The Comarca Lagunera or La Comarca de la Laguna ("region of lagoons") is a region of northern Mexico occupying large portions of the states of
Durango
Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in ...
and
Coahuila
Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico.
Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...
, with rich soils produced by periodic flooding of the
Nazas
Nazas is a city and seat of the municipality of Nazas, in the state of Durango, north-western Mexico. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía. Principales resultados por localidad 2005 (ITER). Retrieved on December 20, 2008 As of 2010, ...
and
Aguanaval rivers. Neither river drains into either the Pacific Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico, but rather they created
a series of inland lakes. The region was developed for large-scale irrigated cotton agriculture. During the
Mexican Revolution
The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...
, the region was the site of fierce fighting. Following the military phase of the Revolution, the region was part of the
agrarian reform Agrarian reform can refer either, narrowly, to government-initiated or government-backed redistribution of agricultural land (see land reform) or, broadly, to an overall redirection of the agrarian system of the country, which often includes land re ...
under President
Lázaro Cárdenas
Lázaro Cárdenas del Río (; 21 May 1895 – 19 October 1970) was a Mexican army officer and politician who served as president of Mexico from 1934 to 1940.
Born in Jiquilpan, Michoacán, to a working-class family, Cárdenas joined the M ...
. The dam named for Cárdenas now controls flooding of the rivers, but the groundwater resources are no longer recharged as a result. It is the 8th largest metropolitan area in Mexico.
Geography
Municipalities
The
Comarca
A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, ...
Lagunera is formed by 15
municipio
' (, ) and ' () are country subdivisions in Italy and several Hispanophone and Lusophone nations, respectively. They are often translated as "municipality". In the English language, a municipality often is defined as relating to a single city or t ...
s; 5 in Coahuila (
Torreón Municipality
Torreón is one of the municipalities of Coahuila de Zaragoza, a state in north-eastern Mexico. The city of Torreón is the municipal seat for Torreón Municipality. The municipality covers an area of 1947.7 km².
As of 2010, the municipalit ...
,
Matamoros Municipality,
San Pedro Municipality,
Francisco I. Madero Municipality,
Viesca Municipality
Viesca is one of the 38 municipalities of Coahuila, in north-eastern Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United St ...
) and 10 in Durango (
Gómez Palacio Municipality
Gómez Palacio is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Gómez Palacio. The municipality covers an area of 990.2 km².
In 2010, the municipality had a total population of 327,985, up fro ...
,
Lerdo Municipality,
Tlahualilo Municipality
Tlahualilo is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Tlahualilo de Zaragoza. The municipality covers an area of 3,709.8 km².
As of 2010, the municipality had a total population of 22,24 ...
,
Mapimí Municipality
Mapimí is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Mapimí. The municipality covers an area of 7,126.7 km².
In 2010, the municipality had a total population of 25,137, up from 22,940 in 2 ...
,
Rodeo Municipality
Rodeo is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United Stat ...
,
Nazas Municipality
Nazas is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United S ...
,
San Juan de Guadalupe Municipality
San Juan de Guadalupe is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of ...
,
San Luis del Cordero Municipality
San Luis del Cordero is one of the 39 municipalities of Durango, in north-western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by ...
,
General Simón Bolívar
Simón Bolívar, Durango, Mexico is a city and seat of the municipality of General Simón Bolívar, in the state of Durango, north-western Mexico
Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a L ...
,
San Pedro del Gallo Municipality).
Territory
It covers an area of out of which belong to Coahuila and to Durango, which makes it 2.5 percent of the national area.
Borders
It borders north with the state of
Chihuahua, and with
Sierra Mojada Municipality
Sierra Mojada is one of the 38 municipalities of Coahuila, in north-eastern Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the Un ...
and
Cuatrociénegas Municipality
Cuatrociénegas is one of the 38 municipalities of Coahuila, in north-eastern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Cuatrociénegas de Carranza. The municipality covers an area of 7860.6 km².
As of 2005, the municipality had a total populati ...
of Coahuila, to the west with
Indé Municipality and
Hidalgo Municipality in Durango, to the southwest with the state of
Zacatecas
, image_map = Zacatecas in Mexico (location map scheme).svg
, map_caption = State of Zacatecas within Mexico
, coordinates =
, coor_pinpoint =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type ...
and to the east with
Parras Municipality in Coahuila.
This polygon is located in the north-central part of Mexico, between the parallels 24° 22' and 26° 23' North and meridians 102° 22' and 104° 47' West in the southernmost part of the
Bolsón de Mapimí
The Bolsón de Mapimí is an endorheic, or internal drainage, basin in which no rivers or streams drain to the sea, but rather toward the center of the basin, often terminating in Swamp, swamps and Ephemeral lake, ephemeral lakes. It is located in ...
.
The average altitude of the region is of .
Hydrology
The Comarca Lagunera is subject to periodic flooding due to the overflowing of its principal rivers.
Nazas River
The
Nazas River
The Nazas River is a river located in northern Mexico, in the states of Coahuila and Durango. It is part of the endorheic Bolsón de Mapimí. It is only long, but irrigates an area of in the middle of the desert. The Nazas is also nurtured by t ...
, average flow of 1,900 cubic meters per second, is formed from the merging of the Sextín River and the Ramos River. In its transit towards the Laguna de Mayrán it is contained in the Lázaro Cárdenas dam (3,336 million cubic meters). In its course it receives the flows of the Vizcaíno, Peñón,
San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to:
Places Argentina
* San Juan Province, Argentina
* San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province
* San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province
* San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...
, Naitcha and
Cuencamé
Cuencamé is a small city and the seat of the municipality of Cuencamé in the state of Durango, which is in northern Mexico. , the city had a total population of 9,848.
City
Cuencamé was originally a very small town formed by adjoining wild ...
creeks, and finally stops at the Francisco Zarco Dam (436 million cubic meters).
Aguanaval River
The
Aguanaval River
The Aguanaval River is a river located in northeastern Mexico.
Geography
It originates in the southern Sierra Madre Occidental range of Zacatecas state, and flows generally north through Zacatecas and Durango states to empty into the endorheic B ...
, which has an average flow of 600 cubic meters per second, is formed from the fusion of the
Saín Alto River and
Trujillo River
The Trujillo River is a river of Mexico.
See also
*List of rivers of Mexico
This is a list of rivers of Mexico, listed from north to south. There are 246 rivers on this list. Alternate names for rivers are given in parentheses.
Rivers flowing in ...
in Zacatecas. It receives the flows of the Reyes, Santiago and Mazamitote creeks.
Other
There are other important hydrologic components in the Comarca Lagunera region. The
Benjamín Ortega Cantero
Benjamín Akoto Asamoah (born 4 January 1994) is a Ghanaian footballer who plays for Cypriot club Doxa Katokopias F.C., Doxa as a Midfielder (association football), midfielder.
Club career
Born in Accra, Benjamín arrived at the youth academy o ...
dam in the municipio of Mapimí, the
Francisco González de la Vega
Francisco González de la Vega e Iriarte (Durango, December 3, 1901 – Mexico City, March 3, 1976), Mexican jurist, he was Attorney General of the Republic (1946 to 1952), Governor of Durango (1956–1962) by Institutional Revolutionary Party ( ...
dam in Rodeo, the Los Naranjos dam in Simón Bolívar and the
Cinco de Mayo
Cinco de Mayo ( in Mexico, Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a yearly celebration held on May 5, which commemorates the anniversary of Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoz ...
dam in San Pedro del Gallo.
Also, the Mayrán and Viesca lagoons are big natural dams that constitute dry beds at the moment, and are unable to be filled due to the dams located in the Nazas River for the Mayrán lagoon and the city of
Matamoros being in the Aguanaval River's flood path.
Orography
The region is conformed by a large and truncated mountain range, in which several prominent features can be seen constituted by sedimentary rock from the
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceo ...
, where important marble and other non-ferrous minerals are exploited. The most important features within the Comarca Lagunera are the
Sierra de Jimulco (altitude of 3,120 m), the
Sierra del Rosario
Sierra del Rosario is a mountain range in the provinces of Pinar del Río Province, Pinar del Río and Artemisa Province, Artemisa, western Cuba. It is located in the eastern part of the Guaniguanico range and, along with the Sierra de los Órgano ...
(altitude of 2,820 m), and the
Sierra de Tlahualilo (altitude of 2,200 m).
History
In the 1980s, proposals began being made that Comarca Lagunera become Mexico's 33rd state, separating from Coahuila and Durango. In the late 1980s, three unsuccessful attempts were made in Congress to approve Comarca Laguna's statehood. Discussions have continued for decades, with no progress, until 2013, when a project named ELLA (Estado de La Laguna) presented the government with an updated proposal, arguing that statehood would help alleviate the issues of drought and poverty that plague the area. They say that the states of Durango and Coahuila provide a disproportionately small share of funding compared to what the region provides in taxes, labor and production. The group gathered over 500,000 petition signatures in support of the proposal. In January 2014, the Mexican government responded, agreeing to take the proposal under consideration.
Climate
It has average heat throughout the year, with an average temperature of 22 °C (72 °F) and extreme dryness, with an average rainfall of 300 mm (12 in). There is an average of 22 cold days a year, with temperatures ranging lows of 0 °C (32 °F) and highs of 40 °C (104 °F)
Population
The economic rise of the Comarca Lagunera is centralized in an urban center formed by the cities of Lerdo, Gómez Palacio, and Torreón. This major settlement has, as of 2000, a population of 1,249,442, out of which 912,822 are located in the urban area and 336,620 in rural settlements, making it the 8th largest metropolitan area in Mexic
Economy
The Comarca Lagunera is Mexico's most important milk producer with a 14 percent of the national production of milk, 3.6 million liters of milk a day. And within the city of Torreón lies the largest silver refinery of the world,
Met-Mex Peñoles
Met-Mex Peñoles is a large metallurgical and chemical company located in Torreón, Coahuila Mexico. This industrial site processes the majority of the zinc and lead mineral ores mined in Mexico and some other countries.
The facility produces the ...
.
The Comarca is an important producer of raw materials and finished products: among which are cement, fertilizers, non-ferrous metals, marble, milk-derivates, among others.
One of the most important activities is that of the
maquiladora
A (), or (), is a word that refers to factories that are largely duty free and tariff-free. These factories take raw materials and assemble, manufacture, or process them and export the finished product. These factories and systems are present t ...
(assembly plant) industry of clothing, car parts and electrical components.
Education
The region has a total of 32 professional studies centers, universities, community colleges, and technical institutes. The most important in the region are the
Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila
The Autonomous University of Coahuila (''Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila'', or "UAdeC") is a state university founded in 1957. It is located in the northern Mexican state of Coahuila. The university system has three campuses — Saltillo, To ...
, the
Tecnológico de Monterrey Campus Laguna, the
Iberoamerican University Torreón
The Iberoamerican University Torreón (''Universidad Iberoamericana Torreón'') is a private university located in the city of Torreón. It belongs to the Jesuit University System (SUJ) and the Association of Universities Entrusted to the Society ...
,
Universidad Autónoma de la Laguna,
Universidad La Salle
Universidad (Spanish for "university") may refer to:
Places
* Universidad, San Juan, Puerto Rico
* Universidad (Madrid)
Football clubs
* Universidad SC, a Guatemalan football club that represents the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala
...
and
Instituto Tecnológico de la Laguna.
See also
Index of Mexico-related articles
The following is an alphabetical index topics related to the Mexico.
0–8
* .mx – Internet country code top-level domain for México
A
*Adjacent countries:
:
:
:
*Adjacent states, departments, and districts
:Arizona (United States)
:Ca ...
Further reading
*Carr, Barry. "The Mexican Communist Party and Agrarian Mobilization in the Laguna, 1920-1940: A Worker-Peasant Alliance?". ''Hispanic American Historical Review'' 67, no. 3 (1987), 371-404.
*Corona Páez, Sergio Antonio. ''El país de La Laguna: Impacto hispano-tlaxcalteca en la forja de la Comarca Lagunera''. Torreón, Mexico: Universidad Iberoamericana 2011.
*Meyers, William K. ''Forge of Progress, Crucible of Revolt: Origins of the Mexican Revolution in La Comarca Lagunera 1880-1911''. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press 1994.
*Meyers, William K. "Seasons of Rebellion: Nature, Cotton Production and the Dynamics of Revolution in La Laguna, Mexico 1910-1916." ''Journal of Latin American Studies'' 30. no. 1 (1998) 63-94.
*Wolfe, Mikael D. ''Watering the Revolution: An Environmental and Technological History of Agrarian Reform in Mexico''. Durham: Duke University Press 2017.''Watering the Revolution: An Environmental and Technological History of Agrarian Reform in Mexico''. Durham: Duke University Press 2017.
References
*
External links
Government of TorreónGovernment of Gomez PalacioGovernment of Ciudad LerdoComarcaLagunera.Com
{{Largest metropolitan areas of Mexico
Regions of Mexico
Metropolitan areas of Mexico
Geography of Coahuila
Geography of Durango