Hampton Public Works to seek funds in March warrant article to upgrade wastewater plant

A staff member from the Hampton Public Works Department said in an informational video that a warrant article in March will ask the town to approve funds to replace aging equipment and upgrade control systems at the Hampton Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The presenter said the plant treats about 2,500,000 gallons of wastewater per day and that maintaining continuous operation is essential for the town and the environment. He identified four support systems targeted for work: sludge pumping, sludge thickening, the plant water system, and the SCADA computer control system.

On sludge pumping, the staff member provided an inventory and condition update. The plant has 13 sludge pumps in various roles (mixed sludge, returned sludge, waste sludge, thickened sludge and primary sludge pumps, plus a transfer pump). “These 3 pumps have reached the end of their useful life and require replacement in the near future for the plant to continue its daily operations,” the presenter said. The transcript does not specify the replacement cost or a funding total.

The presenter also described thickening equipment—gravity thickeners, a rotary drum thickener and a rotary press—that remove water from sludge to reduce volume and disposal costs. He said the gravity thickeners are over 30 years old and “require new mechanisms to ensure continued operation.”

Regarding the plant water system, the staff member said two plant water pumps circulate roughly 200,000–300,000 gallons per day, run continuously, and have passed their useful life. He said the town intends to replace those pumps and add variable-speed drives in pressure tanks to reduce energy use.

The plant’s computer control system (SCADA, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) has been in place since the 1990s, the presenter said, and will soon be incompatible with modern computers. He said an upgrade is needed to allow continued remote control of equipment and to support any new installations.

The video closes by reiterating that a warrant article in March will seek funding for these upgrades and thanking viewers for supporting the town asset. The presenter did not state the dollar amount requested, the specific procurement schedule, or whether the warrant article will appear on a ballot or special town meeting warrant; those details were not specified in the recording.

Next steps: the Public Works presenter said the town will pursue the warrant article in March; more detailed budget, schedule and procurement information were not provided in the video.