PRESTONSBURG Wastewater Treatment Plant, Prestonsburg, Kentucky

The PRESTONSBURG wastewater treatment plant is located in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, a city in Floyd County in the eastern part of the state. The facility serves a population of 7,523 and operates under the regulatory framework of the U.S. Clean Water Act, which requires secondary treatment for municipal wastewater plants of this scale. The plant's discharge volume is 825.22 million gallons per year, and its designed capacity is 2,839.05 million gallons per year. As a secondary treatment facility, it provides biological treatment to reduce organic matter and suspended solids before discharge. The plant is situated inland, more than 50 kilometers from the coast, and its treated effluent is discharged into a local water body that ultimately drains into the Big Sandy River, a tributary of the Ohio River. The Ohio River flows into the Mississippi River, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico. The plant plays a key role in protecting the water quality of the Big Sandy River watershed, which supports diverse aquatic life and provides recreational and drinking water resources for the region.

The PRESTONSBURG plant discharges into a local stream that flows into the Big Sandy River, a major tributary of the Ohio River. The Big Sandy River watershed covers parts of Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia, and supports a variety of fish and wildlife species. The Ohio River then carries the water to the Mississippi River and eventually the Gulf of Mexico. The plant's secondary treatment helps reduce nutrient and organic pollutant loads, which is important for preventing eutrophication and maintaining dissolved oxygen levels in the receiving waters. The region's hilly terrain and coal mining history add context to the need for effective wastewater management to protect both human health and the environment.