Neretva
Neretva | |
---|---|
Physical characteristics | |
Source | |
• location | Lebršnik and Zelengora Mountains, Dinaric Alps, Bosnia and Herzegovina |
• coordinates | 43°16′17″N 18°33′27″E / 43.27139°N 18.55750°E |
• elevation | 1,227 m (4,026 ft) |
Mouth | Adriatic Sea |
• location | Ploče, Croatia |
• coordinates | 43°01′11″N 17°26′42″E / 43.01972°N 17.44500°E |
• elevation | 0 m (0 ft) |
Length | 225 km (140 mi)[1] |
Basin size | 11,798 km2 (4,555 sq mi)[1] |
Discharge | |
• average | 341 m3/s (12,000 cu ft/s) |
Basin features | |
Progression | Neretva→ |
Bridges | Stara Ćuprija, Stari Most |
Inland ports | Metković |
The Neretva (
The Neretva is notable
Its name has been suggested to come from the Indo-European root *ner, meaning "to dive". The same root is seen in the Serbo-Croatian root "roniti".[8]
Geography and hydrology
The Neretva flows through Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia before reaching the Adriatic Sea. It is the largest karst river in the Dinaric Alps in the eastern part of the Adriatic basin/watershed. Its total length is 225 kilometres (140 miles), of which 208 kilometres (129 miles) are in Bosnia and Herzegovina, while the final 22 kilometres (14 miles) are in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia.[9]
The Neretva watershed is 11,798 square kilometres (4,555 sq mi) in total; in Bosnia and Herzegovina 11,368 square kilometres (4,389 sq mi) with the addition of the Trebišnjica river watershed and in Croatia, 430 square kilometres (170 sq mi).[1] The average discharge at profile Žitomislići in Bosnia and Herzegovina is 233 cubic metres (8,200 cu ft)/s and at the mouth in Croatia is 341 cubic metres (12,000 cu ft)/s in addition to the Trebišnjica River's 402 cubic metres (14,200 cu ft)/s. The Trebišnjica River basin is included in the Neretva watershed due to a physical link of the two basins by the porous karst terrain.
The hydrological parameters of Neretva are regularly monitored in Croatia at Metković.[10]
Sections
Geographically and hydrologically the Neretva is divided into three sections.[11]
Its source and headwaters
The second section begins from the confluence of the Neretva and the
When the Neretva expands for the second and final time, it reaches its third section. This area is often colloquially called the "Bosnian and Herzegovinian California". The last 30 kilometres (19 miles) of its course forms wide alluvial delta, before the river empties into the Adriatic Sea.[13]
Tributaries
Rivers of the
flow into it from the left.Towns and villages
Towns and villages on the Neretva include
Upper Neretva
The upper course of the Neretva river is simply called the
Rakitnica River
The
Middle Neretva
Hydrographically the Middle Neretva section begins from the town of Konjic, but after the construction of
Four enormous vale-size rifts appear in the mountainsides forming canyon walls, two from each side of the river, intersecting with the main canyon almost perpendicularly. The Neretva receives only four small streams in this section, all running through these side vales, which are relatively short. Going downstream from Jablanica, the first two from each side are the Glogošnica stream, its eponymous canyon and small village on the left, and the Grabovica stream with its eponymous canyon and historical village, from the right side. Further downstream two much larger vales appear again on each side, first on the right the stream of Drežanka and its large and steep valley, with two eponymous villages, Donja (Lower) and Gornja (Upper) Drežnica, and than Mostarska Bijela, as one of the most pristine vales in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with its eponymous uniquely characteristic subterranean stream, embedded deep into the Prenj mountain, on the left.
Although these streams are of low outflow, there are also numerous wellsprings rising on both sides of the canyon at the river banks, with high-capacity discharge. Three large hydroelectric power stations operate in this section of the Neretva, between Jablanica and Mostar, namely Grabovica HPP, Salakovac HPP and Mostar HPP.[12]
Lakes
Lower Neretva
Downstream from the confluence of its tributaries, the Trebižat and Bregava Rivers, the valley spreads into an alluvial fan covering 20,000 hectares (49,000 acres). The upper valley, the 7,411 hectares in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is called Hutovo Blato.
Hutovo Blato wetlands
The Neretva Delta has been recognised as a Ramsar site since 1992, and
Since 1995, Hutovo Blato has been protected as Hutovo Blato Nature Park[17][18] and managed by a public authority. The whole zone is protected from human impact and provides habitat for many plants and animals.[16] The historical site Old Fortress Hutovo Blato is in the Nature Park.
Gornje Blato-
Krupa River
The Krupa River is a Neretva left tributary and the main water current of Hutovo Blato, which carries the waters from Gornje Blato and Svitavsko Lake into the Neretva River. The length of Krupa is 9 km (6 miles) with an average depth of 5 metres (16 feet). The Krupa does not have a specific source, but is an arm of Deransko Lake. Also, the Krupa is a unique river in Europe, because it flows both ways. It flows both towards and back from its mouth. This happens when a high water level causes Neretva to push Krupa in the opposite direction.[18]
Neretva Delta wetlands
Passing towns and villages in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Neretva spills out into the Adriatic Sea, building a wetland delta that is listed under the Ramsar Convention as internationally important.[19][16]
In this lower alluvial valley in Croatia, the Neretva River splinters into multiple courses, creating a delta covering approximately 12,000 hectares. The delta in Croatia has been reduced by extensive land reclamation projects, reducing the river flows to just three branches from the original twelve. The marshes, lagoons and lakes that once dotted this plain have disappeared and only fragments of the old
Endemic and endangered species
Invasive species
This section needs additional citations for verification. (July 2014) |
A
The fast pace of pike perch population growth and displacements is expected to match the environmental conditions from the mid-ecological valence of this fish.[clarification needed] In this sense, it is the established continuous and accelerated growth of the population dynamics of pike perch in Jablaničko Lake, a relatively good representation in
Pike perch causes clearly visible, negative effects on the autochthonous species in
Salmonids
Among most
andAll three endemic trout species of the Neretva are endangered, mostly due to the
Cyprinids
The most
Especially interesting are five
- Karst minnow (Phoxinellus metohiensis) is considered Vulnerable(VU).
- South Dalmatian minnow (IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesVersion 2009.1.
- Dalmatian minnow (Phoxinellus ghetaldii) is considered vulnerable.
- Adriatic minnow ( It is considered endangered.
- Spotted minnow ( It is considered vulnerable.
- Chondrostoma phoxinus) is considered Critically Endangered(CR)
- Neretvan nase (also Dalmatian nase and Dalmatian soiffe) (Chondrostoma knerii)[33] is endemic to the Neretva. Neretvan nase is mainly distributed in the lower parts and delta, the Krupa River, Nature Park Hutovo Blato wetlands and Neretva Delta wetlands. It occurs in water bodies with little current. It is threatened by habitat destruction and pollution.[34] It is considered Vulnerable (VU).
- Adriatic dace also Balkan dace (Leuciscus svallize Heckel & Kner 1858)[35] is a vulnerable endemic, although also found in Montenegro and Albania. Adults inhabit water bodies on the low plains, with little current and in lakes. They feed on invertebrates. It is threatened due to pollution, habitat destruction and due to introduction of other species.
- Illyrian dace (Near Threatened(NT).
- Turskyi dace (Krka and Čikola rivers. It occurs on the low plains, with little current and in lakes. It feeds on invertebrates. Threats include water abstraction and pollution. It is considered Critically Endangered(CR).
- Livanjsko field.
Cobitidae
The Neretvan spined loach (Cobitis narentana Karaman, 1928) is an Adriatic watershed endemic that inhabits a narrow area of the Neretva watershed in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.[39] In Bosnia and Herzegovina it inhabits only the lower Neretva and its smaller tributaries like the
Neretva delta endemics
The Neretva delta hosts more than 20 endemic species, of which 18 are endemic to the Adriatic watershed, along with three endemic species in Croatia. Nearly half (45%) of the total number of species that inhabit this area are included in one of the categories of threat and are mainly endemic.[22]
Hydroelectric controversy
The benefits brought by
These facilities are as follows:
- on the Neretva: Jablanica Hydroelectric Power Station, Grabovica Hydroelectric Power Station, Salakovac Hydroelectric Power Station, Mostar Hydroelectric Power Station;
- on the Rama: Rama Hydroelectric Power Station;
- on the Trebišnjica: Trebinje-1 Hydroelectric Power Station, Trebinje-2 Hydroelectric Power Station, Čapljina Hydroelectric Power Station, Dubrovnik Hydroelectric Power Station (in Croatia).
There are additionally a number of hydroelectric power station of various capacities on smaller tributaries, such as Mostarsko Blato Hydroelectric Power Station on the Lištica (downstream from HPP named Jasenica), Peć Mlini Hydroelectric Power Station on the Trebižat, and numerous small hydro projects on the small river tributaries like Tatinac, Trešanica, Neretvica and Duščica, with a proposed small hydro on the rivers Doljanka, Glogošnica, and one abandoned on the Idbar.
Projects in Upper Neretva
The government of the Bosnia and Herzegovina has unveiled plans to build three more hydroelectric power plants with dams over 150.5 metres in height
Meanwhile, Bosnia and Herzegovina entity, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was preparing a parallel plan to form a large, protected area as a national park which would include the entire region of Gornja Neretva (English: Upper Neretva), and have within the park the three hydroelectric plants. The latest idea is that the park should be divided in two, where the Neretva should be excluded from both and would become the boundary between parks. Those who oppose the plan wish to have the area turned into the National Park of Upper Neretva and would leave the park without substantial development.[40][45][46]
Projects in Ulog
Since the 2000's, the other entity of Bosnia,
The Upper Horizons - Trebišnjica
In recent times the
Cultural and historical significance
Early history
During antiquity, the Neretva was known as Narenta, Narona and Naro(n),[55][56][57] and was the inland[58] home to the ancient Illyrian tribe of Ardiaei. They became ship builders, seafarers and fishermen. Archaeological discoveries of Illyrian culture dealt both with daily and religious life such as the discovery of ancient Illyrian shipwrecks found in Hutovo Blato, in the vicinity of the Neretva River.[59]
After intense
Roman period
One of the most significant monuments of Roman times in Bosnia and Herzegovina is Mogorjelo. Located 1 kilometer south of the town of Čapljina, Mogorjelo remnants of the old Roman suburban Villa Rustica from the 4th century represents ancient Roman agricultural production and estate, mills, bakeries, olive oil refinery and forges.[63] The Villa was destroyed in the middle of the 4th century, during the invasion of western Goths. Surviving residents did not restore it to its original splendor. The name of Mogorjelo is thought to be derived either from the Slavic word for "burn" (Slavic – goriti) or that at the end of the 5th century the church was built on the ruins of the Villa, and was dedicated to St. Hermagor – Mogoru.[64]
Middle Ages
In the Early Middle Ages, the South Slavic Narentines held the region. They were known for piracy and resisted Christianization until they were defeated by the Venetians, and then the Byzantines, at the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries.[citation needed]
Ottoman period
The
It is traditional for the town's young men to leap from the 24 metres (79 ft) bridge into the Neretva. The practice dates back to 1566, the time the bridge was built, and an event was held every summer in front of the populace. The first recorded instance of someone diving off the bridge is from 1664. In 1968 a formal diving competition was inaugurated and held every summer.[66]
World War II: Battle of the Neretva
The famous
At one point during the battle, the Partisans were caught in a pocket with their back to the Neretva River. Near Jablanica, 20,000 Partisans under command of Marshal Josip Broz Tito struggled to save some 4500 wounded comrades and typhus patients together with the Supreme Headquarters and Main Hospital, against some 150,000 Axis combatants.[69]
In popular culture
Celebrated Bosnian and Herzegovinian poet, Mak Dizdar often used the river Neretva as motif in his poetry, alongside other historical, cultural and natural feature of his native Herzegovina.
The famous
Gallery
-
View from the Old Bridge in Mostar
-
Neretva River in seen from Musala Bridge in Mostar
-
The mouth of the Neretva river andAdriatic sea
See also
- Vrelo Bosne
- Vrelo Bune
- Bunica
- Vrelo Bunice
- Trebišnjica
- List of national parks of BiH
- Environmental impacts of reservoirs
- Environment and electricity generation
- Tourism in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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