===== PDF PAGE 32 ===== [Extraction: OCR (rendered-page OCR)] CITY OF WEST CHICAGO INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY ITEM TITLE: AGENDA ITEM NUMBER: __/-C. __ Rejection of all Bids and Re-Bid —- A2O Phosphorous Removal Project for the West Chicago/Winfield Wastewater Authority Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant COMMITTEE AGENDA DATE: March 7, 2024 COUNCIL AGENDA DATE: March 18, 2024 STAFF REVIEW: Mehul T. Patel, P.E., Director of Public Works SIGNATURE. APPROVED BY CITY ADMINISTRATOR: Michael L. Guttman SIGNATURE. ITEM SUMMARY: The West Chicago/Winfield Wastewater Authority (WCWWA) Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) operates under an NPDES permit regulated by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA); Permit No. IL0024369. As authorized by the Clean Water Act, the NPDES Permit Program controls water pollution by regulating point sources that discharge pollutants into waters of the United States. Water pollution degrades surface waters making them unsafe for drinking, fishing, swimming, and other activities. Industrial, municipal, and other facilities must obtain permits from the IEPA if their discharges go directly to surface waters and must renew their permits every five years. For years, the USEPA has pressured the IEPA to impose new and stricter nutrient removal limitations on wastewater treatment plants consistent with national policy. The most recent IEPA NPDES permit for the WCWWA WWTP expires on April 30, 2027. Since 2015, the WCVWWA has been a member of one local environmental group, the DuPage River Salt Creek Workgroup (DRSCW), formed in 2005 in response to concerns about Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) being set for the East & West Branches of the DuPage River and Salt Creek, which is made up of local communities, Publically Owned Treatment Works (POTWs) or WWTPs, and private environmental organizations. The DRSCW has been working to produce comprehensive data sets for local watersheds to determine and resolve priority stressors to local aquatic systems. The organization continues to implement targeted watershed activities that resolve priority waterway problems efficiently and cost effectively. Working directly with the other environmental groups and the IEPA, the DRSCW has created, submitted, and received support for the implementation of special permit conditions and stream restoration projects. It is DRSCW’s plan that implementation of its stream restoration projects will produce the greatest improvement in water quality and habitat for less money than individual POTW projects. Because of being a member of the DRSCW and paying Project Funding Assessments, participating POTWs received a temporary reprieve from the IEPA to upgrade its own POTW and comply with strict phosphorus limits likely to be imposed by the IEPA. The WCWWA agreement with DRSCW expired on December 31, 2022, at which time WCWWVA stopped paying Project Funding Assessments. As a result, in WCWWA’s current NPDES permit, a special condition has been added which states the total phosphorus removal limits of 1.0 mg/l would be effective Oct 1, 2026. On December 7, 2020, authorized by Resolution No. 20-R-0076, the Mayor executed a contract with the Donohue & Associates, Inc. (Donohue) for a Phosphorus Removal Pilot Study at the West Chicago/Winfield Wastewater Authority (WCWWA) Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant. This Study was completed and final report was provided in January 2022. The study recommended four different options to reduce the total phosphorus limits below 1.0 mg/l. After review of the report and discussions with WWTP contracted staff, the consensus is to implement an option called “Anaerobic/Anoxic/Oxic (A2O)” to achieve the total phosphorus limits. This option will also provide the WCWWVA with total nitrogen removal, limits for which will be coming down the road. With this option, the Study shows, WCWWVA can achieve 0.37 mg/l total phosphorus removal limits, which would be significantly below the 1.0 mg/l. The IEPA in the past has suggested more stringent total phosphorus removal limits including 0.5 mg/l and 0.1 mg/l. On February 20, 2023, the City Council authorized Resolution No. 23-R-0006 ===== PDF PAGE 33 ===== [Extraction: OCR (rendered-page OCR)] CITY OF WEST CHICAGO authorizing Donohue to perform all required design engineering services related to the A2O Phosphorous Removal Project. The Project was advertised for public bids in the Daily Herald and on an online bidding platform, QuestCDN, on January 25, 2024. Staff opened bids on February 22, 2024, and below are the bid results: AS-CORRECTED BID CONTRACTOR SUBMITTAL AMOUNT | RANK JJ Henderson* $6,372,000.00 N/A John Burns Construction $6,945,000.00 1 Williams Brothers Construction $7,140,000.00 2 . Boller Construction $7 ,262,800.00 3 Path Construction $7,587 ,000.00 4 Independent Mechanical Industries $8,757 ,000.00 5 ENGINEER’S ESTIMATE $5, 390,000.00 - *Bid withdrawn within 24-hours of bid opening due to mathematical error The total bid is currently over the proposed FY 2024 budget; therefore, staff recommends rejecting all bids and re- bid. This Project is critical to achieve the phosphorus removal limit of 1.0 mg/l by October 1, 2026. As such, staff will review the specifications and make necessary changes to possibly bring the overall costs within budget by reducing the scope of work by eliminating items not directly tied to the main objective of achieving phosphorus removal. ACTIONS PROPOSED: Reject all bids and re-bid. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION: The Infrastructure Committee voted 6-0 for rejection.