The Săsar () is a right

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...

of the river

Lăpuș Lăpuș (formerly ''Lăpușul Românesc''; ) is a commune in Maramureș County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Lăpuș. Geography The commune is located in the southern part of the county, east of the town of Târgu ...

Maramureș County Maramureș County () is a county (județ) in Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian it is known as ''Máramaros megye'', in Ukrainian language, Ukrainian as Мараморо́щ ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It discharges into the Lăpuș in Bozânta Mare, southwest of

Baia Mare Baia Mare ( , ; ; ; ) is a Municipiu, city along the Săsar, Săsar River, in northwestern Romania; it is the capital of Maramureș County. The city lies in the region of Maramureș, a subregion of Transylvania. It is situated about from Buchare ...

.Sasar (jud. Maramures)
e-calauza.ro It is a medium-size river which flows through the cities of

Baia Sprie Baia Sprie (; , ) is a town in Maramureș County, northern Romania. Baia Sprie is situated at a distance of from Baia Mare and belongs to the Baia Mare metropolitan area. The town administers three villages: Chiuzbaia (''Kisbánya''), Satu Nou ...

and Baia Mare. Its length is and its basin size is . The river was heavily polluted with untreated sewage, agricultural fertilizer, and toxic chemicals from local mining sites, including

cyanide In chemistry, cyanide () is an inorganic chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of a carbon atom triple-bonded to a nitrogen atom. Ionic cyanides contain the cyanide anion . This a ...

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

, and

cadmium Cadmium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12 element, group 12, zinc and mercury (element), mercury. Like z ...

. 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 Săsar, locally known as the "dead river," is unsuitable for bathing, washing, or fishing. The

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

has identified the Baia Mare region as a "health risk hotspot." The Săsar flows into the Lăpuș, which in turn flows into the

Someș The Someș () or Szamos ( or ''Samosch'') is a left tributary of the Tisza in Hungary and Romania. It has a length of (including its source river Someșul Mare), of which 50 km are in Hungary.Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

via the

Tisza The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa (see below) is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. It was once called "the most Hungarian river" because it used to flow entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national bo ...

. Pollution in the Săsar thus eventually reaches Romania, Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria.

Tributaries

The following rivers are tributaries to the river Săsar: *Right: Chiuzbaia, Firiza, Usturoi, Borcut

References

External links

United Nations report on cyanide spill from the Baia Mare mine
Rivers of Romania Rivers of Maramureș County Baia Mare {{Maramureș-river-stub