Preparing the full technical, environmental and legal case for removing the obsolete Ciumani weir on the Upper Mureș River, unlocking up to 22 km of free-flowing river.
The Upper Mureș River winds through long, meandering stretches in the Eastern Carpathians, retaining high habitat diversity, gravel bars and well-developed riparian corridors that are increasingly rare in Europe. It is home to species such as the critically endangered huchen, the declining grayling, brown trout, barbel and nase, all of which depend on unobstructed passage between spawning grounds, feeding areas and cold-water refugia.
In Ciumani village, a partly deteriorated concrete weir, originally built to serve a now-defunct industrial water supply, cuts across this valuable stretch of river. Removing it would reconnect a continuous corridor within the Mureș catchment, eliminating one of the last major barriers to fish migration on the Upper Mureș main channel.
| Project status | Live |
|---|---|
| Project type | Dam removal: pre-demolition |
| Country | Romania |
| River | Mureș (Upper section) |
| Focal species | Huchen (Hucho hucho), grayling (Thymallus thymallus), brown trout (Salmo trutta fario) |
| Organisation | Romanian Wilderness Society (RWS) |
| Website | srswild.ro |
This barrier was identified as the highest-priority removal opportunity during a previous Open Rivers Programme A1 grant: mapping of the Upper Mureș Basin. It has no legal owner, serves no active economic function, and the Ciumani Town Hall, which is responsible for the site, has already expressed its support for removal.
Dam removal is still a new and technically demanding undertaking in Romania, and authorities currently lack dedicated funding or established procedures to prepare such projects. Because of the barrier’s scale, its removal requires a feasibility study, an environmental impact assessment and an appropriate assessment under the Habitats Directive before any demolition permit can be issued. Preparing this documentation professionally is essential to move from a promising candidate identified on paper to a genuinely removal-ready project.
This project will complete every preparatory step needed to make the Ciumani weir ready for demolition. Working with subcontracted engineering and environmental experts, the project team will deliver a feasibility study, environmental impact assessment and appropriate assessment, and submit a removal permit application to the relevant Romanian authorities. Two Steering Committee meetings and two community engagement sessions will build institutional and local support, while a public report and closing webinar will share results and lessons learned.
By the end of the project, the barrier is expected to be fully documented, legally cleared and technically ready for physical removal, restoring longitudinal connectivity along approximately 60 km (22 km upstream) of the Upper Mureș River and creating a replicable model for other obsolete barriers identified in the project team’s A1 inventory.
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