Longton WWTP - Secondary Wastewater Treatment in Longton, Kansas

Longton WWTP is a municipal wastewater treatment plant located on West 2nd Street in Longton, Elk County, Kansas. The facility serves a small population of 394 residents, reflecting the rural character of the surrounding area in the southeastern part of the state. The plant provides secondary treatment, which is the standard level required by the US Clean Water Act for municipal facilities of this scale. With a designed capacity of 147.63 million gallons per year and a matching discharge volume, the plant operates at full capacity. It is regulated under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program, administered by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. The treated effluent is discharged into a local receiving water body, which ultimately drains into the Verdigris River basin and then into the Arkansas River system. This watershed supports diverse aquatic life and provides water for agricultural and recreational uses downstream. The plant's inland location, over 50 km from the coast, reduces direct marine impact.

The plant discharges into a tributary of the Verdigris River, which flows into the Arkansas River and eventually reaches the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. The local watershed is part of the Great Plains ecoregion, characterized by prairie streams that support fish species such as channel catfish and sunfish. The plant's secondary treatment helps protect downstream water quality for aquatic habitats and human uses.