COPELAND WWTP - Secondary Treatment Plant in Gray County, Kansas

COPELAND WWTP is a municipal wastewater treatment facility located in Gray County, Kansas, United States. The plant serves a small population of 290 residents, reflecting its role in a rural community. 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 151.42 units and currently processes 128.70 units of wastewater, indicating operational headroom. Under the U.S. Clean Water Act, facilities of this scale are typically regulated through the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program, which sets effluent limits to protect water quality. The plant's secondary treatment level meets the minimum federal standard for municipal wastewater treatment. The treated effluent is discharged into a local water body, contributing to the Arkansas River basin, which ultimately drains into the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The plant's operations help protect downstream aquatic ecosystems and maintain water quality in the region's surface waters.

The plant discharges into a tributary of the Arkansas River, which flows through the Great Plains and eventually reaches the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The surrounding watershed is primarily agricultural, with irrigation and livestock operations influencing local water quality. The plant's secondary treatment helps reduce nutrient loads that could contribute to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico.