TITLE:
Identifying Inundation Risk Zones on the Southern Coast of the Gulf of Mexico by Groundwater Velocity Tests, Grain-Size Analysis, and Water Table Fluctuations: Coatzacoalcos Paleolagoon
AUTHORS:
Víctor Eduardo Infante-Pacheco
KEYWORDS:
Groundwater Velocity, Water Table, Aquifer, Hydraulic Conductivity, Inundation Risk, Hydrogeology
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Geosciences,
Vol.17 No.10,
October
27,
2026
ABSTRACT: This study presents results from grain-size analyses and apparent groundwater flow velocity tests on 22 sediment samples collected within and outside the Coatzacoalcos paleolagoon to characterize sediment geohydrological dynamics. We determined that the grain-size distribution of the samples correlates with hydraulic conductivity. Furthermore, the sediments filling the paleolagoon (coarse, medium, and fine sand) exhibit a hydraulic conductivity of 13.68 to 55.77 meters/day, which is higher than that of the sediments (fine sand, silt, and clay) in samples collected outside the paleolagoon (0.58 - 8.14 meters/day). Variability in grain-size analysis results indicated that sedimentation conditions varied across depositional sites, thereby influencing hydraulic conductivity. We also observed that clast arrangement within the sediments influences hydraulic conductivity. Estimates of rainfall-driven water-table fluctuations in the paleolagoon area enabled us to characterize its hydrodynamic behavior. For instance, with 132.0 mm of precipitation, the water table rises by 0.081 m, whereas with 390.0 mm, it rises by 0.348 m. If these conditions persist for three days, the rise will be 1.044 m. These estimates allowed us to identify areas vulnerable to flooding in the municipality of Coatzacoalcos.