The Cenia is a coastal river in
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
that flows through the eastern part of the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...
. Along a significant portion of its course, it acts as a border between the provinces of
Castelló and
Tarragona
Tarragona (, ; ) is a coastal city and municipality in Catalonia (Spain). It is the capital and largest town of Tarragonès county, the Camp de Tarragona region and the province of Tarragona. Geographically, it is located on the Costa Daurada ar ...
. It has a length of 50 km and it flows into the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
.
Route
The river originates in the
Ports de Tortosa-Beseit, within the municipality of
La Pobla de Benifassà. The river's waters are accumulated in the
Ulldecona dam, also located in the same municipality at an elevation of 477 meters above sea level. This reservoir, with a surface area of 116 hectares and a capacity of 11 hm³, is the only infrastructure regulating the river and is used for irrigation.
From the reservoir, the river passes through areas with steep slopes, which provide it with high oxygenation. Vegetation is abundant in this area, contributing to maintaining the habitat for aquatic life. Further downstream, before reaching the
homonymous municipality, water diversions are made to supply irrigation for an area of approximately 2,360 hectares.
Just before the town of
La Sénia, the river marks the border between
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
and the
Valencian Community
The Valencian Community is an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is the fourth most populous Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community after Andalusia, Catalonia and the Community of Madrid wit ...
. From this point until its mouth, the Cenia serves as a border between these two autonomous communities.
As it moves away from this point, the river practically receives no natural contributions, and the water quality deteriorates significantly. Near the town of
Alcanar, the river enters the
Plana de Vinaroz and crosses this area until it flows into the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
at
Sol de Riu.
This river is described in the sixth volume of the ''
Diccionario geográfico-estadístico-histórico de España y sus posesiones de Ultramar'' by
Pascual Madoz with the following words:
Tributaries
* From the left:
**
Barranc dels Terrers:
See also
*
La Sénia
*
List of rivers of Spain
This is an incomplete list of rivers that are at least partially in Spain. The rivers flowing into the sea are sorted along the coast. Rivers flowing into other rivers are listed by the rivers they flow into. Rivers in the mainland Iberian Peninsu ...
*
Taula del Sénia
*
Tinença de Benifassà
References
Sources
*
External links
*
Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar (CHJ):
Plan Hidrológico de cuenca del Júcar. Tomo VI, Anejo Nº4, Sistemas de Explotación', 1997.
Rivers of Spain
Rivers of the Valencian Community
Rivers of Catalonia
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