Piatra Neamț

Piatra-Neamt is a city located in North-Eastern Romania. In 1992 the city's population was 135,842 inhabitants and in 2006 its population dropped to 105,000 people. The city is the capital of Neamt county and thanks to its architectural and natural beauty it earned the nickname Perla Moldovei. On the industrial level it occupies the second place in county after the city of Roman . The city has seen a spectacular growth in the recent years and has been recognized as having the growth in the North-East region. In 1992 the density was of 1,592 inhabitants per square km, while on 2002 the density was of 1,354 inhabitants per square km.

Geographical location :

The river Bistrita passes through the city. On a global scale the city of Piatra-Neamt is located on 20? 22' degrees East and 46?56' degrees North. Piatra-Neamt is surrounded by hills: Pietricica (590m) on the South East, Cozla (679m) on the North, Cernegura (852m) on the South West, Carloman (617m) on the North West and Batca Doamnei (462m) on the South West.

The city is located in an area with a Temperate Climate with short, pleasant Summers, long Falls and nice winters without extreme colds and plenty of snow. With such a pleasant year-round weather the area was inhabited since the earliest times. The main rivers that pass through Piatra-Neamt are Bistrita and Cuejdi, but also some smaller rivers: Doamna, Sarata, Borzoghean. The nearby lakes are Batca Doamnei Lake (255 ha and a volume of approximately 10 mil. cubic meters) and Reconstruction Lake (10 ha and a volume of approximately 250,000 cubic meters).

The river Bistrita has hydro-basin of 7039 km2. The basin is located at an altitude of 920m. After the year 1960 a 13 hydroelectric stations have been built, which created 9 lakes. The biggest hydroelectric station is the one from Izvorul Muntelui and it has a volume of 1,12 billion cubic meters.

Before the hydroelectric stations have been built the river was a important way to transport trees and other materials which lead all the way to the Danube River. Before the hydroelectric stations have been built, the river had a width of 50meters and a volume of 59 cubic meters per second but the volume varied throughout the year between 3 and 1080 cubic meters per second. This variation had catastrophic effects on the cities that are located near the river. But with the building of the dams the role of the river Bistrita changed, artificial lakes have been created which changed the way the river and the nearby land looked.

Climate :

Because Piatra-Neamt is located in a mini-valley, the city is sheltered from cold air fronts. The climate is generally nice with short but pleasant summers and cool winters. The highest temperature ever recorded was of 38,6 degrees Celsius and the lowest was of -32 ? Celsius. The median yearly temperature varies from year to year, on some years it was of 7.5 ? Celsius and on other year was of 9 ? Celsius.

Wild Life :