The Siret River Basin is located in Eastern
Romania, occupying most of the Moldovian
Provence. It springs from the Carpathian Forests
in Ukraine and flows into the Danube after a
route of 726 km. The total area of the Siret River
Basin is 47610 km
2
and the multiannual average
flow at the confluence with the Danube is
240m
3
/s.
On the Romanian territory, the length of
the Siret River is 590 km and the catchment area
is 42890 km
2
.
The basic characteristics of the
hydrological regime are determined by the large
share of mountain affluents, located on the right
side: Suceava river (L = 173 km, S = 2643 km
2
),
Moldova River (L = 213 km, S = 4299 km
2
),
Bistrita River (L = 283 km, S = 7039 km
2
), Trotus
River (L = 162 km, S = 4456 km
2
), Putna River
(L = 153 km, S = 2480 km
2
), Ramnicu Sarat
River (L = 137 km, S = 1063 km
2
) and Buzau
River (L = 302 km, S = 5264 km
2
). The only
important affluent on the left side of the Siret
River is Barlad River (L = 207 km, S = 7220km
2
),
which drains the plateau areas.
Most of the Siret River basin located in
Romania is administrated by the Directorate of
Siret Waters (27 402 km
2
), the remaining pool
being administrated by the Water Directorate
Buzau - Ialomita (BH Buzau with other small
affluents on the right side of the Lower Siret
River) and Prut Water Directorate (BH Barlad
and several smaller affluents on the left side of
the lower Siret River).
Siret River is the second longest river
(after Prut River) flowing into the Danube, close
to the city of Galati (over 300 000 inhabitants).
In the confluence section, Danube has a
multiannual average flow of 6000 m
3
/s, which
means over 24 times more than the flow of Siret
River.
In this paper I will present a succinct
evolution of the quality of water in Siret River,
between 1995 and 2011, and a tendency of this
water quality, from the river’s entrance on
Romanian territory until its flow into the Danube.
The study about the Siret River water quality is
based on data collected by the Directorate of Siret
Waters, where I have been working for the past
20 years. To anticipate the water quality
tendencies, I took into account the following:
- the results from water quality monitoring
between 1995 and 2011;
- the tendencies of demographic and economic
development in the Siret River Basin;
- the constraints regarding water pollution
reduction, so that any section of the river has
good quality water, according to the main
purpose of 60/2000/CE Directive, issued by
the European Parliament and the European
Union Council. | 
