Cugir – town from the foot of the Surianu

Mountains

I. The geographical position of the town of Cugir – is defined by the

crossing of the 45º 50’ northern latitude parallel with 23º 25’ eastern longitude
meridian.

The town of Cugir lies in the south-western part of Alba county, being located in the
contact area between the lowland aisle of the Mures River and the Surianu Mountains.

Its administrative territory has an area of 354,1 square kilometers and includes, beside
Cugir, seven component hamlets : Bocsitura, Bucuru, Calene, Feteni, Goasele, Mugesti
and Vinerea.

II.Natural characteristics of the administrative territory of the

town of Cugir
1.The relief

From a geomorphological point of view, the town of Cugir’s territory fits into two
lands.

Thus is the piedmontan step,

at the contact between the
Mures’s aisle and the area of
the Surianu Mountains, a high
piedmont fragmented in oblong
peaks, with altitudes between
700 m and 300 meters height.

These hills, most of them

forested with broadleaf forests
and pine plantations are: the
Dragana Hill situated to the
east, the Chiciora Hill towards
north - 739 meters altitude, and
towards West , the Cetate Hill
with an altitude of 450 meters.

Most of the administrative

territory of Cugir city is located
in the area of the Surianu
Mountains, which presents an obvious orthographical asymmetry, through the presence of
the biggest highness in the south-eastern side of the mountain unity – the Patru’s Peak,
2130 meters altitude and the Surianu Peak , 2059 meters altitude - and through the
decrease of altitude to the north.

The glacial relief is present in the alpine area represented by glacial circuses in which
glacial lakes are found.

The presence of the flatted surfaces confers a high grade of accessibility, utilization and
through this a perfect form of humanization of the mountain areas.

The river meadow and the platforms of the Cugir river are marked out to the north. The
river meadow is increasing to the north having widths between 400 m and 500 m height
and presenting a relative flat relief. When the water increases, particularly in spring,
overflows take place on larger areas, especially beyond Vinerea locality.

The border platforms situated on one part and the other are presenting widths between
180 m and 300 m, most of them being used in grain crop, and to the north, they overlap
with the Mures river’s platforms.

From an altimetric point of view the inside of the town of Cugir is marked by the
izohipsa (the level curve) of 300 m absolute altitude.

2. The climate

The climate conditions specific to the territory of Cugir presents altitudinal differences
imposed by the level difference at more than 1700 m height.

Therefore the annual average temperatures record values of 0º Celsius on the highest
stages, of 4-5º Celsius on the lowest stage, of 9,5º Celsius in Cugir and of 10,2º along the
Mures river’s meadow.

The annual average rainfall quantity presents also differences depending on the climate
floors. Thus, values over 1200 mm/year on the highest areas, about 800-1000 mm/year on
the inferior mountain stage and 680 mm/ year in the town of Cugir area are registered.

The air flow prevalently comes from the west, and there are present mountain breezes,
local winds all over the town of Cugir.
To emphasize the specific characters of the climate elements – temperature and rainfalls –
for the Cugir area we reproduce its climate chart.
 Climate chart of the Town of Cugir

Rainfall Temperature
mm ºC
Cugir Month
120 25
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Temp
100 -3 -1 2 10 15 18 20 18 14 10 4
20 -1
Rainfall
80 30 40 45 50 80 100 80 70 50 50 45
15 40
60 10
40 5
20 0 It
0 -5 is
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

noticed that the coldest month is January, with an average temperature of -3 Celsius
degrees, and the warmest one is July, with an average temperature of 20 Celsius degrees.
The amount of rainfall records higher values in spring and at the beginning of summer,
due to the increment of the west air circulation which brings a wet blow.

3. The hydrographic network

The hydrographic network corresponds to the hydrographic basin of the Cugir River. This
one is formed from the junction between the Râul Mare River and the Râul Mic River
precisely in front of the Cugir Mechanical Factory II.

The Cugir River, through its component, the Râul Mare River, springs below the Pătru’s
Peak and after a route of 54 km it flows in the Mureş River.

The average flow of the Cugir River is 4,45 m³/s, but great flows were recorded in 1984,
when the flow value was 60 m³/s, with consequences for the town of Cugir and for the
nearby areas.

A positive aspect in order to maintain the quality of the Cugir River’s waters is the
cleaning process of the residual waters of the town at the cleaning station situated in the
northern part of the town.

The glacial lake Surianu is situated in a

glacial circus on the eastern side of the
Surianu peak, at an altitude of 1750 m height. The lake has a surface of 0.59 hectars and a
maximum depth of 7.3 meters.

The antropic lake Canciu is situated on the Raul Mare, at about 30 km from the town of
Cugir. There are two water dans on both the Raul Mare river and the Raul Mic one,
which supply the necessary amount of fresh water for the town.Underground waters were
identified like some aquifer
complexes billeted in different
metamorphic rocks.

4. Vegetation and fauna

Plant formations existent in this area

are dominated by beech forests
( Fagus silvatica) up to 1050 meters
altitude, spruce forests (Picea abies) extending beyond the under alpine area which
presents an ample variety of vegetation: juniper trees, bilberries, the rhodondendrons and
so on. The alpine grassland has an island character in the area of the peaks exceeding
2000 m height. It is remarkable that the forests own more than 65% of the administrative
surface of the town of Cugir.

The presence of the forests also makes possible the existence of a various, relatively rich
fauna : the brown bear (Ursus arctos), the wolf (Canis lupus), the fox ( Vulpes vulpes),
the wild boar, which exceed the forests sometimes. Deer, squirrels, badgers, rabbits are
some of the species also found in this area.

On the upper course of the fast and crystal-clear like water rivers aboriginal trout
( Salmo trutto fario) is present too, and the lipan, which lives downstream. Nevertheless,
frequent floods which occur on rivers have diminished the fish effectives.

II. Social and economic characteristics of the Town of Cugir

Documentary attested since 1493 with the name of “Villa Kudsyr”, the town of Cugir has
managed to remark itself, during time, as an active component of the geographic space.

Its evolution has been determined not only by the internal transformation, but also by the
interventions of some external factors of economical, social and political nature.

The demographic evolution of the town of Cugir has been very much connected with its
economic development.
The demographic evolution had a pronounced ascendant trend until 1990 when it
registered 34,545 inhabitants, a fact determined by the high natural increase and also by
the positive migratory increase, sustained for a long period of time by the industrial
progress.

But after 1990, due to the economical reorganizations, the population of the city has
decreased, thus at the 2002 census there were 27,756 inhabitants ( or 28.002 inhabitants).
Due to this demographic situation in this transition period, the town of Cugir registered a
process of urban diminution. The decisive factors being, from a demographic point of
view, the negative natural increase and the population’s migration both internal and
international.

Cugir is known as a former metallurgy center, the beginnings of the industry dating back
from 1799, thing facilitated by the use of local water and forests from the surroundings.

It is appreciated that industry has been the engine of the urban growth bringing a direct or
indirect contribution to creating some working opportunities. The broadest development
of Cugir Mechanical Factory was recorded between 1965 and1974. The activity of the
factory generated a permanent flux of labor force (more than 500 people/day) from the
areas with easy railway links, the phenomenon of commuting being situated between the
limits of the one hour isochronous.

The industrial function is completed by both agricultural and wood industry ( 1987, the
Geography of Romania, the Romanian Carpathians and Transylvania Depression, volume
III., Academy Publishing House , Bucharest ).

After the events from 1989, the town has got to know the process of economic
reorganization due to the transition towards the market economy. The big factory turns
itself into small enterprises and private
workshops, with a different specific: SC
Cugir Mechanical Factory, SC Weapon
Factory SA, SC Star Transmission SRL,
SC Bulbucan SRL, etc.

Through technical arrangements and

modernization of some departments of
the Cugir Mechanical Factory, the
tradition of the machine-tool making
industry continues, but the accent falls
upon the increment of efficiency and
quality of the industrial production, but in the conditions of a labour force in industry,
lower than in 1990.

The decrease of the industrial activity, in correlation with the mono-industrial profile of
the town of Cugir, has lead to the introduction of this city in the category of
underprivileged areas.
In the economical structure of the town of Cugir, changes can appear, especially those
connected with the capitalization of the natural sightseeing potential, on the background
of some technical arrangements, which can sustain a touring activity with a mountainous
character.