TO: Honorable Mayor & Members of the North Port Commission
FROM: Jonathan R. Lewis, ICMA-CM, City Manager
TITLE: Waiver of the competitive procurement process under Sec. 2-403 (b) of the Procurement Code in accordance with F.S. § 255.20(c) 7 as amended and authorize the utilization of Cardno, Inc. to provide engineering services for the Permanent Facility of the Aquifer Storage and Recovery Well Project, in an amount not to exceed $369,200.
Recommended Action
Approve waiver of the competitive procurement process under Sec. 2-403 (b) of the Procurement Code in accordance with F.S. § 255.20(c) 7 as amended and authorize the utilization of Cardno, Inc. to provide engineering services for the Permanent Facility of the Aquifer Storage and Recovery Well Project, in an amount not to exceed $369,200.
Background Information
Utilities is requesting a waiver of competitive procurement per F.S. §255.20(c)7, as amended, so the project schedule for the ASR Permanent Facilities Project may be maintained for the timely performance and completion of design, permitting, construction and cycle test tasks required to continue to retain cooperative funding from the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD). The City’s ASR well project began in 1998 with cooperative funding from the SWFWMD. Since that time, the City has applied for continued cooperative funding each year for the project, providing a project work plan, funding availability, and schedule of tasks and deadlines to completed each fiscal year. The information provided in each cooperative funding application forms the basis upon which each Cooperative Funding Agreement is based. The design and construction of the Permanent ASR Facilities was submitted to SWFWMD for cooperative funding consideration in October, 2015, with design to be completed in June of 2017 so permitting and bidding can be performed for construction to be completed in July 2018. The timing of the work plan is critical to the performance of Cycle Test 6, so the injection of water into the ASR well can be done during the rainy season for subsequent recovery. SWFWMD is currently finalizing the Cooperative Funding Agreement for this phase of the project and with the continued vacancy of the Utilities Engineer position, the City lacks the time and staff resources to develop technical specifications sufficient to issue competitive procurement documents for the design and engineering services for this phase of the project. If task deadlines are not met, the City’s cooperative funding from SWFWMD for this fiscal year could be jeopardized, impacting funding consideration for future projects.
Diversifying raw water sources is important for water supply reliability. With respect to costs of treatment, the treatment of brackish groundwater sources is more costly than for surface water. With respect to availability, surface waters are more readily available during the summer rainy season as opposed to the winter dry season when seasonal populations and water demands are at their highest. An aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) system allows for the storage of surface water during the rainy season, when it’s more readily available, and recovery of that water during the dry season, when demands are at their highest. Further, ASR systems allow for resting of groundwater sources, which is important for their stability, and to promote Preservation of Environment and Natural Resources by offsetting use of limited and energy intensive groundwater resources.
Since the project’s inception in 1998, changes in regulations and regulatory direction in permitting have affected all ASR well projects across the state. Although North Port’s ASR project has been lengthy, due in part to regulatory challenges, there are great potential benefits to having an ASR system. ASR wells remain one of the best options for increasing the year-round reliability of water availability in Florida. A recent draft of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) Senate Bill (SB) 536 Study includes recommendations for assisting in overcoming some of the uncertainty, impediments, and constraints that hinder the development of ASR projects. The recommendations include revising current regulations to allow more permitting options for ASR facilities.
ASR projects are complex multi-year projects that include several phases including feasibility study, design and permitting, well construction, cycle testing, and startup and monitoring and in some instances, require more than one phase to put the well into service and obtain an operating permit. Phases I through III have been completed for the City’s ASR well. During North Port’s Phase IV, the cycle testing of the ASR well showed that arsenic concentrations in the aquifer were higher than the regulatory limits allowed. Mobilization of arsenic had become a statewide problem for all ASR projects in the early- to mid- 2000s. Since that time, there has been a greater statewide, including regulatory, understanding of arsenic mobilization. It has now been demonstrated that a couple of options exist for handling the issue of arsenic mobilization summarized briefly as follows: 1) reducing the dissolved oxygen in the source water, which minimizes, and can even nearly eliminate, the mobilization of arsenic; and, 2) stored water management involving minimizing withdrawal of native groundwater by maintaining a larger storage volume than withdrawn. The first option has been demonstrated for the City of North Port’s ASR well during Cycle Test 4 in 2012, when groundwater, which generally has no dissolved oxygen, was injected into the ASR well and upon recovery the maximum arsenic was only 3.07 ug/L, which is well below the drinking water standard of 10 ug/L. Cycle Test 4 proved that the City’s ASR well is viable using a source water with low to minimal dissolved oxygen. While this first option is economically viable, the final goal and more efficient use of the ASR well project is to inject surface water, not groundwater. Therefore, the City with the support of SWFWMD is in the process of testing the second option in Cycle Test 5, managing the stored surface water volume, which is less expensive and more efficient.
Cycle Test 5A used minimally-treated surface water as the source water for storage. Preliminary test results have indicated no issues with the surface water mobilizing arsenic. Although the temporary facilities were designed and built to add de-oxygenating chemicals if required, it did not appear a necessary step, therefore, Cycle Test 5B was initiated without adding any chemicals to the process. Injection was complete on November 8 and withdrawals and testing will begin at the end of November/beginning of December. Since Cardno Inc. (Cardno) has been the project consultant since its inception (in 1998) and as such the firm has intimate institutional knowledge of all the historical design, testing, permitting, they are in the unique position of being able to start the design for the permanent facilities while obtaining the final results from Cycle Test 5.
Timing is of the essence to maintain the project schedule under the City’s anticipated SWFWMD contract for the ASR well and the permitting process from the FDEP. Therefore, in the interest of expediency, efficiency and project continuity, Utilities is requesting the continued use of Cardno (previously known as Cardno Entrix) for the design, to obtain FDEP Underground Injection Control construction permitting, construction engineering inspection as directed, and start-up of permanent ASR well facilities at the City’s Myakkahatchee Creek Water Treatment Plant. This effort also includes Cycle Test 6 of the permanent facilities and to obtain the operational permit for the facility. Cardno has been the project consultant since its inception and as such the firm has intimate institutional knowledge of all historical design, testing, permitting, and compliance data on this project as well as an excellent work history with the City. Cardno is ready to hit the ground running, has an excellent work history with the City, has all the historical knowledge and has all the required working relationships (i.e. City/FDEP/SWFMWD) already established. Through single-source approval for Cardno, the time/cost needed to bring a new consultant up to speed on the project history, historical data accumulation, SWFWMD approval of a new consultant and review is all eliminated.
SWFWMD and the City are in the process of executing a new funding agreement to perform the design, permitting, construction and inspection services for the permanent facilities for the City’s ASR project using minimally treated surface water.
Funds in the amount of $220,000 in FY16/17 and $460,000 in FY17/18 for a total of $680,000 are available for this project in the approved Capital Improvement Program (CIP). The CIP project is identified as U17ASR, Aquifer, Storage and Recovery - Permanent Facilities. The anticipated use of the funds for these services is as follows: FY16/17 $160,675; FY17/18 $121,525 and FY18/19 $87,000 for a total of $369,200.
Strategic Plan
Financially Responsible City Providing Quality Municipal Services
Maintained/Upgraded/Expanded City Infrastructure
Preservation of Environment and Natural Resources (by offsetting use of limited and energy intensive groundwater resources).
Financial Impact
In FY16/17, the amount of $220,000 is budgeted in account number 423-6061-533-6300 for this project U17ASR with an additional $460,000 in FY17/18 in the CIP.
Procurement
Vendor Information: Cardno Inc. 3905 Crescent Park Drive, Riverview, FL 33578
Attachments:
1. Competitive Exemption Request Form with attachment
2. Cardno Inc. ASR Proposal, Fees and Rates
3. Florida Division of Corporations Document
4. Powerpoint Insight into Aquifer, Storage & Recovery Wells
Prepared by: Jennifer Desrosiers
Department Director: Rick Newkirk