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The Sava is a river in Central Europe and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reaches Serbia, feeding into the Danube in its capital, Belgrade.
The Sava is long, including the Sava Dolinka headwater rising in Zelenci, Slovenia. It is the largest tributary of the Danube by volume of water, and the second-largest after the Tisza in terms of catchment area () and length. It drains a significant portion of the Dinaric Alps region, through the major tributaries of Drina, Bosna, Kupa, Una, Vrbas, Lonja, Kolubara, 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, Zagreb and Belgrade. The Sava is about -navigable for larger vessels: from the confluence of the Kupa in Sisak a few kilometers below Zagreb.
The Sava Dolinka rises at the Zelenci Pools near Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, in a valley separating the Julian Alps from the Karawanks mountain range. The spring is near the Slovene-Italy border at above sea level, in a drainage divide between the Adriatic Sea and . The Sava Dolinka spring is fed by groundwater possibly exhibiting bifurcation of source karst aquifer to the Sava and Soča basins. Nadiža creek, a short losing stream 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, at the confluence of the Jezernica, a short watercourse flowing out from Lake Bohinj 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 the Sava Bohinjka, rising at the southern flank of Triglav as the Savica Falls, downstream from Triglav Lakes Valley, and flowing into the lake, as a part of the Sava Bohinjka. The watercourse flows —including the length of the Savica—east to Radovljica, where it discharges into the Sava Dolinka. Downstream from the confluence, the river is referred to as the Sava.
The Sava then flows through the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, where another reservoir is on the river, adjacent to the Tacen Whitewater Course. There the river course turns east and leaves the Ljubljana Basin via Dolsko, at a.s.l. (at confluence of the Ljubljanica and the Kamnik Bistrica). The course continues through the Sava Hills, where it passes the Litija Basin with the mining and industrial town of Litija, the Central Sava Valley with the mining towns of Zagorje ob Savi, Trbovlje, and Hrastnik, turns to the southeast and runs through the Lower Sava Valley with the towns of Radeče, Sevnica, and Krško. 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, 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, where it is joined by the Krka, and the river ultimately becomes a border river between Slovenia and Croatia, marking of their border near confluence of the Sutla (). At that point, the Sava reaches a.s.l. after flowing through Slovenia and along its border.
East of Zagreb, the river turns southeast again further through the Central Croatia, to the Sisak-Moslavina County, 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 and fairway width, of the river, Structure gauge restrictions, poor Navigation mark 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, Croatian War of Independence, Bosnian War, and the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. Before reaching confluence of Una at Jasenovac and a.s.l, the Sava River traces Lonjsko polje Nature Park, encompassing marshes frequently flooded by the Sava and its tributaries in the area.
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 at Jasenovac to ASL at Brčko Stream gauge: 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 .
The Sava discharges into the Danube, after reaching a.s.l. as its right tributary at the Great War Island off the easternmost tip of Syrmia in Belgrade, away from the Danube's confluence and the Black Sea.
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 (24,568), and Bosanska Gradiška (est. 20,000).
| +The most populous urban areas along the Sava River !scope="col" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | Rank !scope="col" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | City !scope="col" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | Country !scope="col" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | Urban population !scope="col" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | Municipal population |
| 1,659,440 | |||||
| 1,110,517 | |||||
| 537,893 | |||||
| 105,432 | |||||
| 49,891 | |||||
| 85,000 | |||||
| 79,773 | |||||
| 51,225 | |||||
| 47,768 | |||||
| 71,419 |
| 12.01% | |||
| 25.97% | |||
| 39.25% | |||
| 15.50% | |||
| 7.09% | |||
| 0.18% | |||
| Source: International Sava River Basin Commission; | |||
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 at the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, near Šćepan Polje. 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.
| Slovenia | ||||||||
| Savinja | ||||||||
| Lower Sava | ||||||||
| Croatia | ||||||||
| Sisak-Moslavina | ||||||||
| Border river at the confluence | ||||||||
| Bosnia-Herzegovina | ||||||||
| Ukrina | ||||||||
| Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina | ||||||||
| Brčko District | ||||||||
| Border river at the confluence | ||||||||
| Serbia | ||||||||
| Central Serbia | ||||||||
| Notes: Country/region/county of location of confluence with Sava corresponding to tributary bank side; The list includes rivers with catchment areas greater than , with addition of Sutla. Source: International Sava River Basin Commission; | ||||||||
Seven out of eight largest reservoirs in the Sava River basin are in the Drina catchment, the largest among them being the Lake Piva on the eponymous river in Montenegro, created after construction of Mratinje Dam. 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, but they are also used as supply of drinking water, industrial water source, for irrigation and food production.
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 ecosystems. 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, eleven are considered to be largely in Slovenia, fourteen in Croatia, seven in Bosnia-Herzegovina, five in Serbia and four in Montenegro.
| 1992 | 1537 | 1474 | 313 |
| 1993 | 1178 | 1121 | 251 |
| 1994 | 1595 | 1531 | 255 |
| 1995 | 1676 | 1610 | 281 |
| 1996 | 1958 | 1888 | 377 |
| 1997 | 1555 | 1492 | 264 |
| 1998 | 1534 | 1471 | 302 |
| 1999 | 1838 | 1770 | 297 |
| 2000 | 1360 | 1300 | 269 |
| 2001 | 1676 | 1610 | 266 |
| 2002 | 1543 | 1480 | 221 |
| 2003 | 1055 | 1000 | 146 |
| 2004 | 1828 | 1760 | 316 |
| 2005 | 1899 | 1830 | 271 |
| 2006 | 1757 | 1690 | 275 |
| 2007 | 1228 | 1170 | 234 |
| 2008 | 1340 | 1280 | 315 |
| 2009 | 1442 | 1380 | 314 |
| 2010 | 2418 | 2338 | 399 |
| 2011 | 961 | 908 | 183 |
| 2012 | 1157 | 1096 | 183 |
| 2013 | 1859 | 1793 | 382 |
| 2014 | 2316 | 2245 | 472 |
| 2015 | 1533 | 1470 | 249 |
| 2016 | 1615 | 1550 | 310 |
| 2017 | 1289 | 1234 | 289 |
| 2018 | 1665 | 1595 | 312 |
| 2019 | 1380 | 1320 | 314 |
| 2020 | 1065 | 1010 | |
| 2021 | 1513 | 1450 | |
| 2022 | 1110 | ||
| 2023 | 1900 |
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 Paleozoic and Mesozoic structures are visible in Papuk and other Slavonian mountains. The processes also led to the formation of a Stratovolcano chain in the basin 17–12 Mya (million years ago) and intensified subsidence observed until 5 Mya as well as about 7.5 Mya. Contemporary uplift of the Carpathian Mountains prevented water flowing to the Black Sea, and the Pannonian Sea 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 during the uplift of the Transdanubian Mountains. 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. 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 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, which became watershed between Drava and Sava River basins extending along Ivanščica–Kalnik–Bilogora–Papuk mountain chain. The Papuk Mountain is flanked by the Krndija and the Dilj Hills on the eastern rim of the Požega Valley. 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–Vinkovci and Vukovar Plateau. The loess plateau, extending eastward from Dilj and representing the watershed between the Vuka and Bosut rivers, gradually rises to the Fruška Gora south of Ilok.
, 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. Completion of the five power plants is expected to cost 700 million . 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.
| 56 GWh | |||
| 62 GWh | |||
| 72 GWh | |||
| 116 GWh | |||
| 115 GWh | |||
| 144 GWh | |||
| Sources: Savske Elektrarne Ljubljana, Hidroelektrarne na spodnji Savi. | |||
, of the river course between Slavonski Šamac 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. Navigation along further of the river upstream to Rugvica near Zagreb is possible for vessels with tonnage 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 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.
| 2007 |
| 2007 |
| 2009 |
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 11112 tonnes of nitrogen and 2,642 tonnes of phosphorus.
Agriculture is another significant source of the Sava River basin surface water pollution, specifically through livestock manure 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.
| +Hazardous substances load from significant industrial pollution of the Sava River basin surface waters in 2007 | |||||||||
| 104 | |||||||||
| N/A | |||||||||
| N/A | |||||||||
| 2,038 | |||||||||
| N/A | |||||||||
| Source: International Sava River Basin Commission; N/A - data not available | |||||||||
The Sava River is the site of several . Those include the International Sava Tour rowing regatta taking place between Zagreb and Brčko, and the Belgrade Regatta (sailing regatta).
The river is also the site of the Šabac Swimming Marathon—an open water swimming competition, running on an course between the village of Jarak and the city of Šabac in Serbia. The competition is held annually since 1970, and was included in FINA international calendar from 1984 to 2012.
Recreational and sport fishing is a popular activity along the Sava River course. There is a long sport fishing competition ground near Hotemež, Slovenia.
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, when the first settlements were founded along the Sava River. Taurisci associated their river goddess Adsullata 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 Empire settlements and castra built along the Via Pannonia, the Roman road running from Aquileia to the Danube. The settlements include Emona, Andautonia and Siscia (near modern-day Ljubljana, Velika Gorica and Sisak respectively) upstream of the Kupa River confluence, and Marsonia, itself built atop a prehistory settlement, Cibalae, Sirmium and Singidunum (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 became identified with the river gods of Sava, Krka and Ljubljanica. In the early 20th century, the fountain was named the Fountain of Three Rivers.
The Romantic poetry poet France Prešeren wrote The Baptism on the Savica (), the Slovenes national epic, 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:
However, the two wavy lines at the base of the blazon 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 design, approved by the Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary 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 in the region of Slavonia and itself forms a part of the coat of arms of Croatia. The poem Horvatska domovina, written by Antun Mihanović in 1835 as a national symbol of Croatia, also refers to the Sava River. Modified lyrics of the poem later became the Croatian anthem.
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