Rociu

Rociu
Commune
Rociu
Coordinates: 44°40′N 25°2′E / 44.667°N 25.033°E / 44.667; 25.033
Country	Romania
County	Argeş County
Population (2002)[1]	3,014
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)

Rociu is a commune in Argeş County, in southern central Romania. It is composed of four villages: Gliganu de Jos, Gliganu de Sus, Rociu and Şerbăneşti.

History

The oldest relicves come from the Bronze Age, from Şerbăneşti Village.^[2] Then, much later, the village Gliganu is mentioned, on June 12, 1564. The village belonged to a boyar from Rucăr. According to the same source, all four villages are mentioned after 1830. In the Communist period, the commune received a strong impulse for economic growth: A 25 km long irrigation canal was built to drain water from the Argeş River.^[3] Rociu received special attention because there was built a farm of the Communist Party.

Location

Rociu is situated in the southern part of the Argeş county, in the Găvanu-Burdea plains.^[4] It is situated 25 to 30 kilometers from Piteşti, the main town of the county. The average altitude is 240 meters.

Villages

There are 4 villages: Rociu, Gliganu de Jos, Gliganu de Sus and Şerbăneşti.

Geography

The Găvanu-Burdea plain is a flat region, with large and fertile valleys.^[9] Rociu is situated close to the Dîmbovnic River (sometimes called Dâmbovnic or Drâmbovnic). There are a few smaller rivers that are dry in summer, like Mozacu River and Gliganu River. There are many small lakes, used for fishing.^[10]

Climate

Rociu has a temperate climate, like all Romanian villages. Usually, summers are hot and winters have frequent winds.^[11]

Demographics

According to the 2002 census,^[12] the commune has 3014 people, of which 2968 are Romanians and 46 are Gipsy (Roma people). Also, the population is dramatically aged: 40% are older than 60 years, and children are only 12% of the total population. 99% are Orthodox.

Transportation

There are a few county roads that link the commune with Piteşti and the nearby villages:^[13]

1. DJ503 links Rociu with Oarja and the A1 Motorway. It is asphalted from the motorway to Rociu. The road continues South to Giurgiu, but it is unasphalted.
2. DJ659 links Rociu north with Suseni, Bradu and Piteşti and to the south it continues to Negraşi, Videle and Giurgiu. It is asphalted.
3. DJ703b is unasphalted and links Rociu to Costeşti in the west and to Căteasca in the east.

The communal roads link the villages one to another:

1. DC104 links DJ659 (in Gliganu de Jos) with DJ 503 (in Rociu village) and then extends West to Căteasca.^[14] It is asphalted between Gliganu and Rociu.
2. DC106 links the centre of Rociu village with Şerbăneşti village and DJ659.^[15] It was recently asphalted.

Economy

There are no major firms in the area.^[16] The main occupation is agriculture. There are two major agricultural companies, a few mills, a small pig farm, a paper factory and a lot of small markets and pubs that provide the population with daily goods. There is a fair every Tuesday. Since the economy is based on agriculture, the old irrigation canal might still be used.^[3] Today, it only brings water to local fishing lakes.

Institutions

The town hall is located in the Rociu village.^[17] Near the town hall are the post office^[18] and the Veterinarian and Human services. Not far away is the politic centre, of the Social Democratic Party. There is a school^[19] and a church^[20] in each village.

Environmental problems

Upstream, on the Dîmbovnic River, is an important oil refinery, the Arpechim Refinery. Since its construction, nearly all the toxic waste was released in the river.^[21][22][23] In 2005, the situation was so bad, that water in the fountains was no longer drinkable, even for animals. The only solution to provide water for the inhabitants and their animals was to use the deep freatic waters (about 200 meters deep) and to build an extensive system of water pipes to every house.^[24] Today, the river is only occasionally polluted^[25] and even fish have reappeared after more than 50 years.

Tourism

Rociu is not a tourist destination^[26] and has no hotels or camp sites. However, not far away, in Negraşi is a protected area, Poiana cu Narcise Negraşi^[27] (or in English, Negraşi Daffodil Meadow).

There is an old church in Şerbăneşti village, that is considered a touristic objective.^[28]

Unofficial resort?

The commune has multiple access routes (see #Transportation). Being situated more than 25 km from any big city, Rociu has very clean air.^[29] The water is pumped from 150 to 200 meters deep and is of very good quality (see #Environmental problems). According to the police of Arge County,^[30] violent incidents are very rare and there are no major conflicts. Houses and terrains can be found (to buy or to rent) at very small costs.^[31][32] All these facts create conditions for elderly people to come and settle in Rociu and nearby villages after they retire from work. This population migration partially explains the population dynamics mentioned above, in #Demographics.

Coordinates: 44°40′N 25°02′E / 44.667°N 25.033°E / 44.667; 25.033

References

External links

• Official site of Rociu townhall

v t e Argeș County, Romania Cities Pitești (county seat) Câmpulung Curtea de Argeș Towns Mioveni Costești Topoloveni Ștefănești Communes Albeștii de Argeș Albeștii de Muscel Albota Aninoasa Arefu Băbana Băiculești Bălilești Bârla Bascov Beleți-Negrești Berevoești Bogați Boteni Boțești Bradu Brăduleț Budeasa Bughea de Jos Bughea de Sus Buzoești Căldăraru Călinești Căteasca Cepari Cetățeni Cicănești Ciofrângeni Ciomăgești Cocu Corbeni Corbi Coșești Cotmeana Cuca Dâmbovicioara Dârmănești Davidești Dobrești Domnești Drăganu Dragoslavele Godeni Hârsești Hârtiești Izvoru Leordeni Lerești Lunca Corbului Mălureni Mărăcineni Merișani Micești Mihăești Mioarele Miroși Morărești Moșoaia Mozăceni Mușătești Negrași Nucșoara Oarja Pietroșani Poiana Lacului Poienarii de Argeș Poienarii de Muscel Popești Priboieni Rătești Râca Recea Rociu Rucăr Sălătrucu Săpata Schitu Golești Slobozia Stâlpeni Ștefan cel Mare Stoenești Stolnici Șuici Suseni Teiu Tigveni Țițești Uda Ungheni Valea Danului Valea Iașului Valea Mare-Pravăț Vedea Vlădești Vulturești