Chicalote Wastewater Treatment Plant, Loretito, Aguascalientes, Mexico

Chicalote is a secondary-level wastewater treatment plant located in Loretito, within the municipality of San Francisco de los Romo, Aguascalientes, Mexico. The facility serves a small population of 913 residents, reflecting its role in a rural or peri-urban community. It is part of Mexico's national wastewater infrastructure, which is regulated under the Ley de Aguas Nacionales and managed by CONAGUA (Comisión Nacional del Agua). The plant employs secondary treatment, a standard biological process that removes organic matter and suspended solids. It has a designed capacity of 129.60 cubic meters per day and currently treats 86.40 m³/day, indicating moderate utilization. For small agglomerations like this, secondary treatment is typical and meets the basic requirements for discharge into inland waters under Mexican regulations. The treated effluent is discharged into a local watercourse that ultimately drains into the Rio San Pedro, a tributary of the Rio Grande de Santiago, which flows into the Pacific Ocean. The plant's operation helps protect local water quality and supports the ecological health of the surrounding watershed, which is part of the Lerma-Santiago basin, an important hydrological region in central Mexico.

The plant discharges into a local stream that feeds into the Rio San Pedro, part of the Lerma-Santiago basin. This basin drains into the Pacific Ocean via the Rio Grande de Santiago. The watershed supports diverse aquatic life and is used for irrigation and domestic water supply. Protecting water quality here is critical for downstream communities and ecosystems, including the Chapala Lake region, Mexico's largest freshwater lake.