Varbitsa ( bg, Върбица ) is a river in the Eastern Rhodope mountains in
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
.
The Varbitsa river, a tributary to the Arda, the main river of the Rhodope Mountains, runs through 8 municipalities, 6 of them within the region of
Kardzhali
Kardzhali ( bg, Кърджали , ''Kărdžali''; tr, Kırcaali; gr, Κάρτζαλι, ''Kártzali''), sometimes spelt Kardžali or Kurdzhali, is a town in the Eastern Rhodopes in Bulgaria, centre of Kardzhali Municipality and Kardzhali Pro ...
and 2 in the region of Smolyan. It is the lifeline of the area, with industrial, drinking and irrigation water coming out, and refuse, raw sewage and industrial waste going in. That the Varbitsa starts below an officially “safe” tailings reservoir above the town of
Zlatograd
Zlatograd ( bg, Златоград, , ) is a town in Smolyan Province, southern-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Zlatograd Municipality. In December 2009, the town had a population of 7,110.Rivers of Bulgaria
Landforms of Smolyan Province
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