The Săsar ( hu, Zazar) is a right

tributary 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 drainage ...

of the river

Lăpuș Lăpuș (formerly ''Lăpușul Românesc''; hu, Oláhlápos) is a commune in Maramureș County, Transylvania, Romania, on the Lăpuș River, at 12 km from the town of Târgu Lăpuș. It is composed of a single village, Lăpuș. Etymologicall ...

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

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

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

Baia Mare Baia Mare ( , ; hu, Nagybánya; german: Frauenbach or Groß-Neustadt; la, Rivulus Dominarum) is a municipality along the Săsar River, in northwestern Romania; it is the capital of Maramureș County. The city lies in the region of Maramureș ...

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

Baia Sprie Baia Sprie (; hu, Felsőbánya, german: Mittelstadt) is a town in Maramureș County, northern Romania. Baia Sprie is situated at a distance of from Baia Mare. The town administers three villages: Chiuzbaia (''Kisbánya''), Satu Nou de Sus (''F ...

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

cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

, and

cadmium Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it demonstrates oxidation state +2 in most of ...

. One notable incident occurred on January 30, 2000, when a tailings impoundment at the Baia Mare mine burst, releasing 50 to 100 tons of cyanide and heavy metals into the river. The Săsar, locally known as the "dead river," is unsuitable for bathing, washing, or fishing. The

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

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

Someș The Someș (; hu, Szamos; german: Somesch or ''Samosch'') is a left tributary of the Tisza in Hungary and Romania. It has a length of (including its source river Someșul Mare), of which 50 km are in Hungary.Danube The Danube ( ; ) 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 ...

via 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 ...

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

Tributaries

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

References

External links

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