NATIONAL ADMNISTRATION “ROMANIAN WATERS”

Romania key input to the Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Groundwaters under the UNECE Water Convention Somes/Szamos River Basin

CORINA COSMINA BOSCORNEA, PhD National Administration “Romanian Waters” Head of River Basin Management Plans Office, Bucharest, Romania

Ukraine - Kiev, 28 th April 2010 Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Romanian transboundary river basins

Information about transboundary river basins: •Somes/Szamos, •Mures/Maros, UKRAINE Tisza River MOLDOVA •Crisuri, basin •Banat, HUNGARY

•Siret, •Prut, •Dobrogea-Litoral , •Arges-Vedea Danube •Banat River Basin SERBIA •Buzau-Ialomita District •Jiu BULGARIA

Romanian river basins TISZA RIVER BASIN – Somes/Szamos river basins

Somes/Szamos river basin 1. General description of the Somes/Szamos river basin

Population The total area of Area in the Major Character with density in the Shared the river basin in country in km² transboundary an average area in the countries the country (km²) (%) river elevation country (persons/km 2) Romania and 15,740 16046 Somes mountain / 534 97 Hungary (98%)

• The Somes/Szamos river has its source in the Rodnei Mountains in Romania and discharges to Tisza. Land use/land cover Land cover/use (% of the part of the basin extending in Romania)

Lakes / Urban / Other forms of Forests Cropland Grassland Protected areas reservoirs industrial areas land use

54.61 (8% of the cropland 0.74 33.74 8.09 2.15 0.04 0.63 area is irrigated)

• Reservoirs in the Romanian part include the Fantanele, Tarnita, Somes Cald, Gilau, Colibita and Stramtori-Firiza reservoirs.

• Fish ponds are numerous. There are two natural water bodies: the lakes Stiucilor and Bodi-Mogosa. 2. Hydrology and hydrogeology(1)

Water resources •Surface water resources: theoretical resource 6110 mil.m 3, out of which tehnical resource which can be used is 16 % (around.971 mil.m 3) •Groundwater resources: 264.902 mil. m 3/year (average for the years 1995 to 2007)

Discharge characteristics (m3/s) Gauging station Period of time or date Qav Qmax Qmin Av: 1950-2006; Max: 15.5.1970 126 3342 4.9 Satu Mare Min: 18.12.1961

Discharge characteristics of the Somes River at the gauging station Satu Mare Mean monthly values: October: 59.5 m 3/s November: 84.2 m 3/s December: 110 m 3/s January: 99.4 m 3/s February: 152 m 3/s March: 224 m 3/s April: 240 m 3/s May: 169 m 3/s June: 139 m 3/s July: 107 m 3/s August: 68.7 m 3/s September: 56.3 m 3/s Hydrology and hydrogeology(2)

Year Total withdrawal Agriculture Domestic Industry Energy Other m3/year 2005 17.624 × 10 6 2 % 72 % 26 % 0 0 2006 17.603 × 10 6 1 % 66 % 33 % 0 0 2007 18.421 × 10 6 0 63 % 37 % 0 0

• In Somes/Szamos alluvial fan aquifer (Romanian part), drinking water supply and industry are the main groundwater uses.

General characteristics of the aquifers Predominant Areal Dominant Link with Stratigraphy and Thickness (m) Aquifer lithology or extent groundwater surface water age lithologies mean max (km2) flow direction systems Romania, the shallow (15 – 30 medium Holocene-Lower m) Upper ROSO01 is Holocene- Pleistocene alluvial Pleistocen – linked to the Lower from East surface waters: sediments of sands, Lower Holocen Pleistocene 40 130 1390 (Roamania) to Somes, clayey sands, unconfined upper Somes/Szamo West (Hungary) Homorod and gravels and even part (ROSO01) s alluvial fan Turt; and also boulders and the confined to Calinesti Lower Pleistocen reservoir (ROSO013) 3. Main problems in the basin and their relative importance (1)

• Mining (3) - 6 major mining units located in the middle part of the sub-basin, which cause a degradation of downstream water quality due to heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Hg) and hazardous priority substances. Tailing dams for mining are an additional pollution source and generate diffuse pollution in the areas with developed mining activity. • Agriculture and animal production (1) are polluting the surface water by nutrients - The monitoring of 2 wells showed (in the year of 2007) that the values of PO4 and NH4 were exceeding (the values are the maximum observed in a certain time period) Main problems in the basin and their relative importance (2)

• Hydromorphological changes (3) - 8 surface water bodies are heavily modified Main problems in the basin and their relative importance (3)

• Insufficiently collected and treated urban wastewater (3) - related to untreated or insufficiently treated urban wastewater (only 55.3% of total population is treated in wastewater treatment plants), uncontrolled waste dump- sites, especially located in rural areas Presiune (((poluator)))

4. Status and transboundary impacts related ProgrameMasuri Masuri to water quality and water quantity StareBuna Risc

Obiectivde de MediuMediu clclcl.cl. IIIIcalitate calitate Impact(((efect(efectefect) )))

Most significant factors affecting surface water and groundwater resources (Water quantity and quality) Factors Implemented measures Municipal wastewaters (e.g. BOD, Rehabilitation/building/extension of the sewerage COD, nitrogen, phosphorus) system and wastewater treatment plant Agriculture (e.g. nitrogen, phosphorus, 83.7 % from GWB is in vulnerable areas Action pesticides) Programs for vulnerable zones to nitrates (Best Practices in Agriculture Code) Industrial wastewaters (BOD, COD, Reduction of heavy metals from mining by: heavy metals, hydrocarbons) rehabilitation of the wastewater treatment plants; mine closing 5. Implemented and planned response measures and gaps (1)

Legal and policy framework at the national and transboundary level • Bi- and multilateral transboundary agreements with all neighbouring countries  Agreement between Romania and Hungary Governments on cooperation for the protection and sustainable use of border waters, Budapest, September 15, 2003 (GD n0r. 577/ 15.04.2004)  Declaration by Ministers of Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Yugoslavia and Slovakia for establishing Forum Tisa flood, signed in Budapest on May 25, 2001  Budapest Initiative (adopted at the Prime Ministers) to strengthen international cooperation for sustainable management of floods, signed in Budapest on December 1, 2002  Convention between Romania, Czech Republic Government, Government RRS Yugoslavia, the USSR Government and the Government of the Republic of Hungary on the protection of River Tisza and its tributaries from pollution, signed in Szeged on May 28, 1986 - HCM nr. 136 / 12.07.1986 • National laws/regulations: WFD – transposed in Water law nr 107/1996, modified and completed with 310/2004 , 112/2006 and 3/2010; all European water directives were transposed in Romanian legislation • National strategies – Somes-Tisa River Basin Management plans, Somes-Tisa River Basin Planning (quantitive) , Strategy for flooding and drought 5. Implemented and planned response measures and gaps (2)

Institutional framework • Institutional organization of the national level (competent authorities – Ministry of Environment and Forests and National Administration “Romanian Waters”) and river basin level (Somes-Tisa River Basin administration unit), 5 counties Water Management Systems • Implemented measures :  Joint bodies on transboundary waters (Hydrotechnical Commission) for water management with Hungary  Agreement of water quantity and quality survey  Harmonisation process through elaboration of the Danube River Basin Management Plan and Tisza River Basin Management Plan

Non structural management instruments • Water safety plans - industrial users have Action Plans to prevent and reduce the accidental pollution; • On going vulnerability mapping for land use planning • Good Practices for Agriculture Code is applied by the localities from vulnerable zones according to Somes River Basin Management Plan • Establishment of protection zones for drinking water supply (aprox 90% of groundwater used for supplying the population has protection zones). 5. Implemented and planned response measures and gaps (3)

Structural/ technological measures • Constructions / modernization of waste water treatment plants • Applying the Action Programs for vulnerable zones to nitrates (Best Practices in Agriculture Code)

Monitoring of transboundary waters : RO- for exchange data: • 2 surface water monitoring transboundary stations • 13 ground water monitoring drillings

Involvement of stakeholders: • River Basin Committee – parliament of water with main “actors” in the water management field • Awareness-raising and education • Public participation and private sector involvement during 2008-2009 concening the River Basin management Plan 6. Expected future trends

Following the implementation of measures there will be:
an increasing of the water demand for all users till 2020, except the irrigation purpose which will be almost the same;
a decreasing pollution level for almost all pollutants till 2015, except for nitrogen compounds, copper and zinc, obviously in the lower part of the rivers
Despite the improvement of water quality in the last decade, mostly due to decreasing industrial production , significant water-quality problems remain, improvement expected till 2021 Thank you for kind attention!

National Administration "Apele Române" 6, Edgar Quinet Street, District 1, code 0100180, Bucharest, Romania http://www.rowater.ro