MADISON TWP JERSEYTOWN STP - Secondary Wastewater Treatment in Madison Township, Pennsylvania

MADISON TWP JERSEYTOWN STP is a municipal wastewater treatment facility located in Madison Township, Columbia County, Pennsylvania. Serving a small population of 158, the plant provides secondary treatment to residential wastewater from the Jerseytown area. As a secondary treatment plant, it meets the minimum federal standard under the US Clean Water Act for municipal wastewater treatment. The plant has a designed capacity of 75.71 thousand gallons per day and operates at full capacity based on reported discharge volume. Plants of this scale in Pennsylvania are typically regulated under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. The plant discharges treated effluent into a local stream within the Susquehanna River basin. The Susquehanna River flows south through Pennsylvania and into the Chesapeake Bay, a major estuary on the Atlantic coast. The Chesapeake Bay watershed is ecologically significant, supporting diverse aquatic life and important fisheries. The plant's discharge contributes to the nutrient and pollutant load in the bay, making treatment performance critical for downstream water quality.

The plant discharges into a tributary of the Susquehanna River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States and supports a complex ecosystem including blue crabs, oysters, and migratory fish. Nutrient pollution from wastewater plants in the watershed contributes to algal blooms and hypoxic zones, making secondary treatment and nutrient management important for bay health.