The Danube Delta was declared ôa reservation of the biosphereö in 1990. It covers a surface of 679,000 hectares. Out of these, 103,000 hectares are only water, i.e. the three main arms of the Danube (the Chilia, the Sulina, and the SfΓntu-Gheorghe), the swamps and the lakes between the big islands of Letea, Giatal, SfΓntu-Gheorghe, and Dranov, and the major lakes ù Lakes Razim, Sinoe, Zmeica, and Golovi■a. The reservation was acknowledged internationally in 1992 and today, with the help of UNESCO, it secures the protection of 300 species of birds and more than 100 species of fish.
The population of the Delta is little beyond 16,000 inhabitants, most of whom are fishermen living in the villages spread on islets along the channels and close to the lakes. The only town of the Delta, Sulina, is situated at the mouth of the Danube arm that bears the same name. It is a sea port that has been famous ever since the times of the Byzantine empire and where, just like in the old days, fish products are processed and sold.
The traveller through the Delta may sail on all the three arms of the river: the Sulina arm is the channel best suited for river navigation, the SfΓntu-Gheorghe arm is strikingly beautiful because of its wild landscapes, and the Chilia channel marks the border with Ukraine.
