The Timok River Basin in Serbia

UNECEWorkshoponIntegrated Transboundary WaterResources ManagementinSEE, Sarajevo,1820May,2009

DraganaNinković,Dipl.Ing. DušanDobričić,Dipl.Ing. Content

1. Institutional and legal framework

2. Location of the Timok RB

3. General characteristics of the Nisava catchment

4. Hydrology, hydrogeology, aquifers

5. WFD implementation, Surface waters

6. Main pressures

7. Status, measures Institutional and legal framework

• Legal framework: – Law on Water, Law on Ministries • Water management responsible institution: – Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management , Directorate for Water • Watermanagementpolicy • Multipurposewaterusage • Waterregime • Protectionfromwater • Waterprotectionmeasures • Internationalcooperation • OtheractivitiesaccordingtotheLawonWater • Other Ministries responsible for certain aspects of water management: – Ministry for Environment and Spatial Planning – Ministry of Health – Ministry for Governance and Local Governance – Ministry for infrastructure Institutional and legal framework Water management organization

Goverment of Republic of Serbia

Republic MAFWM - Hydro-meteorological DIRECTORATE Service FOR WATER

Public Water Company Public Water Company SRBIJAVODE VODE VOJVODINE

Water Center Water Center Danube-Tisza-Dunav SAVA - DUNAV MORAVA system

Water Companies Institutional and legal framework International cooperation

Bilateral agreements • Existing(Hungary,Romania, Bulgaria – allfrommid.50’s);should beadoptedinaccordancewithEUlegislation • Planned(Croatia,Bosnia&Herzegovina,Macedonia,Montenegro)

Multilateral agreements • Danube River: • ICPDR (TheConvention on Cooperationfor the Protectionand SustainableUseoftheRiverDanube, Sofia,1994) • DANUBECOMMISSION(1948,BelgradeConvention) • Sava River: • INTERNATIONAL SAVARIVERBASINCOMMISSION (Framework AgreementontheSavaRiverBasin,KranjskaGora2002) Institutional and legal framework The most important water issues to be solved

New Water Law, due to:

Lack of harmony between the current Water Law and other laws and regulations Unresolved territorial and other forms of jurisdiction Inability to implement transformation of ownership in the manner set out in the current Law Harmonization with the EU WFD

Financing Capacity building Investments Maintana nce International cooperation Location of the Timok RB

The Timok sub basin 4498 km2 General characteristics

• 3 sub-catchments • Area – total: 4620 km2 – in RS: 4498 km2 (97%) – in BG: 122 km2 (3%)

• Monitoring: RHMSS – quantity: 9 stations quality: 5 stations General characteristics CLC land use Hydrology

• 9 monitoring stations • mean annual discharge: 29.41 m3/s 3 • Q95 : 1.27 m /s 3 • Q100 : 1091 m /s Hydrogelogy

Timok RB belongs to Eastern Serbia HG Unit

Most important aquifers are formed in alluvial deposits of rivers Veliki Timok, Crni Timok and Beli Timok (sandygravel deposits 210 m thickness, covered by semipermeable clayey sandsediments(upto3metersthick).

Neogene sediments cover significant part of Veliki Timok basin(>500km 2 ),representedby Torton and Sarmatian deposits. Lithological composition is sand, gravel, clays, conglomeratesandlimestones,thickness200m to 650 m. These geological formations contain several aquifers, separated with low permeable layers.

Fissured aquifers are in north, west and south partofthebasin(Beli Timok),thicknessofover 1000m,representedwithgabro anddiabaz. WFD implementation Transboundary GW bodies

• 23 Groundwater bodies delineated • size: from 35 km 2 to 555 km 2 • in fissured, karst and intergranular porosity aquifers.

Fissured 52%

Intergranular 22%

Karst 26% GW problems

Groundwater regime in alluvial deposits is under direct influence of surface water courses. Although average water level fluctuations are approx. 1 m, there are cases of extreme level rising. In spring period GW levels are near or above ground surface. Groundwater quality is influenced by the quality of surface waters. Deteriorated quality is present downstream of town of Zajecar and Rgotina (confluence of Borska river and Timok river), there is increased content of Fe, Mn, NO3, heavy metals. WFD implementation Surface waters

Activities performed so far (rivers with catcment area > 100 km2)

•identification of surface waters categories •river typology •delineation of river water bodies •provisional identification of HMWB •identification of pressures •risk assessment for large rivers (Timok) WFD implementation Surface waters bodies Main pressures

HYMO: • large dams (Grliste , Borska) • flood protection structures and river training works

Point sources: • industrial sources (RTB Bor as a “black spot”)

Risk assessment (only for the Timok river) • 2 of 4 water bodies possibly at risk from organic pollution, hazardous substances or nutrients • 1 WB at risk from nutrients Status, measures

• No status assessment so far in Serbia

• List of measures only as general considerataions at the Danube river basin level Thanks for your attention…

confluence of the Timok and the Danube Rivers