HYDROLOGIC RISK – RESERVOIRS: AN OLD AND CURRENT IMPERATIVE
G. ROMANESCU, A. M. ROMANESCU
ABSTRACT. – Hydrologic risk phenomena have always affected human activity. For this reason, humankind has always sought ways of preventing and mitigating floods. Human activity has marked the environment. All human constructions change the normal pace of processes; it depends on what angle one uses to analyze the issue. Most of the times, reservoirs have complex functions, but large ones are destined mainly to preventing or mitigating hydrologic risks. The oldest reservoirs were built during Antiquity, yet the boom of such complex constructions was registered after 1950. On world level, it is worth mentioning the hydrologic basins of Columbia (USA), Chang Jiang (China), Angara (Russia), etc. The hydrographical basins in Romania comprising significant hydrotechnical works are Siret, Argeș, Jiu, Olt, Ialomița, etc. This study underscores the positive role played by reservoirs in flood mitigation and in the positive modification of the landscape.
Key words: hydrologic risk, reservoirs, flood mitigation, hydrotechnical developments