San Javier Los Cantaros III Wastewater Treatment Plant, Ciudad Nicolás Romero, Estado de México

San Javier Los Cantaros III is a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Ciudad Nicolás Romero, within the Estado de México region. The plant serves a population of approximately 7,083 residents, reflecting its role in managing domestic wastewater for a small urban community in the greater Mexico City metropolitan area. The facility employs secondary treatment, a standard biological process that removes organic matter and suspended solids. With a design capacity of 691.20 m³/day and an actual discharge volume of 670.46 m³/day, the plant operates near full capacity. Under Mexican regulations (NOM-001-SEMARNAT-1996 and subsequent updates), secondary treatment is the minimum required for discharge into national waters, ensuring compliance with national water quality standards. The treated effluent is discharged into local water bodies that ultimately drain into the Pánuco River basin, which flows into the Gulf of Mexico. This watershed supports diverse aquatic life and provides water for agricultural and industrial uses downstream. The plant's operation helps reduce pollution loads in the region's surface waters, contributing to the ecological health of the basin.

The plant discharges into the Pánuco River basin, which flows northeast through central Mexico to the Gulf of Mexico. This watershed is ecologically significant, supporting a variety of freshwater species and providing irrigation water for surrounding farmlands. The secondary treatment process reduces organic pollutants and suspended solids, helping to maintain water quality in the river system and minimize impacts on downstream ecosystems.