Calarasi County - Geography and history
Geography and history
Calarasi county is located in the south-east of Romania, on the flow of the Danube river and the Borcea Branch. It has an area of 5 088 km2, representing 2.1% of the national territory. The following counties neighbour it: Ialomita county to the north , Constanta county to the south-east, Giurgiu and Ilfov counties to the west and Bulgaria to the south. The administrative organisation of the territory, as of 31 December 2000, was as follows: 3 towns and 2 municipalities, 48 communes and 160 villages. The county's capital city is Calarasi.
The county is lying on an area characterised by plains, organised in four main units (the Baragan Plain, the Mostistea Plain, the Vlasia Plain and the Burnaz Plain), completed by the Danube meadow.
The climate is temperate-continental with a homogenous regime, as a result of the uniformity of this plain geography, characterised by hot and dry summers and cold winters.
In the southern extremity of the county, the specific topoclimate of the Danube Meadow, can be identified, with warmer summers and more gentle winters than the rest of the plain.
The hydrographical network is dominated by the Danube river, also representing the natural boundary in the south and south-eastern territory on a length of 150 km. The Danube splits into two branches - the Borcea on the left, and the Ancient Danube on the right side - which enlace the Ialomita moor of the Great Island of Ialomita.
The Arges river runs across the south-western part of the county, on 46 km, debouching into the Danube to the west of Oltenita city, after the confluence with the Dâmbovita river, at Budesti.
Besides the natural meadow lakes, there are accumulation lakesmenatfor irrigation and fishing, among which: Iezeru - Mostistea, Frasinet, Gurbanesti, Fundulea.
During certain periods of time, the Calarasi county's territory represented the nucleus - the centre of foundation and development for many civilisations on the Lower Danube.
Some of the most impressive Neolithic cultures in South-Eastern Europe include toponyms of the county, as Boian and Gumelnita. The connections between the Dacians and the Romans are here older than elsewhere.
The pre-feudal period and early feudalism were influencedby the Roman and Byzantine cultures, as presentin the Byzantine citadels built on the Danube's border. The vestiges of Vicina, built on the Pacuiul lui Soare island, are situated less than 20 km away in the south-east of Calarasi. As the capital city of the region tothe north of the Danube, Vicina became a very powerful political, economic and spiritual centre during the 10th - 13th centuries.
The first written document, attesting life in this area, dates March 1482, during the rule of King Basarab the Young. Other written documents, dating 1515 and 1541, demonstrate the existence of the cities of Oltenita and Calarasi.
Lichiresti (today's Calarasi) was first indicated in documents in 1630 by Prince Leon Tomsa Voivode. Since 1699 Calarasi became the custom of Walachia, settling a military unit (horsemen) led by Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu, with the role of protection and transmission of letters to Istanbul. This presence led to the change of the locality's name, the new name being used in the Austrian map of 1790: Calarasi vel Lichiresti.
In 1981, after an administrative reorganisation, Calarasi county was established.
Economy
Located in a plain area, Calarasi county's main economic activity is agriculture of. It is founded on the agricultural lands measuring 428.2 thousand ha (2.9% of the country's agricultural area), of which 96.6% arable land.
At the end of 2000 more than 90% of the agricultural area was in private property of legal and natural persons.
The agricultural production focuses mainly to crops of grain cereals, oleaginous plants, and forage plants. The productions obtained for wheat, barley, corn, sunflower and soy, place Calarasi county among thegreat producers of the country. In 2000, Calarasi county produced 9.4% of the national production of wheat and rye (1st position among the other counties), 7% for barley and two-row barley (4th position), 8.6% of the country's sunflower production (4th position), 16.4% of the soy production.
At the end of 2000, the county had 33.9 thousand cattle, 139.3 thousand pigs, 173.3 thousand sheep and goats. The private sector owns more than 95% of the livestock.
In 2000, there were 3 274 active companies in the county, more than 98% with private capital.
Of the total companies, by their main activity, industry had a share of 10.3%, while services represented 75.8%.
The county's industry is mostly specialised in processing activities.
Calarasi county had, as of 31 December 2000, a railway network in length of 243 km, of which 151 km (62.1%) electric lines, with a density of 47.8 km per 1 000 km2 of territory.
The road transportation was carried out, at the end of 2000, through a public road network measuring 1 177 km, of which 384 km were national (32.6%) and 793 km county and communal roads (67.4%).
The ports of Calarasi and Oltenita are meant to the fluvial transport of passengers and merchandises.
Calarasi county is a leader of the Romanian agricultural research, creating hundreds of cereal hybrids, technical plants and forages with higher productive properties.
The Fundulea Institute for the Research on Cereals and Technical Plantshas as a main purpose the basic research in corn, wheat and sunflower corps, and the production of biologically superior seeds.
This county has two other units active in theoretical and applied research in the agricultural field: the Fundulea Station for Research on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants and the Marculesti Station for the Research on Irrigated crops.
The vicinity of the Danube creates a specific tourist attraction. The important number of picturesque holms, as well as the ramification of the main flow of Danube into several unique branches, make up a natural landscape which allows relaxation and provides with specific conditions for hunting and fishing.
In 2000, Calarasi has 5 units of tourist accommodation, consisting of 2 hotels, 2 motels and 1 pension, with a total accommodation capacity of 359 places.
Population and social environment
As of 1 July 2000, the population of Calarasi county was of 331.8 thousand inhabitants, representing 1.5% of the country's population, with an average density of 65 inhabitants/km2.
From the point of view of the average distribution, 39.2% of county's population lives in the urban area and 60.8% in the rural area. As of 1 July 2000, males represented 49.3% of the total, and females 50.7%. The average age of the population was of 37.7 years.
The population's structure by ages proves the slow process of demographic aging. As of 1 July 2000, the population of 65 years and over represented 15.2% (13.7% at 1 July 1996). In 2000, the birth rate was 11.2 per 1 000 inhabitants, increasing compared to 10.1 per 1 000 inhabitants in 1996.
The mortality rate in 2000 was 12.7 per 1 000 inhabitants (15.0 per 1 000 inhabitants in 1996). Between 1996 and 2000, the birth rate was under the mortality rate, which led to a negative natural growth.
The infant mortality featured relatively high values, 22.0 per 1 000 live births in 2000. Between 1996-2000, this oscillated from 21.4 per 1 000 live births to 30.1 per 1 000 live births, generally much higher than the national average.
The marriage rate in 2000 was 4.6 per 1 000 inhabitants (compared to 5.8 per 1 000 inhabitants in 1996), and the divorce rate was 1.22 per 1 000 inhabitants (compared to 1.38 per 1 000 inhabitants in 1996).
Between 1998 and 2000, the life expectancy at birth was 66.5 years for males and 73.1 years for females.
At the end of 2000 the civil active population of the county was of 128.6 thousand persons - in a slight increase (0.7%), compared to 1996. The global activity rate was 38.7%, with 35.8% for females. The activity rate of labour forces was 68% per total and 65.7% for females.
The number of unemployed persons registered at the end of 2000 was 15.3 thousand persons, the unemployment rate being 11.9% - calculated on the basis of the civilian active population of the county (as of 01.01.2001).
In the 2000/2001 school year the county had 355 educational institutions, of which 165 kindergartens, 174 primary and secondary schools, and 14 high schools.
The healthcare services for population were provided in 7 hospitals with 1 657 beds, 7 medical consultation centres, 151 medical offices (individuals, grouped, associated and specialised) and 33 dentist clinics. The network of public healthcare unit includes as well 7 pharmacies and drugstores and 2 nurseries with 135 beds.
In the private sector operated, at the end of 2000, 50 medical offices, 16 dentist clinics, 24 de pharmacies and drugstores, 1 medical laboratory, 1 laboratory of dentist technique.
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