Sasar River
Encyclopedia
The Săsar River is a medium-size river which crosses the Baia Mare region of Romania
and
flows through the city of Baia Mare
in Maramureş County
.
The river is heavily polluted with untreated sewage, agricultural fertilizer, and toxic chemicals from local mining sites, including cyanide
, arsenic
, lead
, and cadmium
. One notable incident occurred on January 30, 2000, when a tailings impoundment at the Baia Mare mine burst, releasing 50 to 100 tons of cyanide and heavy metals into the river. The Sasar, locally known as the "dead river," is unsuitable for bathing, washing, or fishing. The World Health Organization
has identified the Baia Mare region as a "health risk hotspot."
The Săsar River flows into the Lăpuş River, which in turn flows into the Someş River
. The Someş is a tributary of the Danube
. Pollution in the Sasar thus eventually reaches Romania, Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and
flows through the city of Baia Mare
Baia Mare
Baia Mare is a municipality in northwestern Romania and the capital of Maramureş County. The city is situated about 600 kilometres from Bucharest, the capital of Romania, 70 kilometres from the border with Hungary and 50 kilometres from the border with Ukraine...
in Maramureş County
Maramures County
Maramureș is a county of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.- History :* The 10th century frontier county of Borsova was founded by Stephen I of Hungary. Since then Máramaros served as the north-eastern border of the Hungarian Kingdom until 1920, the Trianon Peace...
.
The river is heavily polluted with untreated sewage, agricultural fertilizer, and toxic chemicals from local mining sites, including cyanide
Cyanide
A cyanide is a chemical compound that contains the cyano group, -C≡N, which consists of a carbon atom triple-bonded to a nitrogen atom. Cyanides most commonly refer to salts of the anion CN−. Most cyanides are highly toxic....
, arsenic
Arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...
, lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
, and cadmium
Cadmium
Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, bluish-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Similar to zinc, it prefers oxidation state +2 in most of its compounds and similar to mercury it shows a low...
. One notable incident occurred on January 30, 2000, when a tailings impoundment at the Baia Mare mine burst, releasing 50 to 100 tons of cyanide and heavy metals into the river. The Sasar, locally known as the "dead river," is unsuitable for bathing, washing, or fishing. The World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
has identified the Baia Mare region as a "health risk hotspot."
The Săsar River flows into the Lăpuş River, which in turn flows into the Someş River
Someş River
The river Someş flows through Romania and Hungary.It rises from two headstreams, the Someşul Mare, in the Rodna Mountains in Bistriţa-Năsăud County and the Someşul Mic in the Apuseni Mountains of Cluj County...
. The Someş is a tributary of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. Pollution in the Sasar thus eventually reaches Romania, Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria.
External links
Maps
- Harta judeţului Maramureş http://www.harta-turistica.ro/map.php?ID=36&harta=Judetul%20Maramures
- Harta muntii Gutâi http://harti.mielu.ro/gutii.html