The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
in
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
Southeast Europe
Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (al ...
, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...
. It flows through
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
,
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
and along its border with
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
, and finally through
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, feeding into the Danube in its capital,
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
. The Sava forms the main northern limit of the
Balkan Peninsula
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, and the southern edge of the
Pannonian Plain
The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only the ...
.
The Sava is long, including the
Sava Dolinka headwater rising in
Zelenci
Zelenci Springs is a nature reserve near the town of Kranjska Gora, in the far northwestern corner of Slovenia. It is the source of the Sava Dolinka River, a tributary of the Danube.
At Zelenci Springs, water from underground Nadiža Creek (or ...
, Slovenia. It is the largest
tributary of the Danube by volume of water, and second-largest after the
Tisza
The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa, is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. Once, it was called "the most Hungarian river" because it flowed entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national borders.
The Tisza be ...
in terms of catchment area () and length. It drains a significant portion of the
Dinaric Alps
The Dinaric Alps (), also Dinarides, are a mountain range in Southern and Southcentral Europe, separating the continental Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They stretch from Italy in the northwest through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herz ...
region, through the major tributaries of
Drina
The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long Balkans river, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Alps whi ...
,
Bosna,
Kupa
The Kupa () or Kolpa ( or ; from la, Colapis in Roman times; hu, Kulpa) river, a right tributary of the Sava, forms a natural border between north-west Croatia and southeast Slovenia. It is long, with its border part having a length of and t ...
,
Una
Una and UNA may refer to:
Places
* 160 Una, the asteroid "Una", an asteroid named after the Faerie Queene character
* Una River (disambiguation), numerous rivers
* Una, Himachal Pradesh, a town in India
** Una, Himachal Pradesh Assembly constit ...
,
Vrbas,
Lonja
Lonja is a river in central Croatia, a left tributary of the Sava. It is long and its basin covers an area of .
The Lonja rises in the Kalnik mountain in northern Croatia, southeast of Novi Marof, at . It flows westward until turning south near ...
,
Kolubara
The Kolubara ( sr-cyr, Колубара, ) is a long river in western Serbia; it is an eastern, right tributary to the Sava river.
General overview
Kolubara is formed by the two small rivers Obnica and Jablanica.
''Obnica'' is the river in W ...
,
Bosut and
Krka. The Sava is one of the longest
rivers in Europe and among the longest tributaries of another river.
The population in the Sava River basin is estimated at 8,176,000, and is shared by three capital cities:
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...
,
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
and Belgrade. The Sava is about -navigable for larger vessels: from the confluence of the Kupa in
Sisak a few kilometers below Zagreb.
The name is believed to be derived from the Proto-Indo-European root ''*sewh
1'' ('to take liquid', whence the English word ''sup'') and the ending ''*eh
2'', so that it literally means 'that which waters
he ground. The
ancient Greeks
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...
called it Saos ( grc, Σάος).
Sources
![Sava at Okroglo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Sava_at_Okroglo.jpg)
The Sava River is formed from the
Sava Dolinka and the
Sava Bohinjka
The Sava Bohinjka is a headwater of the Sava River in northwestern Slovenia. At in length, it is the shorter of the two headwaters that become the Sava River in Radovljica, the other being the -long Sava Dolinka.
Course
The Sava Bohinjka origin ...
headwaters in northwest
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
. The drainage basin has other key
tributaries
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or 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 drain the surrounding drainag ...
, including the
Sora, the
Tržič Bistrica
The Tržič Bistrica ( sl, Tržiška Bistrica) is a river in Upper Carniola, Slovenia. The river is in length. It starts in the Karawanks, runs through the Dovžan Gorge and the town of Tržič, and joins the Sava near Podbrezje.
References
E ...
and the
Radovna rivers—flowing into the Sava at
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...
s as far east downstream as
Medvode
Medvode (; german: Zwischenwässern''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 110.) is a town in Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality o ...
.
The Sava Dolinka rises at the
Zelenci
Zelenci Springs is a nature reserve near the town of Kranjska Gora, in the far northwestern corner of Slovenia. It is the source of the Sava Dolinka River, a tributary of the Danube.
At Zelenci Springs, water from underground Nadiža Creek (or ...
Pools near
Kranjska Gora
Kranjska Gora (; german: Kronau) is a town in northwestern Slovenia, on the Sava Dolinka River in the Upper Carniola region, close to the Austrian and Italian borders. It is the seat of the Municipality of Kranjska Gora.
Name
Kranjska Gora wa ...
, Slovenia, in a valley separating the
Julian Alps
The Julian Alps ( sl, Julijske Alpe, it, Alpi Giulie, , ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps that stretch from northeastern Italy to Slovenia, where they rise to 2,864 m at Mount Triglav, the highest peak in Slovenia. A large p ...
from the
Karavanke mountain range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...
. The spring is near the Slovene-
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
border at
above sea level, in a
drainage divide between the
Adriatic and
Danube basin
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
s. The Sava Dolinka
spring
Spring(s) may refer to:
Common uses
* Spring (season)
Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...
is fed by
groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...
possibly exhibiting
bifurcation
Bifurcation or bifurcated may refer to:
Science and technology
* Bifurcation theory, the study of sudden changes in dynamical systems
** Bifurcation, of an incompressible flow, modeled by squeeze mapping the fluid flow
* River bifurcation, the ...
of source
karst
Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...
aquifer
An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing, permeable rock, rock fractures, or unconsolidated materials ( gravel, sand, or silt). Groundwater from aquifers can be extracted using a water well. Aquifers vary greatly in their characteris ...
to the Sava and
Soča
The Soča ( in Slovene) or Isonzo ( in Italian; other names fur, Lusinç, german: Sontig, la, Aesontius or ') is a long river that flows through western Slovenia () and northeastern Italy ().
An Alpine river in character, its source lies in ...
basins.
Nadiža creek, a short
losing stream
A losing stream, disappearing stream, influent stream or sinking river is a stream or river that loses water as it flows downstream. The water infiltrates into the ground recharging the local groundwater, because the water table is below the bo ...
flowing nearby, is the source of Zelenci Pools water. The Sava Dolinka is considered the Sava's initial, segment.
The Sava Bohinjka originates in
Ribčev Laz
Ribčev Laz (, german: Fischgereuth) is a settlement on Lake Bohinj in the Municipality of Bohinj in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. Most of the settlement consists of hotels and holiday homes.
Churches
The local church dedicated to John ...
, at the confluence of the
Jezernica, a short watercourse flowing out from
Lake Bohinj
Lake Bohinj ( sl, Bohinjsko jezero, german: Wocheiner See), covering , is the largest permanent lake in Slovenia. It is located within the Bohinj Valley of the Julian Alps, in the northwestern Upper Carniola region, and part of Triglav National Par ...
and the
Mostnica River. Some sources define the Jezernica as a part of the Sava Bohinjka, specifying the latter as flowing directly out of the lake, while another group of sources include
Savica, rising at the southern flank of
Triglav as the
Savica Falls, downstream from
Triglav Lakes Valley
The Triglav Lakes Valley ( sl, Dolina Triglavskih jezer) is a rocky hanging valley in the Julian Alps in Slovenia, below the sheer sides of Mount Tičarica and Mount Zelnarica southwest of Triglav. The valley is also called the Seven Lakes Val ...
, and flowing into the lake, as a part of the Sava Bohinjka. The watercourse flows —including the length of the Savica—east to
Radovljica
Radovljica (; german: Radmannsdorf) is a town in the Upper Carniola region of northern Slovenia. It is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Radovljica.
Geography
The town is located on the southern slope of the Karawanks mountain ra ...
, where it discharges into the Sava Dolinka. Downstream from the confluence, the river is referred to as the Sava.
Course
![SLO-Litija5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/SLO-Litija5.JPG)
The Sava spans Central-
Southeast Europe
Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (al ...
, flowing through Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and along the Bosnia-Herzegovina border. Its total length is , including the Sava Dolinka and the Sava proper. As a right tributary of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...
, the river belongs to the
Black Sea
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...
drainage basin. The Sava River is the
third longest tributary of the Danube, slightly shorter than the
Tisza
The Tisza, Tysa or Tisa, is one of the major rivers of Central and Eastern Europe. Once, it was called "the most Hungarian river" because it flowed entirely within the Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it crosses several national borders.
The Tisza be ...
and the
Prut
The Prut (also spelled in English as Pruth; , uk, Прут) is a long river in Eastern Europe. It is a left tributary of the Danube. In part of its course it forms Romania's border with Moldova and Ukraine.
Characteristics
The Prut originates ...
—the Danube's two longest tributaries—when the Sava Dolinka headwater is excluded from its course. It is also the largest tributary of the Danube by
discharge. The river course is sometimes used to describe the northern boundary of the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, and the southern border of the
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
. Before the
breakup of Yugoslavia
The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...
in 1991, the Sava was the longest river lying completely within the country.
From the source to the Sutla
![Saveschlucht zwischen Lubljana und Trbovlje](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Saveschlucht_zwischen_Lubljana_und_Trbovlje.jpg)
The Sava Dolinka rises in the Zelenci Pools, west of
Podkoren in the
Upper Carniola
Upper Carniola ( sl, Gorenjska; it, Alta Carniola; german: Oberkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The centre of the region is Kranj, while other urban centers include Jeseni ...
region of Slovenia at above sea level (a.s.l.), and flows east, past Kranjska Gora to
Jesenice
Jesenice (, german: Aßling''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru'', vol. 6: Kranjsko. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 144.) is a Slovenian town and the seat of the Municipality of Jesenice on the ...
, where it turns southeast. At
Žirovnica, the river enters the
Ljubljana Basin
The Ljubljana Basin ( sl, Ljubljanska kotlina) is a basin in the upper river basin of Sava. It is the most populated area in Slovenia and it is metropolitan area of Ljubljana. Its main rivers are the Sava, the Kamnik Bistrica and the Ljubljanica ...
and encounters the first
hydroelectric dam
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
—
Moste plant—before proceeding to the east of the glacial
Lake Bled towards Radovljica and confluence of the Sava Bohinjka, at a.s.l. Downstream of Radovljica, the Sava proceeds southeast towards
Kranj
Kranj (, german: Krainburg) is the third-largest city in Slovenia, with a population of 37,941 (2020). It is located approximately northwest of Ljubljana. The centre of the City Municipality of Kranj and of the traditional region of Upper Carniol ...
. Between Kranj and Medvode, its course comprises the
Lake Trboje
Lake Trboje ( sl, Trbojsko jezero), also named Lake Mavčiče () and Lake Kranj (), is an artificial lake west of the village of Trboje in the Municipality of Šenčur, northwestern Slovenia. It was created in 1986 as a reservoir for the Mavčiče ...
and the
Lake Zbilje
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a Depression (geology), basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the World Ocean, oce ...
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
s, built for the
Mavčiče
Mavčiče (; german: Mautschitsch''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 54.) is a village on the right bank of the Sava River in the Municipa ...
and the Medvode power plants.
The Sava then flows through the capital of Slovenia,
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...
, where another reservoir is on the river, adjacent to the
Tacen Whitewater Course
The Tacen Whitewater Course is a venue for canoe and kayak slalom competition in Tacen, Slovenia, a suburb of Ljubljana. Located on the Sava River, eight kilometers northwest of the city center, it is known locally as Kayak Canoe Club Tacen ( sl, ...
. There the river course turns east and leaves the Ljubljana Basin via
Dolsko, at a.s.l. (at confluence of the
Ljubljanica
The Ljubljanica (), known in the Middle Ages as the ''Sava'', is a river in the southern part of the Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, lies on the river. The Ljubljanica rises south of the town of Vrhnika and flow ...
and the
Kamnik Bistrica
The Kamnik Bistrica ( sl, Kamniška Bistrica, ) is an Alps, Alpine river in northern Slovenia, a left tributary of the Sava River. It springs from the Kamnik Alps (part of the Southern Limestone Alps) near the border with Austria. It is long. The ...
). The course continues through the
Sava Hills
The Sava Hills ( sl, Posavsko hribovje) are the eastern part of the Slovene Prealps. They are oriented in the east-west direction and are located to the north and south of the Sava River in central and eastern Slovenia, among the Ljubljana Basin ...
, where it passes the
Litija Basin
Litija (; german: Littai''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 90, 92–93.) is a town in the Litija Basin in central Slovenia. It is the ...
with the mining and industrial town of
Litija
Litija (; german: Littai''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 90, 92–93.) is a town in the Litija Basin in central Slovenia. It is the ...
, the
Central Sava Valley
The Central Sava Valley ( sl, Zasavje) is a valley in the Sava Hills and a geographic region along the Sava in central Slovenia, now constituting the Central Sava Statistical Region. The region consists of three municipalities: Zagorje ob Savi, ...
with the mining towns of
Zagorje ob Savi
Zagorje ob Savi (; german: Sagor,''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 96. ''Seger an der Sau'') is a town in the Central Sava Valley in ce ...
,
Trbovlje
Trbovlje (; german: Trifail''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 58.) is Slovenia's tenth-largest town, and the seat of the Municipality ...
, and
Hrastnik
Hrastnik (, German: ''Hrastnigg'') is a town in the Central Sava Valley in central Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Hrastnik. The area is part of the traditional region of Styria. The entire municipality is now included in the Cent ...
, turns to the southeast and runs through the
Lower Sava Valley
The Lower Sava Valley ( sl, Posavje, also ''Spodnje Posavje'' and ''Posavska regija''Ferenc, Tone. 1995. "Posavje". ''Enciklopedija Slovenije'' vol 9. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, pp. 155–156.) is a region in southeastern Slovenia on the border ...
with the towns of
Radeče
Radeče (; german: Ratschach''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 88–89.) is a small town in the Lower Sava Valley in eastern Slovenia. ...
,
Sevnica
Sevnica (; german: Lichtenwald''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 20.) is a town on the left bank of the Sava River in central Sloveni ...
, and
Krško
Krško (; german: Gurkfeld) is a town in eastern Slovenia. It is the seat of the City municipality of Krško. The town lies on the Sava River and on the northwest edge of the Krško Plain ( sl, Krško polje), which is part of the larger Krka Flat ...
. The course through the Sava Hills forms the boundary of traditional regions of Lower Carniola and
Styria, At Radeče, the
Vrhovo hydroelectric dam reservoir stands. The latter is site of the
Krško Nuclear Power Plant
The Krško Nuclear Power Plant ( sl, Jedrska elektrarna Krško, JEK, or , NEK, ; hr, Nuklearna elektrana Krško) is located in Vrbina in the Municipality of Krško, Slovenia. The plant was connected to the power grid on October 2, 1981 and went ...
, which uses the Sava River water to dissipate excess heat. The easternmost stretch of the Sava River course in Slovenia runs to the south of
Brežice
Brežice (; german: Rann ) is a town in eastern Slovenia in the Lower Sava Valley, near the Croatian border. It is the seat of the Municipality of Brežice. It lies in the center of the Brežice Plain ( sl, Brežiško polje), which is part of the ...
, where it is joined by the Krka, and the river ultimately becomes a border river between Slovenia and
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
, marking of their border near confluence of the
Sutla
The Sutla ( Croatian) or Sotla ( Slovene) is a river flowing through Slovenia and Croatia, mostly forming their border. It is a tributary to the Sava, itself a tributary to the Danube. It is long and has a watershed area of .
Overview
The Sutla f ...
( sl, Sotla). At that point, the Sava reaches a.s.l. after flowing through Slovenia and along its border.
From the Sutla to the Una
![Sava in Zagreb, 13 Feb 2014](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Sava_in_Zagreb%2C_13_Feb_2014.jpg)
The westernmost part of the Sava River course in Croatia, takes the river east, through the western part of the
Zagreb County
Zagreb County ( hr, Zagrebačka županija) is a county in Northern Croatia. It surrounds, but does not contain, the nation's capital Zagreb, which is a separate territorial unit. For that reason, the county is often nicknamed "Zagreb ring" ( hr, ...
, between
Samobor
Samobor () is a city in Zagreb County, Croatia. It is part of the Zagreb metropolitan area. Administratively it is a part of Zagreb County.
Geography
Samobor is located west of Zagreb, between the eastern slopes of the Samobor hills ( hr, Samo ...
and
Zaprešić
Zaprešić () is a town in Hrvatsko zagorje, Zagreb County in Croatia. It has a population of 19,644 inhabitants in the town proper, with 25,223 in the administrative area. The town's metropolitan area, which encompasses the seven neighbouring m ...
. The area encompasses forests interspersed by
marsh
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
es and lakes formed in
gravel pit
A gravel pit is an open-pit mine for the extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may naturally fill with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either ...
s. As the Sava approaches the capital of Croatia,
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...
, the marshes give way to urban landscape, but there are surviving examples of the gravel pit lakes, such as the
Jarun
Jarun (local pronunciation: ) is a neighborhood in the southwestern part of Zagreb, Croatia. It was named after Lake Jarun, formed by the Sava River, now located on the southern edge of the neighborhood.
Lake
The lake is the location of the Jar ...
, and the
Bundek
Bundek is a park in the Novi Zagreb - istok city district of Zagreb, Croatia. It is located north of the Zapruđe and Središće neighborhoods. Bundek was renovated during 2005 to turn a badly maintained lake into a tourism and events center of No ...
within the city. At the western outskirts of Zagreb, there is the western terminus of the
Sava–Odra flood-relief canal connecting the Sava to the
Odra River plain which is intended to act as
flood control
Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...
retention basin
A retention basin, sometimes called a wet pond, wet detention basin, or stormwater management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage stormwater r ...
. The canal has been built in response to the most destructive
flooding of the river that occurred in Zagreb in 1964, when one third of the city was flooded and 17 people were killed. The city itself marks the western extent of the Sava River basin area especially prone to flooding, spanning from Zagreb to confluence of the river in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
.
East of Zagreb, the river turns southeast again further through the
Central Croatia
Croatia proper ( hr, Hrvatska) is one of the four historical regions of the Republic of Croatia, together with Dalmatia, Istria, and Slavonia. It is located between Slavonia in the east, the Adriatic Sea in the west, and Dalmatia to the south ...
, to the
Sisak-Moslavina County
Sisak-Moslavina County ( hr, Sisačko-moslavačka županija) is a Croatian county in eastern Central Croatia and southwestern Slavonia. It is named after the city of Sisak and the region Moslavina just across the river Sava. According to 2021 ...
, the city of
Sisak, reaching a.s.l. The city of Sisak marks the westernmost extent of the Sava River navigable to larger vessels. Navigation conditions on the river are poor due to limited
draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
and fairway width,
meander
A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank ...
ing of the river,
bridge clearance
A structure gauge, also called the minimum clearance outline, is a diagram or physical structure that sets limits to the extent that bridges, tunnels and other infrastructure can encroach on rail vehicles. It specifies the height and width of pl ...
restrictions, poor
fairway markings as well as presence of sunken vessels and other objects, including
unexploded ordnance. The ordnance is left over from various conflicts including the
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
,
Croatian War of Independence,
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...
, and the
1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. Before reaching confluence of
Una
Una and UNA may refer to:
Places
* 160 Una, the asteroid "Una", an asteroid named after the Faerie Queene character
* Una River (disambiguation), numerous rivers
* Una, Himachal Pradesh, a town in India
** Una, Himachal Pradesh Assembly constit ...
at
Jasenovac and a.s.l, the Sava River traces
Lonjsko polje Nature Park
Lonjsko Polje (English: ''Lonja Field'') is the largest protected wetland in both Croatia and the entire Danube basin. It covers an area of , extending along the river Sava from the areas east of Sisak, the lower course of the river Lonja for ...
, encompassing marshes frequently flooded by the Sava and its tributaries in the area.
From the Una to the Drina
![Fluss Save Slavonski Brod](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Fluss_Save_Slavonski_Brod.JPG)
Downstream of confluence of the Una River, the Sava is once again tracing an international border—between Croatia and
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...
. Its meandering course runs generally eastwards along
Bosanska Gradiška, and
Slavonski Brod
Slavonski Brod (), commonly shortened to simply Brod, is a city in eastern Croatia, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. Being one of the principal cities in the historical regions of Slavonia and Posavina, Slavonski Brod was the 7th large ...
to
Županja
Županja (, hu, Zsupanya, german: Schaupanie) is a town in eastern Slavonia, Croatia, located 254 km east of Zagreb. It is administratively part of the Vukovar-Syrmia County. It is inhabited by 12,090 people (2011).
Županja lies on the Sa ...
, where it turns south to
Brčko
Brčko ( sr-cyrl, Брчко, ) is a city and the administrative seat of Brčko District, in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies on the banks of Sava river across from Croatia. As of 2013, it has a population of 39,893 inhabitants.
De jure, ...
. There, the river resumes its predominantly eastward course towards
Sremska Rača and confluence of the
Drina
The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long Balkans river, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Alps whi ...
River. The right bank of the Sava, in this segment of its course, belongs to Bosnia-Herzegovina (with Bosnia's all three administrative entities,
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, lit=Serb Republic, also known as Republic of Srpska, ) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Feder ...
,
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities within the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Republika Srpska. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina consists ...
and the
Brčko District
Brčko District ( bs, Brčko Distrikt; hr, Brčko Distrikt; sr, Брчко Дистрикт, ), officially the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( bs, Brčko Distrikt Bosne i Hercegovine; hr, Brčko Distrikt Bosne i Hercegovine; ), i ...
, having gateway to the river), while the opposite bank belongs to Croatia and its Sisak-Moslavina,
Brod-Posavina
Brod-Posavina County ( hr, Brodsko-posavska županija) is the southern Slavonian Counties of Croatia, county in Croatia. Its center is the city of Slavonski Brod and it spreads along the left bank of the Sava river, hence the name ''Posavina''. O ...
and
Vukovar-Srijem counties, except in the area of
Jamena
Jamena () is a village located in the municipality of Šid, Srem District, Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2011 census, it has a population of 950 inhabitants. It is the only place in Serbia that borders both Croatia and Bosnia and Hercegovina (Republi ...
and further downstream—which belongs to Serbia and the province of
Vojvodina
Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Војводина}), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to the south by the national capital ...
. No cities in this segment of the course span the river. It represents an international frontier, three times seeing adjacent, opposing key settlements: Bosanska Gradiška, Bosanski Brod and Brčko in Bosnia-Herzegovina, opposing
Stara Gradiška
Stara Gradiška (, german: Altgradisch) is a village and a municipality in Slavonia, in the Brod-Posavina County of Croatia. It is located on the left bank of the river Sava, across from Gradiška in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Etymology
The first w ...
, Slavonski Brod and
Gunja in Croatia.
The segment between the Una and the Drina confluences, corresponding to the Sava flowing along the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina, exhibits small change of elevation, such as from
ASL
American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States of America and most of Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that is express ...
at Jasenovac to ASL at Brčko
gauges: over of the river between them. The river below Zagreb has a 0.4‰ slope (gradient) on average, much less steep than the course in Slovenia, where the average slope exceeds 0.7‰. This results in the Sava's meandering course running through a wide plain bordered by
wetland
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...
s.
From the Drina to the Danube
![Luis-Filipe-Gaspar-Belgrado-Servia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8d/Luis-Filipe-Gaspar-Belgrado-Servia.jpg)
Downstream from the confluence of the Drina, the Sava River changes its eastward course to northeast, until it reaches
Sremska Mitrovica
Sremska Mitrovica (; sr-Cyrl, Сремска Митровица, hu, Szávaszentdemeter, la, Sirmium) is a city and the administrative center of the Srem District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is situated on the left bank ...
, whence it flows southeast and then south to
Šabac
Šabac (Serbian Cyrillic: Шабац, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Mačva District in western Serbia. The traditional centre of the fertile Mačva region, Šabac is located on the right banks of the river Sava. , the city ...
, before finally turning east towards Belgrade. Most of the river's course in Serbia represents a border between province of Vojvodina, on the left bank, and
Central Serbia, on the right bank. Exceptions to that are in area around Sremska Mitrovica, where both banks are in Vojvodina, and downstream of
Progar
Progar ( sr-cyr, Прогар) is a List of Belgrade neighborhoods, suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Surčin.
Location
Progar is located in Syrmia's sub-region of Podlužje, in southwester ...
suburb of Belgrade where both banks are in Central Serbia. The river meanders and forms wetlands there as well—the most significant centering on
Obedska bara
Obedska bara (Obedska pond or Obedska bog, Serbian Cyrillic: Обедска бара, pronounced ) is a large swamp-forest area and natural reserve stretching along the Sava River in Serbia, in Southern Syrmia (Srem/Szerémség), some 40 km west ...
oxbow lake. The Sava River forms several large
islands
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
in this segment of the course, with the largest among them—
Ada Ciganlija
Ada Ciganlija ( sr-cyr, Ада Циганлија, ), colloquially shortened to Ada, is a river island that has artificially been turned into a peninsula, located in the Sava River's course through central Belgrade, Serbia. The name can also ref ...
in Belgrade—connected to the right bank by a pair of artificial
embankment dams forming
Lake Sava since 1967.
The Sava discharges into the Danube, after reaching a.s.l. as its right tributary at the
Great War Island
Great War Island ( sr, Велико ратно острво, Veliko ratno ostrvo) is a river island in Belgrade, capital of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of Sava and Danube rivers. Though uninhabited, the island is part of the Belgrade ...
off the easternmost tip of
Syrmia in Belgrade, away from the Danube's confluence and the Black Sea.
Settlements
Population in the Sava River basin is estimated at 8,176,000, and includes four capitals: Belgrade, Ljubljana,
Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...
and Zagreb. All except Sarajevo, are on the river banks and represent the three largest settlements found along the river. Belgrade, at the lowest end of the river, is the largest city in the basin with urban population of 1,135,502. Ten municipalities of its outer conurbation have combined population of 1,283,783, taking in many mutual suburbs. The Belgrade
metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
has a population of 1,639,121. Zagreb is the second largest city on the river, comprising population of 688,163 living in the city itself, and 802,588 in the city-administered area. Together with the Zagreb County, largely corresponding to various definitions of the city's metropolitan area, it has a combined population of 1,110,517. Ljubljana is the third-largest city on the banks of the Sava, encompassing a population of 258,873 living in the city itself and 265,881 in the city-governed area.
The largest city of Bosnia-Herzegovina on the river is Brčko, whose urban population is estimated at 40,000. Other cities along the river, with populations of 20,000 and larger, are Slavonski Brod (53,473), Šabac (52,822), Sremska Mitrovica (37,586), Kranj (35,587), Sisak (33,049),
Obrenovac
Obrenovac ( sr-cyr, Обреновац, ) is a municipality of the city of Belgrade. According to the 2011 census results, the municipality has a population of 71,419 inhabitants, while the urban area has 24,568 inhabitants.
The largest Serbian th ...
(24,568), and Bosanska Gradiška (est. 20,000).
Watershed
![Aerial photo of Brčko Bridge in 1996](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Aerial_photo_of_Br%C4%8Dko_Bridge_in_1996.jpg)
The Sava River basin covers a total area of making it the second largest Danube tributary catchment by area size, surpassed only by the Tisza basin, and it encompasses 12% of the Danube basin, draining into the Black Sea. The Sava represents the third longest tributary of the Danube and its largest tributary by discharge. The catchment area borders the remainder of the Danube basin to the north and east, and the Adriatic Sea basin to the west and south. The river basin generally consists of parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia,
Montenegro
)
, image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Podgorica
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, official_languages = M ...
, Serbia and Slovenia, with a very small part of the catchment area belonging to
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. Topography of the basin varies significantly. Upstream portion of the basin is more rugged than downstream one, but asymmetry of the basin topography is particularly apparent when comparing right and left bank areas—the former dominated by the
Alps
The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
and the
Dinarides
The Dinaric Alps (), also Dinarides, are a mountain range in Southern and Southcentral Europe, separating the continental Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They stretch from Italy in the northwest through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herz ...
reaching elevations in excess of a.s.l, while the latter is dominated by the
Pannonian Plain
The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense, with only the ...
. The mean elevation of the basin is a.s.l.
Major tributaries
![Sava Drina Confluence](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Sava_Drina_Confluence.JPG)
The most important tributaries of the Sava River found in its upper basin are characterized by relatively steep grades of flow, high flow velocities and
rapids. Those are left tributaries: the
Kokra
The Kokra () is a river of Slovenia. Originating in the Karawanks, the river is long. It flows into the Sava
The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary o ...
, the Kamnik Bistrica and the
Savinja
The Savinja () is a river in northeast Slovenia which flows mostly in the Upper and Lower Savinja Valley ( sl, Zgornja in Spodnja Savinjska dolina) and through the cities of Celje and Laško. The Savinja is the main river of the Savinja Alps (Sl ...
; and right tributaries: the Sora, the Ljubljanica and the
Krka (Sava)
The Krka (; german: Gurk, ; la, Corcoras) is a river in southeastern Slovenia (the traditional region of Lower Carniola), a right tributary of the Sava. With a length of , it is the second-longest river flowing in its entirety in Slovenia, fol ...
. Further downstream larger rivers empty into the Sava, as the right bank of the basin grows steadily. Right tributaries in this lower segment of the basin start as fast flowing courses, only to slow down as they enter the
Pannonian Basin
The Pannonian Basin, or Carpathian Basin, is a large Sedimentary basin, basin situated in south-east Central Europe. The Geomorphology, geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewh ...
. They include the
Kupa
The Kupa () or Kolpa ( or ; from la, Colapis in Roman times; hu, Kulpa) river, a right tributary of the Sava, forms a natural border between north-west Croatia and southeast Slovenia. It is long, with its border part having a length of and t ...
, the Una, the
Vrbas, the
Ukrina
Ukrina ( cyrl, Укрина) is a river in the Central Bosnia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, right tributary of the river Sava. Its mouth is 3 km north from settlement Koraće and 10 km southwest of Brod.
Vojnogeografski institut, Ed. (1955): ...
, the
Bosna, the
Brka, the Tinja, the Drina and the
Kolubara
The Kolubara ( sr-cyr, Колубара, ) is a long river in western Serbia; it is an eastern, right tributary to the Sava river.
General overview
Kolubara is formed by the two small rivers Obnica and Jablanica.
''Obnica'' is the river in W ...
. Left tributaries in the lower segment drain plains consequently exhibiting less steep course grades, lower flow rates and meandering. They include the Sutla, the
Krapina
Krapina (; hu, Korpona) is a town in northern Croatia and the administrative centre of Krapina-Zagorje County with a population of 4,482 (2011) and a total municipality population of 12,480 (2011). Krapina is located in the hilly Zagorje region ...
, the
Lonja
Lonja is a river in central Croatia, a left tributary of the Sava. It is long and its basin covers an area of .
The Lonja rises in the Kalnik mountain in northern Croatia, southeast of Novi Marof, at . It flows westward until turning south near ...
, the
Ilova, the
Orljava
Orljava is a river in Slavonia, eastern Croatia, a left tributary of Sava. It is long and its basin covers an area of .
Orljava rises in the mountainous forested areas of Psunj, south of Bučje. It receives influx from smaller rivers that ri ...
and the
Bosut.
The Drina is the largest tributary of the Sava, flowing in Bosnia-Herzegovina and along border of the country and Serbia. It is formed by the headwaters of the
Tara and the
Piva
Piva may refer to:
* Piva (river), a river in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Piva, Montenegro, a region in Montenegro and tribe
* Piva River, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea
* Piva Trail, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea
** Battle for Piv ...
at the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, near
Šćepan Polje
Šćepan Polje ( sr-cyrl, Шћепан Поље, ) is the name of a small settlement and the region in Plužine Municipality northwestern in Montenegro. It is the border crossing point between Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the Tara ...
. Its catchment extends across parts of four countries—reaching as far south as Albania. The Bosna and the Kupa river basins are the second and third largest catchments of the Sava tributaries, each surpassing in size.
Hydrology
![Smlednik-Zbilje](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Smlednik-Zbilje.JPG)
The average annual
flow rate of the Sava River at Radovljica, immediately downstream of the Sava Dolinka and the Sava Bohinjka confluence, stands at per second. Downstream of the Krka confluence the average flow rate reaches per second, gradually increasing as tributaries discharge along the course— per second downstream of the Sutla, per second following discharge of the Kupa and the Una, per second downstream of the Vrbas confluence, per second after the Bosna river empties into the Sava, and finally of per second at confluence of the Sava in Belgrade. The highest flow rate of per second was recorded by Slavonski Šamac
gauging station
A stream gauge, streamgage or stream gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water level surface elevation (" stage") and/or vol ...
in May 2014.
Seven out of eight largest reservoirs in the Sava River basin are in the Drina catchment, the largest among them being the
Lake Piva
Lake Piva ( cg, Пивско језеро, Pivsko јezero) is a reservoir in Montenegro. It is located in the northwest part of the country, in Plužine Municipality. The surface of the lake is 12.5 km², the length is 45 km, and the ma ...
on the eponymous river in Montenegro, created after construction of
Mratinje Dam
The Mratinje Dam ( cnr, Брана Мратиње, Brana Mratinje) is a concrete arch dam in the canyon of the Piva River in Montenegro.
The dam was completed in 1975 with designs by Energoprojekt. Its construction resulted in the flooding of the ...
. Overall, there are 22 reservoirs holding more than of water in the basin, with four of them ''on'' the Sava, including one on the Sava Dolinka. Most of the reservoirs are used primarily, or even exclusively, for
electricity generation
Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utility, utilities in the electric power industry, it is the stage prior to its Electricity delivery, delivery (Electric power transmi ...
, but they are also used as supply of
drinking water
Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, a ...
,
industrial water
Water resources are natural resources of water that are potentially useful for humans, for example as a source of drinking water supply or irrigation water. 97% of the water on the Earth is salt water and only three percent is fresh water; slightl ...
source, for
irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...
and
food production
The food industry is a complex, global network of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world's population. The food industry today has become highly diversified, with manufacturing ranging from small, traditiona ...
.
Groundwater is a very important resource in the Sava River basin, generally used for public water supply of potable water, as a source of water for industrial use, but also as the mainstay of
aquatic ecosystem
An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem formed by surrounding a body of water, in contrast to land-based terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems contain communities of organisms that are dependent on each other and on their environment. The t ...
s. There are 41 identified significant groundwater bodies in the Sava River basin of basin-wide importance, ranging in area size from , as well as numerous minor ground water bodies. Even though most of them are
transboundary waters
The terms international waters or transboundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water (or their drainage basins) transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed regiona ...
, eleven are considered to be largely in Slovenia, fourteen in Croatia, seven in Bosnia-Herzegovina, five in Serbia and four in Montenegro.
Geology
The course of the Sava River runs through several diverse
geological unit
A stratigraphic unit is a volume of rock of identifiable origin and relative age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant, easily mapped and recognizable petrographic, lithologic or paleontologic features (facies) that characterize ...
s and
orographic regions. The uppermost course of the river and its headwaters in the Karavanke area, is in the
Southern Alps
The Southern Alps (; officially Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana) is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The name "Southern ...
, tracing the Sava
Fault—itself running parallel to the
Periadriatic Seam
The Periadriatic Seam (or fault) is a distinct geologic fault in Southern Europe, running ''S-shaped'' about from the Tyrrhenian Sea through the whole Southern Alps as far as Hungary. It forms the division between the Adriatic plate and the Eur ...
.
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceo ...
and
Upper Triassic
The Late Triassic is the third and final epoch of the Triassic Period in the geologic time scale, spanning the time between Ma and Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the Middle Triassic Epoch and followed by the Early Jurassic Epoch. ...
rocks are exposed in the region. The Ljubljana Basin represents the boundary of the Southern Alps and the Dinarides. Valleys of the Sava Dolinka and the Sava Bohinjka are
glacial valley
U-shaped valleys, also called trough valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They are characteristic of mountain glaciation in particular. They have a characteristic U shape in cross-section, with steep, straight s ...
s, carved out by the Sava Dolinka and Bohinj
glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...
s advancing down Karavanke range to vicinity of present-day Radovljica. In the
late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is an unofficial Age (geology), age in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, also known as Upper Pleistocene from a Stratigraphy, stratigraphic perspective. It is intended to be the fourth division of ...
,
Bohinj Glacier was the largest glacier in the territory of present-day Slovenia, up to thick. Sava Folds, southeast and east of the Ljubljana Basin are thought of as a part of the Dinarides, separating the Ljubljana and
Krško Basins, and forming the Sava Hills. The east–west oriented folds are younger than the
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...
and the folding is considered to had taken place in the
Pliocene
The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58[Quaternary
The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...](_blank)
, but it is possible that the tectonic activity continues in the present day. The Sava Folds largely exhibit
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon.
The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838
by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...
and
Triassic
The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...
rocks, and
clastic sediment
Clastic rocks are composed of fragments, or clasts, of pre-existing minerals and rock. A clast is a fragment of geological detritus,Essentials of Geology, 3rd Ed, Stephen Marshak, p. G-3 chunks, and smaller grains of rock broken off other rocks ...
s.
The lower course of the Sava in the Pannonian Basin—first reached by the Sava River in the Krško Basin on the western rim of the Pannonian Basin. The Pannonian Basin took shape through Miocenian thinning and
subsidence of crust structures formed during Late Paleozoic
Variscan orogeny
The Variscan or Hercynian orogeny was a geologic mountain-building event caused by Late Paleozoic continental collision between Euramerica (Laurussia) and Gondwana to form the supercontinent of Pangaea.
Nomenclature
The name ''Variscan'', comes f ...
. The Paleozoic and Mesozoic structures are visible in
Papuk and other Slavonian mountains. The processes also led to the formation of a
stratovolcanic chain in the basin 17–12
Mya (million years ago) and intensified subsidence observed until 5 Mya as well as
flood basalt
A flood basalt (or plateau basalt) is the result of a giant volcanic eruption or series of eruptions that covers large stretches of land or the ocean floor with basalt lava. Many flood basalts have been attributed to the onset of a hotspot reac ...
s about 7.5 Mya. Contemporary uplift of the
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains at . The range stretches ...
prevented water flowing to the Black Sea, and the
Pannonian Sea
The Pannonian Sea was a shallow ancient lake, where the Pannonian Basin in Central Europe is now. The Pannonian Sea existed from about 10 Ma (million years ago) until 1 Ma, during the Miocene and Pliocene epochs, when marine sediments were dep ...
formed in the basin. Sediments were transported to the basin from uplifting Carpathian and Dinaric mountains, with particularly deep fluvial sediments being deposited in the
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
during the uplift of the
Transdanubian Mountains __NOTOC__
The Transdanubian Mountains (sometimes also referred to as ''Bakony Forest, Dunántúl Highlands, Highlands of Dunántúl, Highlands of Transdanubia, Mountains of Dunántúl, Mountains of Transdanubia, Transdanubian Central Range, Tra ...
. Ultimately, up to of the sediment was deposited in the basin, and the Pannonian sea eventually drained through the
Iron Gate gorge. In the southern Pannonian Basin, the
Neogene to Quaternary sediment depth is normally lower, averaging , except in central parts of depressions formed by
subduction
Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at convergent boundaries. Where the oceanic lithosphere of a tectonic plate converges with the less dense lithosphere of a second plate, the ...
. A subduction zone formed in the present-day Sava River valley, and approximately deep sediments were deposited in the Slavonia-Syrmia depression and in the Sava depression. The results of those processes are large
plain
In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...
s in the Sava River valley and the Kupa River valley. The plains are interspersed by the
horst and
graben structures, believed to have broken the Pannonian Sea surface as
islands
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
, which became watershed between
and Sava River basins extending along
Ivanščica–
Kalnik–
Bilogora Bilogora (Bilo-gora, or ''Bilogorje'', ''Bilo-gorje'') is a low mountainous range in Central Croatia. It consists of a series of hills and small plains some 80 kilometres in length stretching in the direction northwest-southeast, along the southwest ...
–Papuk mountain chain. The Papuk Mountain is flanked by the
Krndija and the
Dilj
Dilj is a low mountain in south-central Slavonia, located in eastern Croatia. Of all the mountains in Slavonia, Dilj is the lowest-lying, at 471 meters. It is located north of Slavonski Brod and south of Krndija. Dilj mountain contains a forest t ...
Hills on the eastern rim of the
Požega Valley
The Požega Valley ( hr, Požeška kotlina) is a geographic microregion of Croatia, located in central Slavonia, encompassing the eastern part of the Požega-Slavonia County. It is located in the Pannonian Basin, bounded by Psunj, Papuk and Krnd ...
. The Bilogora, Papuk and Krndija Mountains consist mostly of Paleozoic rocks which are 300–350 million years old, while the Dilj consists of much more recent Neogene rocks, 2–18 million years old. Further east of the chain, the watershed runs through the
Đakovo
Đakovo (; hu, Diakovár) is a town in the region of Slavonia, Croatia. Đakovo is the centre of the fertile and rich Đakovo region ( hr, Đakovština ).
Etymology
The etymology of the name is the gr, διάκος (diákos) in Slavic form đ ...
–
Vinkovci
Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city's registered population was 28,247 in the 2021 census, the total population of the city was 31,057, making it the largest town of the county. Surround ...
and
Vukovar
Vukovar () ( sr-Cyrl, Вуковар, hu, Vukovár, german: Wukowar) is a city in Croatia, in the eastern region of Slavonia. It contains Croatia's largest river port, located at the confluence of the Vuka and the Danube. Vukovar is the seat of ...
Plateau. The
loess
Loess (, ; from german: Löss ) is a clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loess or similar deposits.
Loess is a periglacial or aeolian ...
plateau, extending eastward from Dilj and representing the watershed between the
Vuka and Bosut rivers, gradually rises to the
Fruška Gora
Fruška gora ( sr-Cyrl, Фрушка гора; hu, Tarcal-hegység) is a mountain in Syrmia, administratively part of Serbia with a part of its western side extending into eastern Croatia. The area under Serbian administration forms the country ...
south of Ilok.
Economy
Electric power generation
There are 18 hydroelectric power plants with power generation capacity exceeding 10
Megawatt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...
s in the Sava River basin. In Slovenia, most of them harness the Sava itself. In other countries, the hydroelectric power plants are on its tributaries. Total power generation capacity of the 18 power plants, and additional smaller plants largely found in Slovenia, amounts to 41,542 megawatts, and their annual production capacity stands at 2,497
gigawatt-hour
A kilowatt-hour ( unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a unit of energy: one kilowatt of power for one hour. In terms of SI derived units with special names, it equals 3.6 megajoules (MJ). Kilowatt-hours are a common bi ...
s. Approximately of water per year in the river's basin is used to cool thermoelectric and nuclear power plants. Power plant cooling represents the main type of use of the Sava River waters.
, there are six existing hydroelectric power plants built along the Sava River. Upstream of Ljubljana there are Moste, Mavčiče and Medvode power plants, while Vrhovo,
Boštanj and
Blanca are downstream of the capital. There is one additional plant under construction near Krško. The Krško hydroelectric power plant, as well as two additional plants planned on the Sava River course downstream of Ljubljana—Brežice and Mokrice—should be completed by 2018. The power plants downstream of Ljubljana, except Vrhovo, are developed as a chain of five Slovenia's Lower Sava Valley plants since 2002. They will have production capacity of 2,000 gigawatt-hours per year and 570 megawatts of
installed capacity
Nameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity, or maximum effect, is the intended full-load sustained output of a facility such as a power station, . Completion of the five power plants is expected to cost 700 million
euro
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
s. There are also plans for construction of ten new powerplants in the middle Sava valley HE Suhadol, HE Trbovlje, HE Renke, HE Ponovice, HE Kresnice, HE Jevnica, HE Zalog, HE Šentjakob, HE Ježica and HE Tacen. Croatia is planning the construction of four hydroelectric power plants on the Sava River in the Zagreb area. The four plants—
Podsused, Prečko, Zagreb and
Drenje—are scheduled to be completed by 2021 at a cost of 800 million euros. The four power plants will have an installed capacity of 122 megawatts and an annual production capacity of 610 gigawatt-hours.
Water supply and food production
Use of water for public
water supply
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...
in the Sava River basin is estimated at per year, and another of water per year is used for industrial production purposes. Use of water for
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
in the Sava River basin is relatively high, but most of it is applied in non-consumptive uses, such as
fish farming
upright=1.3, Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture) at Loch Ainort, Isle of Skye">mariculture.html" ;"title="Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture">Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture) at Loch Ainort, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Fish farming or ...
. Use of water for irrigation is relatively low, estimated at per year.
Commercial fishing
Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often ...
on the Sava River is in decline since the middle of the 20th century. In 1978, there were only 97 commercial fishermen there, while
recreational fishing
Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit; or subsistence fishing, which is fishing fo ...
became dominant. The decline became more rapid during the wars in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, reducing the quantity of fish caught in the river to approximately one-third of the pre-war catches which ranged from between 1979 and 1990. The
International Sava River Basin Commission (ISRBC), a cooperative body established by Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia and
Serbia and Montenegro in 2005, is tasked with the establishment of sustainable management of surface water and groundwater resources in the Sava River basin.
Navigation and ports
The Sava is navigable to larger vessels for between its confluence with the Danube in Belgrade, Serbia and Galdovo Bridge in
Sisak, Croatia, upstream from confluence of Sava and Kupa rivers. The confluence marks the westernmost point of the river course designated as a Class IV international
waterway
A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary b ...
in compliance with the
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE or UNECE) is one of the five regional commissions under the jurisdiction of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. It was established in order to promote economic cooperation and i ...
's European Agreement on Main Inland Waterways of International Importance (AGN). The classification means that the river course between Sisak and Belgrade is navigable to ships of the maximum length of , the maximum beam of , the maximum draught of and tonnage up to . The Sava River downstream of Sisak, is designated as European waterway E 80-12, branching off from the E 80 waterway spanning the Danube and
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
via the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
. The largest ports on the Sava River are Brčko and Šamac in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sisak and Slavonski Brod in Croatia, and Šabac and Sremska Mitrovica in Serbia.
, of the river course between
Slavonski Šamac
Slavonski Šamac is a village and municipality located on the river Sava in Croatia. It is located in Brod-Posavina county in the region of Slavonia. On the opposite side of the river lies the Bosnian town of Šamac. Slavonski Šamac is located ...
and
Oprisavci, as well as additional between Slavonski Brod and Sisak, are considered by
Croatia's Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure to fail the Class IV criteria, permitting navigation of vessels up to only, complying with the AGN's Category III. The Slavonski Šamac–Oprisavci section is especially troublesome for navigation as it offers draught in less than 50% of an average hydrological year, causing navigation to cease each summer. Similar interruptions are less frequent elsewhere on the river, occurring 30 days a year on average upstream from Oprisavci, and even more rarely downstream from Slavonski Šamac.
The restricted draft and fairway is compounded with a meandering of the river's course—limiting the length of vessels—and low bridge clearance. Further problems are incurred through poor transport infrastructure along the route, including poor navigation markings, and presence of sunken vessels and unexploded
munitions
Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...
. Navigation along further of the river upstream to
Rugvica
Rugvica is a municipality in Croatia in the Zagreb County. According to the 2001 census, there are 7,608 inhabitants, absolute majority of which are Croats
The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Cr ...
near Zagreb is possible for vessels with
tonnage
Tonnage is a measure of the cargo-carrying capacity of a ship, and is commonly used to assess fees on commercial shipping. The term derives from the taxation paid on ''tuns'' or casks of wine. In modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically r ...
below , and the section of the river belongs to the AGN's Category II. There are plans for the restoration of the Category IV compliant waterway downstream of Sisak and betterment of navigation infrastructure between Sisak and Rugvica, as well as upgrading of the waterway between Brčko and Belgrade to Category Va, matching that of the Danube, with uninterrupted navigation through the year. The plan is planned to be supported by the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
and , an agreement to implement the plan was signed by Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia, while Serbia is invited to join the project. The plan aims to increase the safety and volume of river transport, which declined by about 70% since the breakup of Yugoslavia, largely because of poor maintenance of the route. The ISRBC is tasked with the establishment of an international regime of navigation on the river since 2005.
Road, rail and pipeline transport
The Sava River valley is also a route for road and rail traffic. The river valley routes are a part of the
Pan-European Corridor X, and forming junctions with
Pan-European Corridors V, Vb,
Vc, Xa and Xb in area of Ljubljana (V), Zagreb (Vb, Xa), Slavonski Šamac (Vc), and Belgrade (Xb). The motorways forming the Pan-European Corridor X in the area—
Slovenia's A2,
Croatia's A3 and
Serbia's A1 motorways—represent a part of
European route E70
European route E70 is an A-Class West-East European route, extending from A Coruña in Spain in the west to the Georgian city of Poti in the east.
Itinerary
The E 70 routes through ten European countries, and includes one sea-crossing, ...
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
–
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
–Ljubljana–Zagreb–Belgrade–
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
, and the
European route E61
European route E61 forms part of the United Nations International E-road network, of which it is a Class A intermediate north–south route. long, it connects the southern part of Austria to the Adriatic Sea.
Itinerary
The E 61 routes th ...
Villach
Villach (; sl, Beljak; it, Villaco; fur, Vilac) is the seventh-largest city in Austria and the second-largest in the federal state of Carinthia. It is an important traffic junction for southern Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the p ...
–Ljubljana–
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...
–
Rijeka. A largely
double track and
electrifried railway is also a part of the Corridor X. The railway was a part of the
Simplon-Orient-Express and Direct-Orient-Express routes. The navigable river course between Belgrade and Galdovo north of Sisak is spanned by 25 bridges. The Sava River valley east of Sisak is also used as a route for the
Jadranski naftovod, a
crude oil
Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...
pipeline. The system connects the
Port of Rijeka
The Port of Rijeka ( hr, Luka Rijeka, ) is a seaport in Rijeka, Croatia, located on the shore of the Kvarner Gulf in the Adriatic Sea. The first records of the port date to 1281. It was the main port of the Kingdom of Hungary in the 19th century ...
oil terminal to
oil refineries
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...
in Rijeka and Sisak, to Bosanski Brod in Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
and
Pančevo in Serbia.
Environmental issues
Pollution
The main pressure on the Sava River basin environment is generated by the activities of the urban population in the basin. Even though nearly all population centres generating pollution above 10,000
population equivalent Population equivalent (PE) or unit per capita loading, or equivalent person (EP), is a parameter for characterizing industrial wastewaters. It essentially compares the polluting potential of an industry (in terms of biodegradable organic matter) wi ...
(PE) have some sort of
sewage treatment
Sewage treatment (or domestic wastewater treatment, municipal wastewater treatment) is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable for discharge to the surrounding e ...
in place, less than a quarter of them are adequate. Wastewater from 86% of Sava River basin settlements, generating more than 2,000 PE, goes untreated. Pollution levels vary along the river. The best conditions in terms of wastewater treatment are found in Slovenia, although the existing facilities are inadequate.
In Serbia, on the other hand, 68% of population centres have no wastewater treatment facilities at all. Population centres exceeding 2,000 PE directly discharge into the Sava River basin's surface waters 11,112 tonnes of
nitrogen
Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...
and 2,642 tonnes of
phosphorus
Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...
.
Agriculture is another significant source of the Sava River basin surface water pollution, specifically through
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
manure
Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the Soil fertility, fertility of soil by adding organic ma ...
production. It is estimated that the nutrient pollution levels generated by manure production equal 32,394 tonnes of nitrogen and 3,784 tonnes of phosphorus per year. As a consequence, the Sava River is microbiologically polluted in areas affected by the nutrient pollution. One such part of the river is the lowermost part of its course between Šabac and Belgrade, where acceptable freshwater bacterial counts are exceeded.
Levels of industrial pollution vary significantly throughout the basin. In 2007, significant sources of industrial pollution were identified in Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. Levels of lead, cadmium and arsenic measured in the Sava River at Zagreb in 2003 did not exceed permitted concentrations, but measured levels of
mercury exceeded permitted levels in four out of 216 samples. Levels of
heavy metals, specifically zinc, copper, lead and cadmium, measured in sediments in the Sava River near Belgrade were assessed as representing little to no risk, and the conclusion drawn was that in order to "reduce the existing bacterial contamination of the Sava River it is necessary to control faecal discharge near cities like Belgrade." The two countries (Croatia and Montenegro) with the greatest direct access to the Adriatic showed by far the least polluted basin surface waters, although other factors, such as demography, agricultural/environmental development and, especially, investment (internal and external), play a role.
Protected areas
The Sava River basin is very significant because of its
biological diversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') lev ...
, and it contains large
alluvial
Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
wetlands and lowland forests. This led to the designation of six protected areas under provisions of the
Ramsar Convention
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...
by the countries in the basin. Those are
Lake Cerknica
Lake Cerknica (; sl, Cerkniško jezero, german: Zirknitzer See) is an intermittent lake in the southern part of the Cerknica Polje, a karst polje in Inner Carniola, a region in southwestern Slovenia. The lake, oriented in the Dinaric direction ...
in Slovenia,
Lonjsko Polje
Lonjsko Polje (English: ''Lonja Field'') is the largest protected wetland in both Croatia and the entire Danube basin. It covers an area of , extending along the river Sava from the areas east of Sisak, the lower course of the river Lonja for ...
and
Crna Mlaka in Croatia,
Lake Bardača in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Obedska and
Zasavica bogs in Serbia.
Sport and recreation
![Tacen Whitewater Course 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Tacen_Whitewater_Course_2.jpg)
There are several sports and recreational grounds on the river banks and gravel pits and artificial lakes adjacent. Tacen Whitewater Course, on the right bank of the Sava in
Tacen
Tacen (; in older sources also ''Tacenj'',''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 114–115. german: Tazen) is a formerly independent settle ...
, a suburb of Ljubljana, was built as a permanent
kayaking course in 1948. It hosts a major international competition almost every year, examples being the
ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships
The ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships are an international event in canoeing organized by the International Canoe Federation. The World Championships have taken place every year in non- Summer Olympic years since 2002. From 1949 to 1999, they ...
in
1955,
1991, and
2010. In Zagreb, Jarun complex of lakes along the river course offers a range of facilities for swimming, water sports and cycling. The island of Ada Ciganlija in Belgrade is the major recreational zone of the city, gathering as many as 100,000 visitors daily in the summer months.
The Sava River is the site of several
regatta
Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...
s. Those include the International Sava Tour
rowing
Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically ...
regatta taking place between Zagreb and Brčko, and the Belgrade Regatta (
sailing
Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cou ...
regatta).
The river is also the site of the
Šabac Swimming Marathon—an
open water swimming
Open water swimming is a swimming discipline which takes place in outdoor bodies of water such as open oceans, lakes, and rivers.
The beginning of the modern age of open water swimming is sometimes taken to be May 3, 1810, when Lord Byron swam s ...
competition, running on an course between the village of
Jarak
Jarak () is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Sremska Mitrovica municipality, Syrmia District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 2,235 people (2002 census).
Name
In Serbian, the vil ...
and the city of Šabac in Serbia. The competition is held annually since 1970, and was included in
FINA
FINA (french: Fédération internationale de natation, en, International Swimming Federation, link=yes) (to be renamed as World Aquatics by ) is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administer ...
international calendar from 1984 to 2012.
Recreational and
sport fishing
Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit (economics), profit; or subsistence fishing ...
is a popular activity along the Sava River course. There is a long sport fishing competition ground near
Hotemež
Hotemež (; german: Hitemesch''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 88.) is a settlement on the right bank of the Sava River in the Municipa ...
, Slovenia.
Tradition
Even though the name ''Sava'' became very common among
Slavs
Slavs are the largest European ethnolinguistic group. They speak the various Slavic languages, belonging to the larger Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout northern Eurasia, main ...
, and has a "Slavic tone", the river's name has pre-
Slavic Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
and
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
origins;
Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
writes in ''Geographica'' 4.6.10 (composed between 20 BCE and 20 CE) of the River ''Saüs'',
[
]
and the Romans used the name ''Savus''. Another name, used for the Sava in entirety or its lower part by Strabo, is ''Noarus''.
Worship of various river gods in the area dates to the
Late Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
, when the first settlements were founded along the Sava River.
Taurisci
The Taurisci were a federation of Celtic tribes who dwelt in today's Carinthia and northern Slovenia (Carniola) before the coming of the Romans (c. 200 BC). According to Pliny the Elder, they are the same as the people known as the Norici.
Etym ...
associated their river goddess
Adsullata
In Celtic mythology, Adsullata was a river goddess of the Continental Celts associated with the River Savus (Sava) in Noricum. This deity is known from a single inscription found at Saudörfel, Austria.
Later she came to Brittany from Celtic Ga ...
with the ''Savus''. Altars or inscriptions dedicated to the river-god Savus have been found at a number of locations along the river course, including at the Zelenci Pools where the Sava Dolinka rises, and a number of
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
settlements and
castra built along the Via Pannonia, the
Roman road running from
Aquileia to the Danube. The settlements include
Emona
Emona (early gkm, Ἤμονα) or Aemona (short for ) was a Roman castrum, located in the area where the navigable Ljubljanica river came closest to Castle Hill, ,
Andautonia
Andautonia was a Roman settlement located on the southern bank of the river Sava, located in the modern-day village of Šćitarjevo, southeast of the city of Zagreb, Croatia.
Andautonia was located in the Roman province of Pannonia, on the Rom ...
and
Siscia (near modern-day Ljubljana,
Velika Gorica
Velika Gorica (; meaning "Great Vineyard/Forest") is the largest and most populous city in Zagreb County, Croatia. According to the 2011 census the city itself has a population of 31,341, while the municipality has a population of 63,517 inhabita ...
and Sisak respectively) upstream of the Kupa River confluence, and
Marsonia, itself built atop a
prehistoric
Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
settlement,
Cibalae
Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city's registered population was 28,247 in the 2021 census, the total population of the city was 31,057, making it the largest town of the county. Surrounde ...
,
Sirmium
Sirmium was a city in the Roman province of Pannonia, located on the Sava river, on the site of modern Sremska Mitrovica in the Vojvodina autonomous provice of Serbia. First mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by Illyrians an ...
and
Singidunum
Singidunum ( sr, Сингидунум/''Singidunum'') was an ancient city which later evolved into modern Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. The name is of Celtic origin, going back to the time when Celtic tribe Scordisci settled the area in the 3r ...
(in modern-day Slavonski Brod, Vinkovci, Sremska Mitrovica and Belgrade) downstream of the Kupa. Besides the altar found at the Zelenci Pools, inscriptions and sites dedicated to Savus have been found in remains of Emona, Andautonia and Siscia. Several years after 1751 completion of the
Robba Fountain in Ljubljana, the three male figures sculpted as parts of the fountain were identified as statues of the river gods of Sava, Krka and Ljubljanica. In the early 20th century, the fountain was named the Fountain of Three
Carniolan Rivers.
The
Romantic poet
France Prešeren
France Prešeren () (2 or 3 December 1800 – 8 February 1849) was a 19th-century Romantic Slovene poet whose poems have been translated into many languages. wrote ''
The Baptism on the Savica
''The Baptism on the Savica'' ( sl, Krst pri Savici) is a long two-part epic- lyric poem written by the Slovene Romantic poet France Prešeren. According to the literary historian Marko Juvan, the work may be considered the Slovene national e ...
'' ( sl, Krst pri Savici, links=no), the
Slovene national epic
A national epic is an epic poem or a literary work of epic scope which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular nation—not necessarily a nation state, but at least an ethnic or linguistic group with as ...
, in 1835. The poem, referring in its title to a headwater of the Sava River, helped to inspire the design of the
coat of arms of Slovenia of 1991:
![Coat of arms of Slovenia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Coat_of_arms_of_Slovenia.svg)
However, the two wavy lines at the base of the
blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vis ...
officially represent rivers of Slovenia and the Adriatic Sea rather than the Savica or the Sava specifically.
The Sava River also appears symbolically in the coat of arms of the former
Kingdom of Slavonia
The Kingdom of Slavonia ( hr, Kraljevina Slavonija, la, Regnum Sclavoniae, hu, Szlavón Királyság, german: Königreich Slawonien, sr-Cyrl, Краљевина Славонија) was a kingdom of the Habsburg monarchy and the Austrian Empi ...
:
![HRV Slavonia COA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/HRV_Slavonia_COA.svg)
The design, approved by the
Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary
Vladislaus II, also known as Vladislav, Władysław or Wladislas ( hu, II. Ulászló; 1 March 1456 – 13 March 1516), was King of Bohemia from 1471 to 1516, and King of Hungary and Croatia from 1490 to 1516. As the eldest son of Casimir IV Jagi ...
in 1496, incorporates two
bars symbolising the Sava and the Drava rivers tracing the borders of the kingdom. The design inspired the arms of several present-day
counties of Croatia
The counties of Croatia ( hr, hrvatske županije) are the primary administrative subdivisions of the Republic of Croatia. Since they were re-established in 1992, Croatia has been divided into 20 counties and the capital city of Zagreb, which ...
in the region of
Slavonia
Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...
and itself forms a part of the
coat of arms of Croatia
The coat of arms of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Grb Republike Hrvatske) consists of one main shield and five smaller shields which form a crown over the main shield. The main coat of arms is a checkerboard (chequy) that consists of 13 red an ...
. The poem ''Horvatska domovina'', written by
Antun Mihanović
Antun Mihanović (10 June 1796 – 14 November 1861) was a Croatian poet and lyricist, most famous for writing the national anthem of Croatia, which was put to music by Josif Runjanin and adopted in 1891. Klanjec, his birthplace, holds a monumen ...
in 1835 as a national symbol of Croatia, also refers to the Sava River. Modified lyrics of the poem later became the
Croatian anthem.
See also
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International Sava River Basin Commission
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Posavina (region)
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External links
* Condition of Sava at locations in Slovenia (proceeding down the stream):
*
Radovljica– graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in
Radovljica
Radovljica (; german: Radmannsdorf) is a town in the Upper Carniola region of northern Slovenia. It is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Radovljica.
Geography
The town is located on the southern slope of the Karawanks mountain ra ...
by
ARSO The Slovenian Environment Agency (Slovenian: ''Agencija Republike Slovenije za okolje'' or ''ARSO'') is the main organisation for environment of the Republic of Slovenia. It was established in 2001 with a reorganisation of the ''Hydrometeorological ...
)
*
Medno– graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in
Medno
Medno () is a settlement on the right bank of the Sava River in central Slovenia, northwest of the capital Ljubljana. It belongs to the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is part of the traditional region of Upper Carniola and is now included wit ...
by
ARSO The Slovenian Environment Agency (Slovenian: ''Agencija Republike Slovenije za okolje'' or ''ARSO'') is the main organisation for environment of the Republic of Slovenia. It was established in 2001 with a reorganisation of the ''Hydrometeorological ...
)
*
Šentjakob– graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in
Šentjakob by
ARSO The Slovenian Environment Agency (Slovenian: ''Agencija Republike Slovenije za okolje'' or ''ARSO'') is the main organisation for environment of the Republic of Slovenia. It was established in 2001 with a reorganisation of the ''Hydrometeorological ...
)
*
Hrastnik– graphs, in the following order, of water level, flow and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in
Hrastnik
Hrastnik (, German: ''Hrastnigg'') is a town in the Central Sava Valley in central Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Hrastnik. The area is part of the traditional region of Styria. The entire municipality is now included in the Cent ...
by
ARSO The Slovenian Environment Agency (Slovenian: ''Agencija Republike Slovenije za okolje'' or ''ARSO'') is the main organisation for environment of the Republic of Slovenia. It was established in 2001 with a reorganisation of the ''Hydrometeorological ...
)
*
Jesenice na Dolenjskem– graphs, in the following order, of water level and temperature data for the past 30 days (taken in
Jesenice na Dolenjskem by
ARSO The Slovenian Environment Agency (Slovenian: ''Agencija Republike Slovenije za okolje'' or ''ARSO'') is the main organisation for environment of the Republic of Slovenia. It was established in 2001 with a reorganisation of the ''Hydrometeorological ...
)
*
{{Good article
Rivers of Slovenia
Rivers of Croatia
Rivers of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Rivers of Serbia
International rivers of Europe
Geography of Belgrade
Geography of Zagreb
Geography of Vukovar-Syrmia County
Borders of Serbia
Bosnia and Herzegovina–Croatia border
Rivers of Ljubljana
Border rivers
Croatia–Slovenia border
Braided rivers in Europe