REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 23, 2023
FROM
BRENDON BIGGS, Director, Department of Public Works - Solid Waste Management
SUBJECT
Title
Contracts to Provide Non-Routine Water Quality Monitoring and Response Program Support Services for County Landfills and Disposal Sites
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Award five-year Contracts, from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2028, in the total aggregate not-to-exceed amount of $20,000,000, to provide Non-Routine Water Quality Monitoring and Response Program Support Services at County landfills and disposal sites with the following vendors:
1. Geosyntec Consultants, Inc., of Ontario, CA
2. Geo-Logic Associates, of Ontario, CA
3. Stearns, Conrad and Schmidt, Consulting Engineers, Inc. dba SCS Engineers/SCS Field Services, of Ontario, CA
4. Tetra Tech BAS, Inc., of Diamond Bar, CA
(Presenter: Brendon Biggs, Director, 387-7906)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost) as the Department of Public Works - Solid Waste Management Division (SWMD) is financed by fee revenue. SWMD establishes fees that are charged to the public and other agencies for utilization of the County’s Waste Disposal System. The total cost for contracted services will not exceed $20,000,000, individually or in the aggregate, for the five-year contract period. Sufficient appropriation and revenue have been included in the 2023-24 Recommended Budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The recommended Contracts will support SWMD environmental compliance activities from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2028, by providing non-routine services for the Water Quality Monitoring and Response (WQM&R) Program for the County’s thirty-nine landfills and disposal sites. Services to be provided will assist the SWMD to timely implement actions to achieve and maintain compliance with requirements set forth in California Code of Regulations Title 27, Regional Water Quality Control Board (Lahontan, Santa Ana, and Colorado River Basin Regions) permits, directives and orders, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency Federal Clean Water Act. These regulations and orders require owners and operators of waste management units, such as landfills, to implement and maintain a groundwater beneficial use protection program at each site, in compliance with its provisions, for the purpose of detecting, characterizing, and mitigating releases of pollutants to groundwater, surface water, or the unsaturated zone.
In order for SWMD to maintain a compliant disposal system that meets the disposal capacity needs of the citizens of the county, maintain good standing with the aforementioned regulatory agencies, and further protect groundwater beneficial uses in the immediate vicinity of its landfills, it is necessary to retain technical assistance not available in-house with SWMD staff. Often, this assistance is needed immediately, making it impractical for SWMD to proceed with a request for proposal (RFP) for a consultant for a specific project. To this end, SWMD developed an RFP to meet the need for timely technical response and to fulfill the requirements of the County's Procurement Policy. Implementation of these contracts and continued interaction with these agencies to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements supports the County and the Chief Executive Officer’s goals and objectives.
Review for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was conducted by the Department of Public Works Environmental Management Division. It was determined that the activities listed in the Contracts are not considered a project as defined in Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines and no further environmental analysis is necessary.
PROCUREMENT
On February 1, 2023, RFP No. PWG123-SOLID-4835 for WQM&R Program and Support Services was entered into the County’s Electronic Procurement System (ePro) and released. The RFP was sent to 146 qualified firms through the County’s ePro System. A mandatory pre-proposal conference was held on February 8, 2023 and attended by four firms. On March 1, 2023, proposals were received from the following four firms:
|
Consultant |
Location |
|
Geo-Logic Associates, Inc. |
Ontario, CA |
|
Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. |
Ontario, CA |
|
Stearns, Conrad, and Schmidt Consulting Engineers, Inc. dba SCS Engineers/SCS Field Services |
Ontario, CA |
|
Tetra Tech BAS, Inc. |
Diamond Bar, CA |
A selection committee comprised of three representatives from SWMD reviewed the proposals. All four proposals received demonstrated that the firms were qualified to provide the required services. The County recognizes that having a larger pool of qualified firms typically leads to more competitive pricing, greater ability to diversify workloads, and increased availability of resources to provide rapid response when needed. The contracts are written in a manner to allow SWMD the flexibility of selecting the consultant that best meets its needs, while providing the most value to the County, in performing the requested work.
The proposed Contracts will commence on July 1, 2023, and continue through June 30, 2028. The County maintains the right to terminate the Contract(s) for convenience upon 30 days’ written notice.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Maria Insixiengmay, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on April 7, 2023; Purchasing (Jason Cloninger, Lead Buyer, 387-8258) on May 1, 2023; Finance (Carl Lofton, Administrative Analyst, 387-5404) on May 5, 2023; and County Finance and Administration (Paloma Hernandez-Barker, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on May 8, 2023.