With the visit to the city council of As Pontes the school community can understand much of the history of the twentieth century, given the social circumstances linked to its industrial condition. Thus, we will visit the Poblado de las Veigas, an impressive City Garden built between 1946 and 1962, dedicated to providing accommodation for workers in the Central, which, with an exceptionally organized hierarchical system, had all the necessary services. Also the villages of La Fraga and Barreiros, built in the 70s, will reinforce the experience.
On the other hand, they will know the important Thermal Power Station, of vital repercussion at the state level. Also interesting is the method of extraction used in the mine: bucket wheel excavators. It is a German method consisting of starting and loading by a bucket wheel excavator or roller excavator 40 meters high. The material is poured on the conveyor belts which carry it to a point called "Transfer Knot", from which it is distributed to the thermal power station or the dump, based in if it was coal or sterile.
We will also see the Ribeira Reservoir, built to regulate the Eume river channel, to guarantee a constant flow of water to the ENCASO industrial complex and to avoid the constant flooding of the town. It currently supplies the municipality, the thermal power station and the bridge industry.
With regard to the free visit to the lake, it is located in the site of the old open-air mine, where Endesa exploited the lignite from 1976 to 2007 in order to supply fuel to the plant. The Restoration Plan allows nowadays the enjoying of the fauna, in a land where there are about 180 species, with an island with ornithological reserve and another one intended to the representation of the Galician flora. For schoolchildren it will be a pleasure to discover all the vicissitudes related to the implantation of the lake and its characteristics.
Dates: from monday to friday
Hours: on request
Duration: One hour and a half, apart from the free visit to the lake
Guide: yes
Price: Free
Nº of places: There is no minimum or maximum