30 miles inland from Roquetas de Mar, the boom town of El Ejido stretches roughly 12 km. along the N 340 motorway, which crosses what was once a wilderness of salt-flats and sand dunes and which is now a sea of plastic. 64,000 acres of polythene, supported by eucalyptus posts, provide the environment for the year-round production of fruit and salad vegetables, exported to northern Europe, making El Ejido the most prosperous area in Andalucia. This expansion began in the 1970s, bringing in workers from all over Spain and beyond, who invested in plots of land. Around 10,000 immigrants, mainly from Morocco, provide much of the labour. In 1980, the population was 2,000 and it is now 50,000.
The town boasts award-winning contemporary architecture, particularly around the main square where the town hall, designed by Francisco Jose Garrido and Jose Medialdea, stands. House number 69 in the street of the Inmaculada is a family home which won Jose Jesus Martin Palmero the prize for the best designed and constructed domestic building.
Every spring, the town becomes the stage for the International Theatre Festival and July is the time for a festival commemorating the patron saints Isadro Labrador and Marcos.
Despite its modernity, the history of the area has not been forgotten. Excavations in 1985 revealed Neolithic occupation from about 3,000 B.C. to the Bronze Age in 1,500 B.C. This site, known as the city of Murji, was re-colonised by the Romans from the 4th century B.C. to the 4th century A.D. At the Ciavieja Archaeological Park, part of the town’s Cultural Centre, the remains of a large Roman mosaic, together with other artefacts are on view; while at the other end of the town, near the motorway, is El Daimun, a Roman family’s mausoleum.