people working on the project. The cost of the work is €217,337.74.
Despite the deterioration of the site due to the intense industrial activity that was carried out for decades on the plot, what has been found so far suggests that these are the remains of the rustic part (livestock farming) of a Roman villa.
Once the contract has been signed and the corresponding permit has been approved by the Catalan Government, work is expected to begin at the end of October.
A pioneering project in Europe
The Mataró-Maresme Circular Park is a pioneering project in Europe, created with the aim of promoting the repair and reuse of materials and products to reduce waste production. It is expected to be built in phases – the first one, which has had to be stopped, is the one that corresponds to the preparation of the land and the construction of the ‘Remake’ Area.
The ‘Remake’ Area will include a set of free services for citizens aimed at reducing waste: an advice service for self-repair in different areas (computers and electronic devices, carpentry and furniture, bicycles, textiles, DIY, etc.), workshops and talks for the general public, as well as social inclusion activities for groups at risk.
