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Agenda Report
July 13, 2026
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Water and Power Department
SUBJECT: AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH OCEAN BLUE ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES, INC. TO PROVIDE
HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE
SERVICES FOR THE WATER AND POWER DEPARTMENT FOR AN
AMOUNT NOT-TO-EXCEED $2,100,000
s
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the City Council:
1. Find that the action proposed herein is categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapters, Article 19, Section 15301, Class 1, (b) Existing Facilities, and that there are no features that distinguish this project from others in the exempt class and, therefore, there are no unusual circumstances;
2. Authorize the City Manager to enter into a contract, as a result of competitive selection process, as specified by Section 4.08.047 of the Pasadena Municipal Code, with Ocean Blue Environmental Services, Inc. ("Ocean Blue") to provide hazardous waste management and emergency response services for the Pasadena Water and Power Department for seven years for a grand total amount not-to-exceed $2,100,000, which includes the option for two additional one-year extensions or an amount not-to-exceed $600,000, whichever occurs first, at the discretion of the City Manager. Competitive price bidding is not required pursuant to City Charter Section 1002 (F) Contract for professional or unique services; and
3. Authorize the City Manager to approve no-cost amendments to the subject contract, including durational extensions.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Pasadena Water and Power Department ("PWP") owns and operates in various facilities throughout Pasadena including the Glenarm Power Plant, several MEETING OF 07/13/2026AGENDA ITEM NO..5
Authorization to Enter into Contract with Ocean Blue Environmental Services, Inc.
July 13, 2026
power distribution stations, potable water treatment systems and water distribution and storage facilities; and a general warehouse facility. During the normal course of operations, these facilities generate both hazardous and non-hazardous regulated waste ("regulated waste"). Storage and disposal of PWP's regulated waste occurs both at the City Yards facility on Mountain Avenue, and at the Glenarm Power Plant. The regulated waste must be disposed of in accordance with applicable environmental regulations that include proper labeling, packaging, and offsite transportation from PWP facilities to a legal point of disposal every 90 days or fewer if threshold quantities are exceeded.
To fulfill this highly regulated service, PWP requires hazardous waste management services that include compliant removal of the regulated waste as well as hazardous materials, 24-hour emergency response, and cleanup services.
PWP's regulated waste management needs have historically been met through fully integrated, turn-key service contracts that provide routine waste disposal, spill cleanup, and emergency response capabilities. These services have been delivered under a succession of contracts dating back to the 1970s, reflecting PWP's longstanding operational requirement for reliable and compliant hazardous waste management support.
On February 18, 2026, a Request for Proposals ("RFP") was posted on OpenGov for hazardous waste management and emergency response services for PWP. A total of nine vendors downloaded the specifications of which none were local. Staff also conducted local outreach, but no vendor was available. Eight proposals were received by the March 31, 2026, due date, none were local. An evaluation team comprised of three independent PWP representatives from the Power Supply Business Unit evaluated and scored the proposals based on pre-established criteria listed in the RFP (see Table I).
A summary of the scoring is shown below in Table I.
Table I: Proposal Scores
ProposerLocation
Average Total
Points
(Out of 100)
Ocean Blue Environmental Services, Inc.Long Beach, CA88.9 Ancon ServicesLos Alamitos, CA85.0
Clean hlarbors Environmental Services, Inc.Norwell, MA66.3 Environmental Logistics, Inc.Bloomington, CA65.7
Hunter Consulting Inc.Corona, CA65.0
NRC Environmental Services Inc.Long Beach, CA70.1
Alpha Petroleum Transport Inc IICorona, CA64.6
United Pumping Service, Inc.City of Industry, CA66.9
Authorization to Enter into Contract with Ocean Blue Environmental Services, Inc.
July 13,2026
The evaluation team found that the proposal from Ocean Blue met the requirements of the RFP and achieved the highest overall evaluation scores including qualifications, capabilities, relevant experience, and references criteria. Based on the scoring criteria, it is staff's recommendation to award a contract with Ocean Blue to provide hazardous waste management and emergency response services for PWP. The proposed contract will have a five-year base contract term for an amount not-to-exceed $1,500,000 and two optional one-year extensions or an amount not-to-exceed $600,000, whichever comes first, and subject to City Manager approval. Ocean Blue has previously received 28 contract awards cumulatively valued at $2,029,777 performing hazardous and non- hazardous waste clean-up and disposal services for various City departments since 2016.
COUNCIL POLICY CONSIDERATION:
The proposed contract supports the City Council's Strategic Planning Goals to increase conservation and sustainability and ensure public safety.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
The proposed contract has been determined to be categorically exempt from CEQA per CEQA Guidelines Section 15301, Existing Facilities, which allows for the operation, repair and maintenance etc. of existing private and public facilities that involve negligible or no expansion of the use. The continued hazardous waste management and emergency response services are needed for uninterrupted operation and maintenance of the power plants and does not require or involve any expansion of the facility. There would be no expansion of use of any of the involved facilities, and there are no features that distinguish this project from others in the exempt classes and, therefore, there are no unusual circumstances.
Authorization to Enter into Contract with Ocean Blue Environmental Services, Inc.
July 13,2026
FISCAL IMPACT:
The cost of the recommendation action is $2,100,000 over seven years, if the two optional one-year extensions are exercised. Details by Fiscal Year are broken out in Table II below.
Table II: Fiscal Impact Summary
Fiscal Year I Power Fund I Water FundTotal
2027
2028
$284,350
$284,350
$15,650
$15,650
$300,000
$300,000
2029$284,350$15,650$300,000
2030
2031
$284,350
$284,350
$15,650
$15,650
$300,000
$300,000
2032
2033
$284,350
$284,350
$15,650
$15,650
$300,000
$300,000
Funding for this action will be addressed by the utilization of existing appropriations in the Power Operating Fund (401) and Water Operating Fund (402), to support the first year of contract costs. Future contract costs will be budgeted as part of the department's annual operating budget. There is no impact to the General Fund.
Respectfully submitted,
DAVID M. REYES
General Manager
Water and Power Department
Prepared by:
Kelly Nguyen
Assistant General Manager
Approved by:
^^-_^
MATTHEW E. <RAWKESWORTH
Interim City Manager