Environment
Being one of the largest rivers in Ukraine, Donets is very intensively used in farming and industry. Ukraine alone uses more than 2 km3 (0.48 cu mi) of river waters per year, half of which is returned as polluted discharges; this consumption effectively reduces river runoff by 32 m3/s (1,100 cu ft/s).
Donets suffered greatly even back in the 18th century, when old oaks were cut down along its banks. The industrial development of the 19th century reduced the groundwater levels of the basin. This resulted in shallowing of the river and slowed down navigation. Until the mid-19 century, the river was rich in fish which population rapidly declined since then. The water quality is graded as level IV (polluted) to V (dirty). The main pollutants are fertilizers, petroleum, phenols, zinc, chromium and copper. In Kharkiv Oblast, water is contaminated by industrial and communal wastes of Belgorod, Izyum and Shebekino cities, but the water is partially purified through the Pechenga Reservoir. The density of plants and thus the contamination increase downstream in Donetsk and Luhansk areas, especially around Lysychansk and Severodonetsk, about 400 km from the mouth. Some tributaries of Seversky Donets, such as Kozenyi Butt, Bakhmut and Lugan are so polluted that consuming fish caught there is dangerous. The purest segment of Donets is between the source and Belgorod, and between the Pecheneg Reservoir and Chuhuiv. Average water salinity is 650–750 mg/L, and it increases in winter to 1000 mg/L mostly due to industrial wastewater.
Read more about this topic: Seversky Donets River
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—William Faulkner (1897–1962)