A mega reef to protect Nora's treasures from the fury of the sea and the inexorable advance of coastal erosion. The Municipality of Pula has completed the €14 million executive project for the construction of a new 260-meter coastal defense barrier, designed to protect the precious archaeological remains overlooking the western sector of the Capo di Pula peninsula, with particular attention to the area near the promontory of the Temple of Aesculapius . The project represents the natural completion and enhancement of the barrier system installed in 2015 and is designed to last for 100 years. The work is pending approval from the Regional Department of Environmental Protection.
The route extends from the root of the Aesculapian Barrier to the beach on the northwest side of the peninsula. Of the total 260 meters, approximately 140 meters will overlap existing structures, while 120 meters will constitute a new extension .
The structure of the work includes a base foundation, an external layer of boulders (weighing between one and one thousand five hundred kg) to contain storm surges and a concrete wall behind the cliff.
Works that integrate with the landscape have been chosen. The reef will not use square concrete blocks, but natural andesite boulders sourced from local quarries. The colors of the materials (from dark gray to gray-green and gray-purple) will allow the work to blend in with the promontory. The project also offers reassurance to the marine ecosystem: the offshore work will only involve seabeds free of Posidonia oceanica meadows. And all activities will be constantly supported by specialized marine biologists to monitor local fauna and flora during the work . Measures will also be taken to prevent damage to any buried artifacts.
«The aim is to distance the coastline and prevent the sea from definitively entering the archaeological park», declared the mayor of Pula Walter Cabasino when presenting the project , «we are sure that through the wall in the area of the eastern thermal baths, and the underwater piers in front of the Roman forum, we will be able to protect the immense historical and cultural heritage of Nora».
