Overview
Gordonsville STP serves approximately 5,500 residents in Orange County, Virginia. The plant operates under U.S. EPA and Virginia DEQ regulations for municipal wastewater treatment.
Gordonsville STP is a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Orange County, Virginia, serving a population of about 5,500. The facility is part of the region's wastewater infrastructure, handling domestic sewage from the Gordonsville area. As a small to medium-sized plant, it plays a key role in protecting local water quality. Under the U.S. Clean Water Act, plants of this scale are typically required to meet secondary treatment standards through the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) oversees permitting and compliance, ensuring treated effluent meets state water quality standards before discharge. The plant's treated effluent likely discharges to a tributary of the Rappahannock River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Bay watershed is a large and ecologically significant estuary, supporting diverse aquatic life and requiring nutrient reduction efforts to combat eutrophication.
Environmental context
The plant's discharge enters a tributary of the Rappahannock River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States, supporting critical habitats for fish, crabs, and migratory birds. Nutrient pollution from wastewater is a key concern in the bay, driving regulatory focus on nitrogen and phosphorus removal.
Frequently asked questions
Gordonsville STP is located in Orange County, Virginia, near the town of Gordonsville. The plant serves the local community's wastewater treatment needs.
The plant serves approximately 5,500 residents in the Gordonsville area of Orange County, Virginia.
The treated effluent from Gordonsville STP is discharged into a tributary of the Rappahannock River, which eventually flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
Gordonsville STP operates under the U.S. Clean Water Act and is permitted through the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality's NPDES program, which sets limits on pollutants to protect water quality.
Plants of this size in Virginia typically use secondary treatment processes such as activated sludge or trickling filters, followed by disinfection, to meet NPDES permit requirements.
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