Elements of Bio-Geographical Regional Determination in the Subcarpathians between the Prahova and the Dâmboviţa River

Generally, the Subcarpathian area between the Dâmboviţa and the Prahova is characterized by very diverse landscapes and an intense human impact. Secondary or derived vegetal associations are also present to a large extent, in relative balance with a certain type and degree of human pressure. Some of these vegetal associations are extremely rich in flora and fauna. The most frequent are the lawn associations used as hayfields and pastures. Orchards are often associated with grassy vegetation used as grazing land or more often as hayfields. There are relatively frequent shrub clusters and they represent isolated vegetation on rocky crests or, quite often, an intermediary stage towards the initial forest vegetation on formerly deforested terrains where there is more or less intense degradation. All these remain stable as long as man uses them rationally. When human impact goes beyond nature’s capacity to withstand it, most of the terrains used as grazing land or covered by shrub clusters show significant degradation, which leads to much fewer species with diminished productive potential.The landscape types of this Subcarpathian area are: the high hill landscape, the low and medium altitude hill landscape and the large corridors and depressions landscape

The Impact of Climatic Hazards on Environment in the Târgovişte Plain

The analysis of the main climate elements allows the characterization of the geographical area of the Târgovişte Plain from the climatic viewpoint (located at the contact of two major physical-geographical units, the Sub-Carpathians and the plateau, the Târgovişte Plain has benefited from the natural and human resources offered by the two units, as well as by the presence of the Ialomiţa and the Dâmboviţa rivers on the margins; within the Romanian Plain, the Târgovişte Plain has a peripheral position, being bordered by the subsidence plain of Titu-Sălcuţa in the south, south-west and south-east, and by the piedmont plain of Cricovul Dulce). This analysis was made based on the data recorded at the weather station of Târgovişte (located at 228 m altitude, 44056' N latitude, 25026' E longitude) and at the weather station of Titu (125 m altitude, 45036’ latitude N, 26025’ longitude E) during the period between 1961 and 2007. The annual, seasonal and monthly values of the Standardized Precipitation Anomaly (SPA) was calculated and interpreted

The Ecological Impact of Tourist Activities in the Ialomiţa Subcarpathians (Romania)

The analyzed region is situated in between the mountains and the plain and represents an area that is perfectly integrated in the natural and human landscape of the Romanian Subcarpathians. Relying on surveys out in the field and on questionnaires, our study has examined the ecological impact of the tourist activities in the tourist resorts of the Ialomiţa Subcarpathians. We have analyzed, as indicators, the production of domestic waste and the water consumption in the tourist activity, compared to the quantities produced on a local level. It can be noticed that the impact of the tourist activities on the environment is low, both in the case of the production of domestic waste and as far as the water consumption is concerned. It has been noticed that some tourist pensions with their own water supply and sewerage systems have a major effect on the environment when the environmental protection norms are not respected. The questionnaires filled in both by the local authorities and by the host communities show that they consider the tourists to be less responsible for the environmental condition than the local population

Geodemographical Features of the Settlements in the Subcarpathians between Prahova and Dâmboviţa

This Sub-Carpathian sector polarised all economic life in Dâmboviţa County, as its territory was also in the past a crossroads of the most important commercial routes along the Ialomiţa, connecting Transylvania with the south of nowadays Romania and, therefore, the number of people was greater than for other Romanian regions. Between 1930 and 2002 the population of the Sub-Carpathians between the Prahova and the Dâmboviţa increased continuously according to certain economic, social, and cultural trends. We noticed that population natural growth rate decreased from 1992 to 2002 down to negative values because of both population aging and problematic medical assistance. At the same time, the migratory growth rate had an endo-dynamic feature in the areas where the natural growth rate was small and an exo-dynamic feature where the labour force was exceeding request and the unemployment rate was high

HUMAN-INDUCED CHANGES IN ECOSYSTEM SERVICES IN THE PETROŞANI DEPRESSION (SOUTHERN CARPATHIANS, ROMANIA)

The paper focuses on the changes in ecosystem services in the most important coal field from the Southern Carpathians (Romania). The time horizon considered is the interval 1950-2010, characterized by two major processes: intensive development of the mining industry (1950-1989) and subsequent restructuring of mining, with significant consequences since 1996. Socio-economic phenomena associated with these two stages in the evolution of the region have generated major changes in ecosystem services, leading to increased human vulnerability, both to extreme events (natural hazards) and pressure from economic factors

Study on Environmental Impact of the Closure of the Titu-Dâmboviţa Solid Waste Dump

In the sustainable development context, waste management is seen as a major problem, which cannot be solved only by using technical means; a fundamental change is necessary in the current production, consumption and waste elimination pattern. Our study refers to the environmental impact of the closure of the urban Titu- Dâmboviţa solid waste dump, and comprises: quality of the environmental factors, analysis of the size of the impact, evaluation of the potential impact on the environmental factors, evaluation of the global impact and post-closure monitoring of the waste dump. The results obtained concerning the value of the global pollution index and the bonitation grades for each environmental factor have led us to state that through the closure of this solid domestic waste dump, environment is affected within allowable limits, the impact is low and local, and the effects of this project on the environmental factors are positive

The evaluation of the environmental quality in Romania

The evaluation of the environmental quality concerns the analysis of the physical, chemical, biological and statistical features that allow the scientists to classify a territory in a certain category or hierarchic scale. In the model used in this study, the environmental quality was assessed at the administrative unit level (county), as a result of the interaction of different components. Fifty indicators were selected and included into 6 major groups based on several factors (natural hazards, air quality, biodiversity, water quality, human health, soil quality, economic activities) that increase the communities' susceptibility to different negative aspects concerning the environment. Each indicator was classified on a scale from 1 to 5 (1-very good…5-very weak). The sum of the indicators was reclassified according to the same model, until the total environmental quality was finally determined. The analysis of the environmental quality on a departmental level provides the opportunity to identify the regions that need to be allotted financial resources in order to diminish the negative impact of the disturbing (anthropic and natural) factors. At the same time, by focusing the research on the most vulnerable counties, a more detailed analysis has revealed the most vulnerable administrative units (towns and communes)