San Damiano Wastewater Treatment Plant, Lavezzole, Piemonte, Italy

The San Damiano wastewater treatment plant is located in Lavezzole, a frazione of San Damiano d'Asti, in the Piemonte region of Italy. The plant serves a population of approximately 6,150 people, placing it in the small-to-medium agglomeration category under Italian and EU regulations. As a plant serving fewer than 10,000 population equivalents, it operates under the EU Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive 91/271/EEC, which requires appropriate treatment before discharge. Plants of this scale in Italy typically employ secondary biological treatment or equivalent to meet national and EU standards. The treated effluent is discharged into local watercourses that drain into the Po River basin, ultimately reaching the Adriatic Sea. The plant plays a key role in protecting the local watershed and downstream ecosystems from untreated wastewater pollution.

The plant discharges into tributaries of the Po River, Italy's longest river, which flows eastward into the Adriatic Sea. The Po basin supports diverse aquatic life and is an important agricultural and ecological corridor. Proper treatment at San Damiano helps reduce nutrient and pathogen loads, safeguarding water quality in the downstream river system and the Adriatic coastal zone.