Boxelder Sanitation District Wastewater Treatment Plant, Fort Collins, Colorado

Boxelder Sanitation District is a municipal wastewater treatment facility located in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. Serving a population of about 9,680, the plant is part of the region's infrastructure managed by local sanitation authorities. Its location in Larimer County places it within the South Platte River watershed, which ultimately drains to the Mississippi River system. Under the US Clean Water Act, plants of this scale are required to meet secondary treatment standards through National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits issued by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The regulatory framework ensures that effluent quality meets state and federal standards for protecting water quality. The plant's treated effluent is discharged into the local watershed, contributing to the South Platte River basin. This river system supports diverse aquatic life and provides water for agricultural and municipal use downstream. The plant's operations are critical for maintaining the ecological health of the region's waterways and preventing nutrient pollution in the broader Mississippi River drainage.

The plant discharges into the South Platte River basin, which flows through Colorado and Nebraska before joining the Platte River and eventually the Missouri River. This watershed supports a variety of fish species and provides habitat for migratory birds. The region's semi-arid climate makes water quality management particularly important for maintaining stream flows and ecosystem health.