TO: LINDA REICH, CITY MANAGER
FROM: HYE JIN LEE, PE, DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS
SUBJECT
title
Professional Services Agreement with Watearth, Inc. for the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) Compliance Program.
end
RECOMMENDATION
Award a Professional Services Agreement to Watearth, Inc., Los Angeles, CA, in the amount of $110,273.80 for consulting services necessary for compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR); and authorize the City Manager to execute all necessary documents on behalf of the City.
body
FISCAL IMPACT
Sufficient funds are included in the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 and Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Water Services Program (5207300).
CITY OF CHINO MISSION / VISION / VALUES / STRATEGIC ISSUES
The recommendation detailed above further the City’s values and strategic issues that serve as key pillars on which identified priorities, goals, and action plans are built, by fostering:
• Financial Stability
• Responsible Long-Range Planning
|
Revenue: Click or tap here to enter text. |
Expenditure: 5207300-43560 |
|
Transfer In: Click or tap here to enter text. |
Transfer Out: Click or tap here to enter text. |
BACKGROUND
The United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (“USEPA”) Lead and Copper Rule (“LCR”) was established in 1991 to monitor and control the amount of lead and copper in drinking water. Lead and copper may enter the drinking water primarily through the corrosion of plumbing materials, and if present may cause adverse health effects. Since 1991 the LCR has undergone various revisions.
Prompted by a water quality circumstance that occurred in Flint, Michigan, in 2016 the USEPA announced plans to enhance oversight of state drinking water programs tasked with implementation of the LCR. In response, California Senate Bills 1398 (2016) and 427 (2017) were issued calling for public water systems to inventory and replace lead service lines. Subsequently, in 2021, the USEPA issued revisions to the LCR. Those 2021 Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) require community water systems to conduct an inventory of water service pipelines for the purpose of determining if those lines include lead and copper materials. The USEPA issued its guidance information on the development of the required inventory in 2022, and in 2023 released its template format and methodology instructions for gathering, organizing, and reporting the inventory information.
In California, the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water (“DDW”) is the state regulatory agency with responsibility for permitting and conducting oversight of public water systems. According to the DDW, lead service lines like those discovered in Flint and other areas of the country are not common in California. However, some lead containing materials may have been used in the construction of older (pre-1984) plumbing, and the DDW elected to conform to the USEPA’s compliance schedule which calls for inventory data to be submitted by October 16, 2024. The LCRR-specified inventory shall form the basis for a subsequent service line replacement plan.
ISSUES/ANALYSIS
The City of Chino supplies drinking water to approximately 23,000 service connections, of which staff estimates approximately 12,500 were built prior to the City’s implementation of the 1985 Uniform Plumbing Code prohibiting utilization of lead and copper containing water plumbing materials. The LCRR indicates the required inventory of service pipelines must consider all service line materials extending from the water distribution system main pipeline to and including the inlet to a building. LCRR-specified methodology includes the review of all available records and visual inspection of field conditions that may be necessary to document that a service line does or does not incorporate lead/copper material. If the nonexistence of lead cannot be demonstrated, then the service line is considered by default to be a lead service line. In order to complete the LCRR-specified inventory of existing drinking water service pipelines within the required timeframe, the City solicited proposals from qualified firms listed on its Master On-Call Professional Services List. Two (2) proposals were received, evaluated and ranked by; experience/qualifications; past performance/references; plan methodology/project approach; quality of responsiveness of proposal; and cost evaluation. The final rankings are described below:
|
RANK |
CONSULTANT |
LOCATION |
COST |
|
1 |
Watearth, Inc. |
Los Angeles, CA |
$110,273.80 |
|
2 |
Hazen & Sawyer |
Irvine, CA |
$212,770.00 |
Therefore, City Staff recommends that the City Council approve a professional services agreement to Watearth, Inc., Los Angeles, CA, for $110,273.80 for consulting services necessary for compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR).
Attachment: Professional Services Agreement - Watearth, Inc.