Geography

The geographical characteristics of the municipality of Momchilgrad

The municipality of Momchilgrad is situated in the Eastern part of the Rhodopa mountains among the Varbitsa and Nanovishka Rivers. It covers an area of 360 sq.km with a population of .........The town neighbors the municipalities of Dzhebel,Kirkovo , Krumovgrad and Kardzhali, which is the administrative regional center. There are 49 villages and.one town – Momchilgrad , which is the administrative , economical and cultural center as well.Today it has 10 022 inhabitants. Most of the villages are under 200 people and one of them is depopulated – the village of Yunatsi. Larger villages are Gruevo (752people) and Zvezdel (478people )
It is located in the highly segmented part of the Eastern Rhodope Strumni Ridge, which has a length of about 40 km and a width between 15 to 22 km., because of mountainous relief. The slopes are deforested and eroded; in some places there are landslides. The highest peaks of the region are Strumni Ridge-960.,Zdravets(Dambala)-910m.and Cherkovishte (Klise Tepe)-871.The feeder of Varbitsa River and Krumovitsa River takes its source from them, but Strumni Ridge is a watershed between the two rivers. The average altitude of the municipality is 444m. The nature of the terrain has a negative impact on the villages and transport system.
The climate is mild to мediterranean –with an average annual temperature of about 11 centigrade and an average annual rainfall between 650-700mm.
The topography consists of maroon forest soils, which contain between 2% and 4% of humus content. This kind of soil has limited mineral chemical elements. The minerals are suitable for the cultivation of vines, tobacco, fruits and grains.
Along the Varbitsa and Nanovishka Rivers exist alluvial and deluvial –meadow soil. It is formed from heterogeneous and coarse alluvial material.The humus layer is clear, and after that the soil forms. The mechanical composition is mostly sandy light clay, but in some places it is medium. This kind of soil is suitable for growing vegetables and hemp because of the large quantity of moisture, which they receive from soil's layer. Formed by the destruction of reolitovite rocks into coarse soil, a natural macro-climate is created and coupled with humidity in growing tobacco plants and herbs.
Located in the area of Momchilgrad are a few semi-precious stones-opal, jaspers, agate stones etc. The territory is also rich in minerals, rocks, and especially important deposits of pearstone, which due to its warm and sound- proof qualities are the basis for the development of new technologies. Deposits of lead –zink ore are near the village Zvezdel.
Near the village of Raven exists nature reserve „Borovets" with an area of approximately 36 hectares. The reservation consists of two main plantations: black pine-tree and black oak-tree. The oak-tree formation contains a rare specimen of vergil hairy oaks, and natural vegetable life like as ash, eastern hornbeam, and shrubs are typical for the region..
Another landmark in the region of the municipality is The Petrified Forest, with an area of approximately 7.3 hectares. Some would say that it is the only petrified forest in the world in which trees remain standing straight since millions of years ago. These interesting and unique landmarks offer good opportunities for developing a different kind of alternative tourism.
Yet, to this we also can add part of the reservoir with a volume of 489mln.cbm. The main artery in the municipality is the Varbitsa River with 98 km. in length. The average annual flow is 19.3 cubic meters per second, and the water catchment basin is 1203kv.km. The river is rich in mountain barbel, chub, etc.