Geographic position
Buzău County is located in the south-eastern part of Romania, in the south-east of the Eastern Carpathians, focused on the upper and middle course of the Buzău River and borders the counties of Braşov and Covasna to the north-west, Vrancea to the north-east, Brăila to east, Ialomiţa to the south and Prahova to the west.
Buzău County connects the Carpathian arc and the Danube Plain, occupying an area on the border between the three historical Romanian provinces – Muntenia, Moldova and Transylvania.
The area of the county is 6,102.6 km2 (17% of the area of the Southeast Region and 2.6% of the country’s territory) and the geographical coordinates are between 44°44′ and 45°49′ north latitude and between 26°04′ and 27 °26′ east longitude.
From the point of view of historical provinces, Buzăul is located in Muntenia, bordering the other two large Romanian provinces – Moldova and Transylvania, a position that has influenced the evolution and development of the county over time.
The connection of the county with the other regions in the country is made through:
- DE 85 (or DN 2) from Bucharest to Suceava, Bacău, Focșani;
- DN 1B towards Ploiesti;
- DN 10 towards Brașov;
- DN 2B towards Brăila.
The county is crossed by the railway line – line 500 – of European importance on the Bucharest – Ploiești – Buzău – Focșani – Bacău – Suceava route.
Since the 19th century, Buzău railway station has been an important railway junction, with national lines to Brăila, Galați, Constanta and Brașov, as well as a local line to Nehoiu.
Climate
The climate is temperate – continental, with average annual temperatures of 12 – 14°C. Usually the maximum temperatures are in July (+38°C), and the minimum in February (-28°C). The annual precipitations are between 400-500 mm.
The population of the county
451,069 inhabitants (October 20, 2011) Population structure: 219,934 males, respectively 231,135 females, of which 38.65% live in towns and cities and 61.35% in rural areas. In the ethnic structure, the share is held by Romanians – 98.98% of the total.
Natural, historical, cultural and economic heritage
Buzău County occupies most of the hydrographic basin of the river with the same name, harmoniously encompassing all forms of relief: mountains in the north and plains in the south, between which lies the subcarpathian hilly area. The maximum altitude is recorded at the top of Penteleu (1772 m.), and the minimum in the Călămătuiului valley (40 m.).
The mountain area consists of the Buzăului Mountains and the Vrancea Mountains, components of the Curbura Carpathians. The Buzăului Mountains, located mostly on the territory of the county, are made up of five massifs: Penteleu, Podul Calului, Siriu, Monteoru and Ivăneţu. The most important, in terms of size and altitude – is the Penteleu Massif. Bounded by the Bâscă Mică and Bâsca Mare rivers, the Penteleu Massif is mostly sandstone flysch (Tarcău sandstone), marl, calcareous marl, bituminous flysch and conglomerates. The Vrancea Mountains occupy a small area in the north-eastern part of the county, on the border with Vrancea County.