Piedras Chinas Wastewater Treatment Plant, Aguascalientes, Mexico

Piedras Chinas is a wastewater treatment plant located in the town of Piedras Chinas, within the municipality of Calvillo, Aguascalientes, Mexico. The facility serves a small population of 456 residents, reflecting its role in a rural or semi-urban setting. As a secondary treatment plant, it provides biological treatment to reduce organic matter and suspended solids before discharge. The plant has a designed capacity of 86.40 cubic meters per day and currently treats an average of 43.20 cubic meters daily, indicating a utilization rate of 50%. This spare capacity suggests the plant can accommodate future growth or seasonal variations. In Mexico, wastewater treatment plants of this scale are regulated under the National Water Law (Ley de Aguas Nacionales) and NOM-001-SEMARNAT-1996, which sets discharge limits for pollutants into national waters. The treated effluent is discharged into local water bodies that eventually drain into the Rio Grande de Santiago basin, which flows westward to the Pacific Ocean. The plant's operation helps protect downstream ecosystems and water quality in the region, supporting agricultural and domestic water uses in the semi-arid landscape of Aguascalientes.

The plant discharges into local streams that are part of the Rio Grande de Santiago watershed, which ultimately drains into the Pacific Ocean via the Rio Santiago. This basin supports diverse aquatic life and provides water for irrigation in the surrounding agricultural areas. The region's semi-arid climate makes water quality management critical for maintaining ecological balance and human water security.