Union WWTP - Secondary Treatment Plant in Union, Nebraska

Union WWTP is a municipal wastewater treatment plant located in Union, Nebraska, serving a small community of approximately 310 residents. The facility provides secondary treatment, a standard level for small agglomerations under the US Clean Water Act, ensuring basic pollutant removal before discharge. The plant has a designed capacity of 151.42 megaliters and currently handles an annual discharge volume of 113.56 megaliters. As a US facility, it operates under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program, which sets effluent limits to protect water quality. Secondary treatment typically involves biological processes to reduce organic matter and suspended solids. The treated effluent is discharged into local waterways that drain into the Missouri River basin, ultimately reaching the Mississippi River and the Gulf of Mexico. This inland location supports regional aquatic ecosystems and agricultural water resources, with the plant playing a role in maintaining downstream water quality.

Union WWTP discharges into tributaries of the Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi River and then the Gulf of Mexico. The local watershed supports diverse aquatic life and is part of the larger Mississippi River basin, a critical migratory corridor for birds and fish. The plant's secondary treatment helps reduce nutrient loading, which is important for preventing hypoxia in the Gulf.