Alwernia Wastewater Treatment Plant: Serving Alwernia, Lesser Poland

The Alwernia wastewater treatment plant is located in the town of Alwernia, within the Lesser Poland Voivodeship (województwo małopolskie) in southern Poland. It serves a population of approximately 6,100 residents, classifying it as a small agglomeration under Polish and EU regulations. The plant provides primary treatment, which involves physical processes such as sedimentation to remove solids. As a Polish facility, it operates under the national implementation of the EU Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC), which requires secondary treatment for agglomerations of this size unless the receiving waters are designated as less sensitive. The plant has a designed capacity of 1,500 cubic meters per day and currently treats an average daily flow of 874.61 cubic meters. Treated effluent from the plant is discharged into local watercourses that eventually drain into the Vistula River basin, which flows northward to the Baltic Sea. The plant plays a key role in protecting the region's surface waters from untreated sewage, supporting aquatic life and downstream water quality in the Vistula catchment.

The plant discharges into the Vistula River basin, Poland's largest river system, which flows into the Baltic Sea. The Vistula supports diverse aquatic ecosystems and is an important migratory corridor for fish species. The plant's primary treatment reduces suspended solids but provides limited nutrient removal, which may contribute to eutrophication risks in the Baltic Sea, a sensitive marine environment.