Watershed
The Sava River basin, covers a total area of 97,713.2 square kilometres (37,727.3 square miles) making it the second largest Danube tributary catchment by area size, surpassed by the Tisza basin only, and it encompasses 12% of the Danube basin, draining into the Black Sea. The Sava represents the third longest tributary of the Danube and its largest tributary by discharge. The catchment area borders the remainder of the Danube basin to the north and east, and the Adriatic Sea basin to the west and south. The river basin generally consists of parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia, with a very small part of the catchment area belonging to Albania. Topography of the basin varies significantly. Upstream portion of the basin is more rugged than downstream one, but asymmetry of the basin topography is particularly apparent when comparing right and left bank areas—the former dominated by the Alps and the Dinarides reaching elevations in excess of 2,000 metres (6,600 feet) a.s.l, while the latter is dominated by Pannonian Plain. Mean elevation of the basin is 545 metres (1,788 feet) a.s.l.
| Country | Sava basin area | Share of national territory in the basin |
Share of the Sava basin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slovenia | 11,734.8 km2 (4,530.8 sq mi) | 52.8% | 12.01% |
| Croatia | 25,373.5 km2 (9,796.8 sq mi) | 45.2% | 25.97% |
| Bosnia-Herzegovina | 38,349.1 km2 (14,806.7 sq mi) | 75.8% | 39.25% |
| Serbia | 15,147.0 km2 (5,848.3 sq mi) | 17.4% | 15.50% |
| Montenegro | 6,929.8 km2 (2,675.6 sq mi) | 49.6% | 7.09% |
| Albania | 179.0 km2 (69.1 sq mi) | 0.59% | 0.18% |
| Source: International Sava River Basin Commission; | |||
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