Tudor MUNTEANU, George DUMITRASCU, Rodica MACALET, Maria CALIN

1. UPPER SARMATIAN AQUIFER IN THE BADENI-DARA AREA, Tudor MUNTEANU, George DUMITRASCU, Rodica MACALET, Maria CALIN National Institute of Hydrology andWater Management Bucharest, Romania BUZAU COUNTY, ROMANIA

2. CONTENTS This work includes the followingchapters: 1. Introduction 2. Geomorphological considerations 3. Geological setting 4. Structural-tectonic framework 5. Hydrogeological features 6. Conclusions Finally, the work presents several photographs from the study area.

3. 1. INTRODUCTION • This work presents the geomorphological, geological, structural and hydrogeological features of the Badeni-Dara area, which is comprised in the south-eastern part of Romania. The Upper Sarmatian fissural aquifer from this area supplies with drinkable water several localities, agrozootechnical units (e.g. farms, stables, vineyards etc.) and commercial enterprises. • Administratively, the investigated area is located in the south-western part of Buzau county. • Hydrographically, it is included in the Danube river basin, namely the Ialomita river sub-basin. In its eastern part, the area is crossed by the Sarata brook, which is a left tributary of the Ialomita river.

4. 2. GEOMORPHOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS • Geomorphologically, the Badeni-Dara area is situated on the Istrita Hills which pertains to the Buzau Subcarpathians. These hills are surrounded as follows: to the north, by the Podeni and Niscov Depressions; to the east, by the Buzau river; to the south, by the Sarata Plain; to the west, by the Cricovu Sarat river. • In the Sarata Plain, two subunits were separated: the subhilly plain and the depressionary plain. • The Sarata plain is fragmented by the Naianca, Greceanca, Pietroasa and Sarata valleys as well as by the irrigation canals network. Geomorphological sketch of study area

5. 3. GEOLOGICAL SETTING • The deposits encountered in the Badeni-Dara area were ascribed to the following chronostratigraphical ranges: Burdigalian, Lower Badenian (Langhian), Sarmatian, Meotian, Pontian, Upper Dacian (Parscovian), Romanian, Romanian-Lower Pleistocene and Quaternary. In the frame of these ranges several litostratigrafic units have been separated. • The Sarmatian deposits occur in two distinct lithofacies: argillaceous (Volinian-Lower Basarabian and the greatest part of Upper Basarabian) and calcareous (top Upper Basarabian-Hersonian). The last lithofacies includes a fissural aquifer which supplies with water several localities. Geological map of study area (after Ghenea et al., 1978, with additions) Litostratigraphic units in Sarmatian deposits of Buzau Subcarpathians

6. 4. STRUCTURAL-TECTONIC FRAMEWORK • The Badeni-Dara area is located on the folded inner flank of the Carpathian Foredeep. In the Buzau Subcarpathians, this flank is comprised between the Tarcau Nappe or the Subcarpathian Nappe north-westward and the unfolded outer flank of the Carpathian Foredeep south-eastward. The Tarcau and the Subcarpathian Nappes represents two subunits of Moldavides. • The major structural elements are represented by the Naeni and Sarata Monteoru anticlines (separated by a syncline) as well as by two faults systems as follows: a main system of transversal faults, oriented from north-west to south-east; a subordinate system of longitudinal faults, oriented from north-east to south-west. Each from the two anticlines sinks gradually south-westward.

7. 5. HYDROGEOLOGICAL FEATURES Hydrogeologically, the mappings performed in the study area have pointed an fissural aquifer hosted in Upper Sarmatian calcareous deposits (constituted of calcilutites, calcarenites, calcirudites, shelly limestones, oolitic limestones, calcareous sandstones, sandstones, quartzous sands and thin interbeds of clays, silty clays, marls). In these deposits several springs with yields varying from 0.1 l/sec at Badeni and 3 l/sec at Pietroasa Mica have been met. Some springs have been captured for the water supply of the following localities: Badeni, Pietroasa Mica, Pietroasele, Dara, Sarata Monteoru, Gura Saratii, Merei, Stalpu, Ciobanoaia and Zoresti. The recharge of the Upper Sarmatian fissural aquifer is done by rainfalls, the surface waters infiltration as well as the water drained from local phreatic aquifers. The groundwaters from limestones are accumulated in fissures, on the fault planes and thestratification planes. The waters from the Istrita Limestone have different flow directions: from northwest to southeast; from west to east; from southeast to northwest. The hardness of the groundwaters ranges from 13.34 to 38.5 German degrees and the total dissolved solids from 0.4 to 1.2 g/l. The hydrochemical facies of groundwaters is mainly bicarbonate-sulphate-chloride and calcium-sodium-magnesium type. Geological map of study area (after Ghenea et al., 1978, with additions)

8. 6. CONCLUSIONS • The Badeni-Dara area is located in the south-eastern part of Romania, namely in the south-western part of the Buzau county. • In its eastern part, the area is crossed by the Sarata brook which is a left tributary of the Ialomita river. • Geomorphologically, the study area is located in the southern part of the Istrita Hills which pertains to the Buzau Subcarpathians. • Geologically, the following chronostratigraphical entities have been separated: Burdigalian, Lower Badenian (Langhian), Sarmatian, Meotian, Pontian, Upper Dacian (Parscovian), Romanian, Romanian-Lower Pleistocene and Quaternary. • Structural-tectonic, the Badeni-Dara area is located on the folded inner flank of the Carpathian Foredeep. • Hydrogeologically, the mappings performed in the study area have pointed an fissural aquifer hosted in Upper Sarmatian calcareous deposits (constituted of calcilutites, calcarenites, calcirudites, shelly limestones, oolitic limestones, calcareous sandstones, sandstones, quartzous sands and thin interbeds of clays, silty clays, marls). In these deposits several springs with yields varying from 0.1 l/sec at Badeni and 3 l/sec at Pietroasa Mica have been met. • The groundwaters from the Upper Sarmatian deposits are used as drinkable waters for the supply of several localities, agrozootechnical units and comercial enterprises. In the same time, these groundwaters together with the ones accumulated in the Burdigalian, Badenian and Lower Sarmatian deposits are used as mineralized waters, extracted from wells, for balneotherapy in the Sarata Monteoru resort.

9. PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE ISTRITA HILLS AND THE SARATA MONTEORU RESORT

10. ISTRITA HILLS Istrita Hills and Sarata brook Istrita Hills and Sarata Plain Istrita Hills – Upper Sarmatian limestones outcrop Istrita Hills – Upper Sarmatian limestones outcrops

11. SARATA MONTEORU RESORT “Ceres” Hotel Complex for balneary treatment “Mina de petrol” Hotel “Ciuhoiu” Hotel This resort is recommended for muskuloskeletal, endocrine, dermatological, neurological, circulatory, digestive, breathing, ophtalmological diseases as well as for other prophylactic and curative treatments.

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