Lagunas de Oxidacion Wastewater Treatment Plant, San Jeronimo, Durango

Lagunas de Oxidacion is a wastewater treatment plant located in San Jeronimo, within the municipality of Pueblo Nuevo, Durango, Mexico. The facility serves a small community of approximately 1,375 people, reflecting its role in providing essential sanitation infrastructure for a rural or semi-urban area in the Sierra Madre Occidental region. The plant employs secondary treatment, a standard biological process that removes organic matter and suspended solids. With a designed capacity of 235.87 volume units and a current discharge volume of 185.76, the facility operates below its full capacity. Under Mexico's national water regulations (NOM-001-SEMARNAT-1996 and subsequent updates), secondary treatment is the minimum required for discharge into water bodies, ensuring compliance with environmental standards. The treated effluent from Lagunas de Oxidacion is discharged into local waterways that ultimately drain into the Pacific Ocean via the Presa El Salto and the Rio San Pedro Mezquital basin. This region supports diverse aquatic life and provides water for downstream communities and agriculture, making proper treatment crucial for maintaining water quality and ecosystem health.

The plant discharges into the Rio San Pedro Mezquital watershed, which flows through the Sierra Madre Occidental and eventually reaches the Pacific Ocean via the Marismas Nacionales wetland system. This region is ecologically sensitive, supporting diverse freshwater and estuarine habitats, including migratory bird corridors and endemic fish species. Proper wastewater treatment helps protect downstream water quality and biodiversity.