The Blanco River (Río Blanco) is a river of central
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
state in eastern Mexico.
The Blanco's headwaters are in the mountains along the boundary between
Puebla
Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...
and Veracruz states, from
Pico de Orizaba
Citlaltépetl (from Nahuan languages, Náhuatl = star, and = mountain), otherwise known as Pico de Orizaba, is an active volcano, the highest mountain in Mexico and Table of the highest major summits of North America, third highest in North Ame ...
, Mexico's highest peak, in the north to the
Sierra de Zongolica in the south, where the southeastern
Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt
The Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (), also known as the Transvolcanic Belt and locally as the (''Snowy Mountain Range''), is an active volcanic belt that covers central-southern Mexico. Several of its highest peaks have snow all year long, and dur ...
meets the northern end of the
Sierra Madre de Oaxaca
The Sierra Madre de Oaxaca is a mountain range in southeastern Mexico. It is primarily in the state of Oaxaca, and extends north into the states of Puebla and Veracruz.
Geography
The mountain range begins at Pico de Orizaba, and extends in a sout ...
. The upper Blanco forms a deep canyon, which is protected by
Cañón del Río Blanco National Park
Cañón del Río Blanco National Park is protected natural area in Mexico's Veracruz state.
Geography
Cañón del Río Blanco National Park covers an area of 488 km2. The park includes the upper watershed of the Río Blanco, where the river ha ...
. The river flows eastwards though the towns of
Orizaba
Orizaba (, Otomi: ) is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located 20 km west of its sister city Córdoba, and is adjacent to Río Blanco and Ixtaczoquitlán, on Federal Highways 180 and 190. The city had a ...
and
Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to:
* Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain
* Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province
Córdoba or Cord ...
before emerging onto the southern
Gulf Coastal Plain
The Gulf Coastal Plain extends around the Gulf of Mexico in the Southern United States and eastern Mexico.
This coastal plain reaches from the Florida Panhandle, southwest Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, the southern two-thirds of Alabama, over m ...
.
[Serrano J.D. (2012) Institutional Barriers for Effective Water Governance in Mexico: Study of the Central Gulf Hydrological Administrative Region X. In: Oswald Spring Ú. (eds) Water Resources in Mexico. Hexagon Series on Human and Environmental Security and Peace, vol 7. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-05432-7_33]
The
Alvarado Lagoon System is an extensive coastal wetland and
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...
formed by the lower Blanco and
Papaloapan
The Papaloapan River () is one of the main rivers of the Mexican state of Veracruz. Its name comes from the Nahuatl ''papaloapan'' meaning "river of the butterflies".
In 1518 Juan de Grijalva's expedition spotted the river, naming it Río de Alvar ...
rivers, with lagoons, tidal channels, reed beds, mangroves, swamp forests, and coastal dunes.
["Sistema Lagunar Alvarado". Ramsar Sites Information Service, 2 February 2004. Accessed 11 October 2021]
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References
{{Commons category
Rivers of Veracruz
Drainage basins of the Gulf of Mexico