WAYNOKA WWT - Waynoka, Oklahoma Wastewater Treatment Plant

WAYNOKA WWT is a municipal wastewater treatment facility located in Waynoka, Oklahoma, United States. The plant serves a small community of approximately 993 residents, reflecting its role in managing local domestic wastewater in this rural area of Woods County. The plant provides secondary treatment, which is the standard level required under the U.S. Clean Water Act for municipal facilities. With a designed capacity of 454.25 m³/day and an average daily discharge of 378.54 m³/day, the plant operates below its capacity, indicating adequate headroom for current demand. As a U.S. facility, it operates under a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit issued by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, ensuring compliance with federal water quality standards. The treated effluent is discharged into a local water body, likely a tributary of the Cimarron River or the Salt Fork Arkansas River, which ultimately drains into the Arkansas River and then the Mississippi River system. This downstream connection highlights the plant's role in protecting water quality in the broader Mississippi Basin, supporting aquatic life and downstream communities.

WAYNOKA WWT discharges into a local stream that is part of the Arkansas River watershed. The Arkansas River flows through Oklahoma and Arkansas before joining the Mississippi River, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico. The plant's secondary treatment helps reduce organic pollutants and suspended solids, protecting aquatic ecosystems in the receiving waters. The region's semi-arid climate and agricultural land use make maintaining water quality critical for irrigation and wildlife habitat.