Title
Receive report from EAA staff on recent activities regarding the San Antonio Water System District Special Project Meter Implementation Project.
Body
STAFF RECOMMENDED MOTION:
This item is for discussion purposes only. No action is required.
SUMMARY:
The purpose of this agenda item is for the Permits/Enforcement Committee to receive a report from EAA staff on the status of the San Antonio Water System (SAWS) District Special Project (DSP) Meter Implementation Project Agreement. The SAWS DSP meter implementation project is a comprehensive review and meter replacement/modification program involving the wells and meters formerly owned and operated by the Bexar Metropolitan Water District (Bexar Met), which are now owned and operated by SAWS as a result of the Bexar Met dissolution and integration.
The SAWS DSP Meter Implementation Project agreement, which was approved by the board at the April 6, 2013 meeting, includes a plan for SAWS to install and/or modify meters on 45 Edwards wells to comply with EAA meter rules. Of the 45 wells to be addressed in this project, 21 were modified under Phases 1 and 2 of the agreement, 18 wells in Phases 3 and 4 of the agreement, and 6 wells are included as part of the DSP Water Production Facility Upgrades portion of the project. According to the agreement schedule, all work was to be completed by December 31, 2016.
Accomplishments
SAWS completed meter installations and related work at the Phase 1 and 2 sites (20 wells) in July 2014. One of the Phase 1 wells (EAA Well #W100-278, located at 105 W. Bitters Road) was designated as a “Well of Stand Alone Functionality” and work on this well was rescheduled and added to the Phase 3 and 4 schedule. SAWS completed meter installations and related work at the DSP Water Production Facilities Upgrades sites (6 wells) in May 2015.
In June 2015, SAWS staff informed the EAA of a delay in the Phase 3 and 4 project and presented a revised program schedule with the proposed completion date in October 2016. With these latest revisions to the well listing for the Phase 3 & 4 work, there are a total of 13 wells to be upgraded as part of this final phase. EAA staff received the Phase 3 & 4 Final Design and Specifications for review on July 22, 2015, and completed our review on August 5, 2015.
EAA consultants Fred Blumberg and Garrett Kehoe (ARCADIS-US) continue to support EAA staff with technical review and analysis of project submittals.
Update
As last reported to the Permits/Enforcement Committee at the June 28, 2016 meeting, SAWS was beginning field mobilization with their construction contractor, Payton Construction, Inc. (“Payton”), to complete the 13 wells under the Phase 3 and 4 project. During this period, EAA staff attended three SAWS construction project status meetings between SAWS and Payton representatives; held on July 14, August 8, and September 21, 2016. At the October 6, 2016 quarterly status meeting with EAA staff, SAWS informed the EAA of potential problems at three wells that could impact the planned completion schedule.
As stated to the EAA in their December 23, 2016 Quarterly Report, “SAWS experienced well design issues that have delayed the completion of this project as anticipated for the fourth quarter of 2016. Two wells that were completed experienced catastrophic failures at the wellhead due to buildup of pressure at startup. These failures required SAWS to investigate the cause and develop a fix to ensure the operability of the remaining three wells yet to be completed. This has caused a delay in the completion of the remaining three wells. Wells at Carlisle, Montgomery and Bitters are slated for completion during the first quarter of 2017. Work will continue on these three during the first quarter of 2017 to complete the well metering project. The completion of the SAWS DSP Meter Implementation Agreement originally scheduled to be completed by December 31, 2016 will not be met. SAWS will submit an official request to extend the deadline of the Agreement in order to fulfill its commitment to the EAA.”
On December 23, 2016, EAA received a letter from Darren Thompson, SAWS Director of Water Resources, to officially extend the San Antonio Water System District Special Project Meter Implementation Project Agreement for another three months, now to end on March 31, 2017. EAA replied on December 28, 2016 acknowledging this request and allowing this extension, as permitted under Section 3 (d) of the agreement.
Under this extension, SAWS has projected to complete work at two wells (Carlisle [W100-423] and Montgomery [W100-447]) by the end of January 2017, and to complete work at the final well (Bitters [W100-278]) by mid-February 2017. Notwithstanding the well issues causing the delays, no field changes with respect to the meters were made, thus additional reviews of meter design were not necessary. SAWS did indicate that additional minor design work may be required for Gibb Sprawls (W104-147) that may affect meter placement, which would require EAA review and approval.
Also reported to the EAA was that SAWS has further assessed the need for two wells under the Phase 3 and 4 project, to be moved (Querida [W100-430] and SW 21st Street [W100-425]) to the “Capped/Plugged” status, and will not be addressed under the Phase 3 and 4 work. This would reduce the number of wells under the Phase 3 and 4 project to eleven.
Because of this delay, EAA will extend the contract with ARCADIS into 2017 to complete assessment of the Phase 3 and 4 wells after completion, and prepare a final report to be submitted to the EAA.
At the January 24 meeting, staff will summarize current activities and answer related questions.
M/WBE PARTICIPATION:
The EAA retained the services of ARCADIS-US as a technical consultant for review of design specification and installation as performed under the previous meter agreement with SAWS. ARCADIS-US is not an M/WBE.
STRATEGIC PLAN REFERENCE:
This agenda item does not relate to a specific goal or action step within the Strategic Plan, but supports the general EAA mission.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The EAA retained the services of ARCADIS-US as a technical consultant for this project and the work is performed under a letter agreement not to exceed $10,000 for 2017. Otherwise, this program has no fiscal impact on the EAA.