In the eastern part of Ukraine there is a large industrial region called Donbass. It is a major center of non-ferrous and ferrous metallurgy. Here are the largest deposits of coal. The Donbass includes several regions: part of Rostov (Russia), the eastern regions of Dnepropetrovsk, the south of Lugansk and the center of Donetsk (Ukraine).
This region has a dense water system. Donbass rivers play an important role. Thanks to them, cities and villages are supplied with water, and heavy industry works. More than half of them are more than 25 km long. There are 110 rivers in total in this region. These arteries are Kalmius (209 km), Mius (258 km), Volchya (323 km), Samara (320 km), Aydar (264 km) and others.
General characteristics of rivers
The rivers of Donbass are of a flat type. In the summer season, many of them dry up. The reason for this was the construction of reservoirs. Almost all of them originate from small streams that formed in places where groundwater emerged to the surface. Three sections can be distinguished where the sources of the rivers are located:
- Central Russian Upland (southern slopes).
- Donetsk ridge.
- Azov Upland.
Such places are located at an altitude of about 300 m above sea level. The formation of the direction of the flow was influenced by the features of the relief and orography. Donbass rivers feed mainly on precipitation and underground sources. Given the climatic features of this region, all arteries are covered with ice in the winter. In the spring season there is a flood. And in summer, the water level drops sharply. Rivers open in early spring, by the end of March they are completely freed from ice. The minimum duration of the freezing period is 6 days, the maximum is 153.
It is difficult to call the rivers of Donbass full-flowing. Their annual runoff is unevenly distributed. The greatest amount falls on spring (about 56-60%), in autumn and summer - 30%, in winter - no more than 10-14%. The river channels are winding, asymmetrical valleys. In the upper reaches, floodplains reach 50 m, and in the lower reaches their width can reach 2 km.
Basin of the Sea of Azov
All rivers of this region belong to three basins. Those that have a southerly direction carry their waters to the Sea of Azov. Here is some of them:
- The large artery originating in the Rostov region is Mius. The source is located on the slopes of the Donetsk Ridge. Mouth - Miussky estuary (Sea of Azov).
- The Kalchik River is small. It is a tributary of Kalmius. It originates from the village of Kalchinovka (border of Zaporizhzhya and Donetsk regions). The mouth is in the city of Mariupol. The length of the channel is almost 90 km.
- Dry Volnovakha flows through two districts of the Donetsk region. Its length is 48 km. The mouth is located south of the village of Olginka. It falls into the Wet Wave.
- Kalmius is a large river of Donbass. The source is located near the city of Yasinovataya, the mouth is in the city of Mariupol.
Don Pool
Many arteries that have a western direction flow through the territory of this region. There are about 30 of them. They flow into the river. Don. The following Donbass rivers belong to its basin:
- Bakhmut is the right tributary of the main river of the Donetsk region of the Seversky Donets. The location of the source is Gorlovka, the mouth is s. Dronovka.
- Nitrius has a length of 31 km. It is a left tributary of the Seversky Donets. The mouth is in the village of Prishib. It is considered the cleanest river in the Donetsk region.
- Treasury Butt - a large river of Donbass. The length is almost 130 km. The beginning takes in the territory of the Donetsk ridge, the mouth is in the town of Raigorodok.
- Lugan flows through the territory of two regions - Lugansk and Donetsk. The source is in Gorlovka, the mouth is the Village of Lugansk. The length is about 200 km.
Dnieper basin
The rivers flowing east belong to the Dnieper basin. Here is some of them.
- Bull is a tributary of the river. Samara. The length of the channel is more than 108 km. The mouth is located near the village. Petropavlovka. Belongs to the water system of the Black Sea.
- Salty - a river flowing in the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya regions. The length is small, only 28.6 km. It originates in s. Volodino, the mouth is in with. By the hunter.
- Wet Yaly is a river, the channel of which has a length of almost 150 km. It falls into the river. Wolf The width between the banks in some places reaches 50 meters.
- Wolf - a large river, originating in the village. Evgenovka (Donetsk ridge). It falls into the river. Samara near the village Kocherechki.
Seversky Donets
This river is considered the most important water resource in the Donbass. It is widely used in industry, so its environmental condition has deteriorated greatly. The most polluted sites are located near cities. The name of the artery is directly related to the river. Don. In length, it occupies the 7th place among Ukrainian rivers. It is one of the largest tributaries of the Don. A channel with a length of more than 1000 km passes through the territory of the Russian Federation and Ukraine. The source is located in the Belgorod region, the mouth is the village of Kochetovskaya (Rostov-on-Don).
Seversky Donets is a river with a calm character. In some places the flow is completely absent. It feeds mainly due to melting snow. Seasonal fluctuations in water level are observed . The average channel width is 40-60 m, only in some places it reaches 100 m. Many reservoirs have been built on the river. The bottom is mostly sandy, uneven, there are rifts and reaches. Throughout Donetsk takes more than a thousand tributaries, both small and medium.
Kalmius
The largest industrial region of Donbass is the Donetsk region. The Kalmius River originates on the southern slope of the ridge in the town of Yasinovataya. It has a length of more than 200 km. The river bed does not extend beyond the Donetsk region. Kalmius is low in water. Its average depth does not exceed 2 meters. At the very beginning, the flow moves in a southeast direction. On the site, which administratively belongs to the Starobeshevsky district, it unfolds to the south-west.
In total, Kalmius accepts 13 right tributaries and 5 left. The largest of them:
Their length is more than 60 km.
There are four large cities on the river: Donetsk (the administrative center of the region), Yasinovataya (large railway junction), Mariupol (an important seaport and mud resort), Komsomolskoye. In addition to them, there are 13 more small villages and urban-type settlements. Four reservoirs have been built on Kalmius. It is mainly used for irrigation of land and water supply of settlements.
Recently, the ecological condition of the river is very poor. Within Donetsk, it has long failed to meet sanitary standards. Swimming in Kalmius is prohibited. However, many wonderful parks have been built on its shore, where you can stroll both in summer and in winter.
Bahmut
One of the right tributaries of the Seversky Donets is the Bakhmut River. The length of its channel is 88 km. It is quite winding. The average width is about 10 m. The river is not high, the depth is 3 m. It freezes in winter. The ice lasts until mid-March. The maximum level in the river is recorded only during floods. The bottom is silty, so the transparency of water is small - about 50 cm.
Earlier r. Bakhmut was shipping. However, it is currently very shallow. The irrational use of its resources in industrial and agricultural needs led to such consequences.
Mius
The Mius River flows through the territory of three regions: Rostov, Lugansk and Donetsk. To be more precise, it serves as the boundary between the last two. Its length is 258 km. It flows into the Sea of Azov, forming an estuary, which is located in the Taganrog Bay. It takes three right and as many left tributaries. The Mius channel is very winding. The average width is about 25 m, but in the lower reaches it increases to 45 m. On the banks, shrubbery and meadow vegetation predominate. There are backwaters on the river, sometimes their width reaches 800 m. There are also rifts up to 50 cm deep and reaches up to 6 m.
Wolf
The Volchya River is a large tributary of Samara. The distance from the source to the mouth is 323 km. The city of Pavlograd and two small villages were built on the river. At the very beginning, its coastline was heavily overgrown with reeds. There are so many reaches. The bottom is mostly muddy, pits and rifts prevail. Closer to the city on the shores there are comfortable sandy beaches. However, the site passing through the Dibrovsky Forest is considered the most beautiful place on Volchya.