The salt ponds of Santa Maria (Portuguese: ''Salinas de Santa Maria'') are a complex of salt evaporation ponds north of the city Santa Maria in the southernmost part of the island of Sal,

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

. It is one of two on the island, the other is near

Pedra de Lume Pedra de Lume is a village in the northeastern part of the island of Sal, Cape Verde, Sal, Cape Verde. The village is situated on the east coast, about 5 km east of the island capital Espargos. It has a small port and a lighthouse, Farol de Pe ...

. The salt ponds are a protected area as a ''protected landscape'', covering 69 hectares.Resolução nº 36/2016
Estratégia e Plano Nacional de Negócios das Áreas ProtegidasPaisagens Protegidas
Áreas protegidas Cabo Verde Santa Maria - Saline am Ortsrand 02

Santa Maria was founded in 1830 for the production of salt. Up to 30,000 tons of salt were shipped from Santa Maria each year. Most of the product was exported to Brazil, which was halted in 1887 when Brazil imposed a high tax on imported salt to protect its own salt production. The town went into a deep decline, only to recover in 1920 when a Portuguese investor resumed salt production. In 1927, salt started to be exported to the

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964. Colo ...

which remained until the nation became independent in 1961 and nationalized its salt production. Salt production started to decline and was ceased in 1984.

References

Santa Maria, Cape Verde Geography of Sal, Cape Verde Protected areas of Cape Verde {{CapeVerde-geo-stub

See also

References