Plans for polo field development in Campos have run up against the opposition of the environmental group GOB, which has called for fields and new agrotourism accommodation at Sa Barralina to be stopped. In particular, it objects to attempts to legalise the existing polo field, which has in fact been operating for several years.
As for the agrotourism, which is planned for a natural area of special interest, the possibility for this has come about, says GOB, thanks to the tourism law. Under this, the organisation maintains, authorisation was envisaged without there being a declaration of general interest which would exempt it from complying with maximum building limits on the particular plot of land.
GOB goes on to say that it is an absurdity for the tourism law to have “perverse” effects on protected rural land, while it is also drawing attention to water resources in the area which it considers to be incompatible with polo field maintenance requirements. It observes that the tourism law has allowed agrotourism legalisation, while the former government’s land and farming laws had been intended to permit the legalisation of a polo field that had been in operation for years.
Three weeks ago, the town hall in Campos made public three projects related to agrotourism and polo fields at Sa Barralina. These are to legalise the existing field and the construction of a second one as well as the building of the agrotourism. The polo fields are under one company name and the agrotourism under another.