LA DESEMBOCADURA DEL TURIA. INFRAESTRUCTURA HIDRÁULICA Y TERRITORIO

The Turia river-mouth is a territorial unit whose boundaries are defined by the river's flowing irrigation ditches, the shores of the lagoon sited between both Turia and Júcar river-mouths, and the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Man has gradually and profoundly transformed this territory. The transformation began sometime after the 2nd century BC, and has never ceased. The guideline to understand this transformation is to follow the development of the hydraulic infrastructures that have been endlessly changing the river, the lagoon and the coastline. Man-made changes to the river were aimed at irrigation, water supply and defence against its recurrent torrential swells. Environmental alterations in the lagoon were aimed at food production, whereas those at the seafront were aimed at facilitating trade. The construction of the city of Valencia and other minor settlements went on simultaneously, growing and acquiring its own form while interspersing or overlapping with these infrastructures. An orderly analysis of the events giving rise to the construction of the various different infrastructures will allow us a better insight into the origin and the structure of this territory. We have divided the analysis into two major periods. The first one extends for almost two thousand years, from 138 a.C., date on which the city of Valencia is founded, until about 1700. When this period ended, the many built-up infrastructures had not been able to completely fulfill its objectives. The river waters already irrigated a perfect orchard, but periods of famine endangered the crops. Seasonal river swells periodically flooded the city. Supposedly fresh drinking waters were frequently unhealthy, the lagoon drainage was not efficiently controlled, and on the coast, despite many attempts, port facilities had not gone beyond building a modest wooden pier.
[Valencia: 2017]

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