Lake Zumpango
Mexico · Americas
About
Lake Zumpango (Spanish: Laguna de Zumpango; Nahuatl languages: Tzompanco, lit. 'string of scalps') is an endorheic basin located in the Valley of Mexico in the municipality of Zumpango and adjacent to the municipality of Teoloyucan. Tzompanco was formerly the northernmost of five interconnected lakes, covering about 1,500 square kilometers (580 sq mi) (the other lakes being Lake Xaltocan, Lake Xochimilco, Lake Chalco and Lake Texcoco). The Valley of Mexico was a centre for several pre-Columbian civilizations including Teotihuacan, the Toltec, and the Aztec Empire. After the conquest of the Aztec Empire, the Spaniards began to drain the lakes' waters to control flooding. Over the centuries Lake Zumpango lost its inflows and outflows and became polluted by sewage and garbage dumps. However, in recent years, the lagoon is becoming cleaner again.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.