Bełchatów poviat - poviat in Poland in the southern part of the Lodz voivodeship, created (or actually reactivated, because on January 1, 1956, it was established in the then Łódź Province and existed until June 1, 1975) as part of the administrative reform in 1999, with its seat in Belchatow.
The Bełchatów poviat is situated at the crossroads of road and rail routes in the north-south and east-west relations.
There are 8 national roads leading through the poviat Warsaw – Wroclaw, 12 Kalisz - Piotrków Tybunalski - Radom – Lublin region and voivodeship roads: 480 Sieradz - Szczerców, 483 Łask - Nowa Brzeźnica, 484 Buczek - Kamieńsk, 485 Pabianice - Bełchatów.
The poviat has an area of 967.57 km², which constitutes 5.31% of the area of the Łódź Province. As of June 30, 2009, the poviat is inhabited by over 113,000 people, including 33,928 men and 35,480 women in the cities, 21,536 men and 22,151 women in the villages. As of June 30, 2012, the poviat has a total of 113,019 inhabitants, including 57,458 women and 55,561 men, 67,968 people in total live in cities, including 34,689 women and 33,279 men; in villages 45,051 people in total, including 22,769 women and 22,282 men.
Administratively, it is divided into the municipal commune of Bełchatów, the urban-rural commune of Zelów and 6 rural communes - Bełchatów, Drużbice, Kleszczów, Kluki, Rusiec, Szczerców. It is situated to the south of the center of the Lodzkie Voivodship, on the border between the South Pomeranian Voivodeship (Kotlina Szczercowska) and the Zachodniomazowiecka Lowland (Wysoczyzna Bełchatowska belonging to Wzniesienia Południowomazowieckie).
The poviats adjacent to the Bełchatów poviat are:
- Pabianice poviat
- Piotrków Trybunalski poviat
- Radomsko County
- Pajęczański district
- Wieluń County
- grace district
The area of the poviat is drained by the Widawka river with its tributaries: Grabia, Krasówka and Pilsia. 30% of the area is covered by forests, mostly coniferous communities, and in the valley in the vicinity of river valleys alder - swamp forests. In many places there are peat bogs and inland dunes.
The forest reserve "Łuszczanowice" protects a fragment of old fir trees, on the border of the natural range of fir. A very interesting place in terms of nature is Święte Ługi, complexes of marshes and peat bogs with mid-forest ponds. Many protected plant species grow here. Ponds and marshes are a refuge for waterfowl and constitute one of the most interesting places of the Szczercowski Protected Landscape Area.In addition, there are protected landscape areas of Borowa Góra and Chrząstawsko-Widawski in the poviat.
A marked Trail of Polish military fortifications from 1939 runs through the poviat. The 75 km long walking and cycling route connects 17 combat bunkers on the Widawka line of defense.
