Hempstead Village gets $1.75 million in federal aid for new water treatment plant

The Nassau County Legislature has awarded Hempstead Village $1.75 million in federal pandemic aid to help fund a new water treatment plant that will remove PFAS and 1,4-dioxane contamination, officials said.

The village plans to use aid from the American Rescue Plan Act to build a $55 million plant to replace its current facility on Clinton Street. The new plant will meet higher water standards for chemicals including 1,4 dioxane and PFAS, and work to remove iron from the water supply. The village has been out of compliance with state water standards for chemical 1,4-dioxane since at least 2021, according to village reports to the state. 

Village documents refer to the plan as a "reconfiguration" that will replace much of the equipment and physical plant while continuing to supply water during a process that's expected to last more than a year.

"This is going to help us break ground and get the project going," Hempstead Village Mayor Waylyn Hobbs said during a news conference to announce the funding last week.

In May, the village board approved borrowing up to $55 million for the project. Hobbs has said he hopes to secure state and federal grants to cover much of the work. In 2020, New York State set new drinking water standards for PFAS and 1,4-dioxane contamination in drinking water. PFAS are chemicals the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has labeled as potentially carcinogenic. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has said that 1,4-dioxane, a byproduct in soap and detergent, is a "likely human carcinogen" found in groundwater sites throughout the country.

Hempstead village provides water to 59,169 full-time residents, according to the village.

The award ended a monthslong dispute among Democrats and Republicans on the County Legislature. Democratic lawmakers had called on Republicans, who control the legislative calendar, to approve the funding for Hempstead village.

Lawmakers approved the request unanimously at their Sept. 23 meeting.

The project will be done in five stages.

The first phase will cost $27 million for a new building that will use an advanced oxidation process to remove contaminants, including 1,4 dioxane, according to village documents. The design for the first phase of the project is 99% complete, J. Robert Holzmacher, the village's outside consultant, wrote in a July letter to the state health department.

In phases two and three, the village will install new filtration systems. The process, which will cost $23 million, will result in a temporary drop in water capacity. During this phase, the village will replace an electrical power generator and redesign power feeds, according to Holzmacher’s letter.

Water capacity will return to normal during phases four and five. That work is expected to cost $5 million and include the demolition of an existing treatment basin and construction of a new water storage tank.

Over the summer, Democratic county legislators accused Republicans of stonewalling Hempstead's funding request. The legislature had approved ARPA funding for water districts in Farmingdale and Hicksville.

Republicans hold a 12-7 majority in the legislature and control funding requests. But Democratic votes are needed to approve borrowing projects, where a supermajority of 13 votes is required. Democrats said they used their borrowing leverage to secure funding for the Hempstead plant at the legislature's Sept. 23 meeting.

During that meeting, there was a lengthy recess during which Legis. Siela Bynoe (D-Westbury) said she met with County Executive Bruce Blakeman to negotiate a deal.

"This caucus stood together, stood firm to ensure that we would negotiate before we would lend any votes to the capital plan for the purpose of being able to secure these funds," Bynoe said in Hempstead last week.

Nassau County spokesman Chris Boyle did not return a request for comment.