City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: November 28, 2023
Agenda Item: 5.G
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works, Water Resources Subject: Award Purchase Orders to Univar (Primary) and Brenntag Pacific, Inc. (Secondary) for Hydrogen Peroxide and to Hill Brothers Chemical Co. for Liquid Calcium Chloride
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of categorical exemption pursuant to Section 15301 (Existing Facilities) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
2. Award Bid #4465 to Univar Solutions USA Inc (Univar) as the primary vendor for the purchase of hydrogen peroxide and to Brenntag Pacific, Inc. (Brenntag) as the secondary vendor for the purchase of hydrogen peroxide and to Hill Brothers Chemical Co. for the purchase of liquid calcium chloride for the Public Works Department.
3. Authorize the Procurement Manager to issue a purchase order with Univar for hydrogen peroxide for a total amount not to exceed $1,200,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
4. Authorize the Procurement Manager to issue a purchase order with Brenntag as the secondary vendor for hydrogen peroxide for a total amount not to exceed $1,400,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
5. Authorize the Procurement Manager to issue a purchase order with Hill Brothers Chemical Co. (Hill Brothers) for liquid calcium chloride for a total amount not to exceed $350,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Summary
The City of Santa Monica’s Water Resources Division is adding new advanced water treatment facilities to increase local water supplies through projects such as the Olympic Well Field Restoration Project and Sustainable Water Infrastructure Project (SWIP) and reduce the City’s reliance on costly imported water supplies. As part of the Olympic Well 2 of 6
Field Restoration Project, the City is adding a new ultraviolet advanced oxidation process (UV-AOP) followed by granular activated carbon filtration for the remediation of the Olympic Well Field. The facility is expected to be operational by Spring 2024. The UV-AOP process utilizes hydrogen peroxide for the destruction of harmful industrial contaminants. Staff recommends issuing a purchase order with Univar as the primary vendor in an amount not to exceed $1,200,000 over a five-year period and a purchase order with Brenntag in an amount not to exceed $1,400,000 over a five-year period as a secondary vendor for the purchase of hydrogen peroxide for the Arcadia Water Treatment Plant (Arcadia WTP).
The City also recently completed the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Project (SWIP) which includes a new SWIP Advanced Water Treatment Facility (AWTF) and upgraded Santa Monica Urban Runoff Recycling Facility (SMURRF) that collectively produce up to 1.5 million gallons per day of advanced treated recycled water for non-potable reuse (e.g., irrigation and toilet flushing) and groundwater recharge. Both AWTF and SMURRF utilize a multi-barrier treatment process and add liquid calcium chloride to the final treated water for corrosion protection of the recycled water distribution system.
Staff recommends issuing a purchase order with Hill Brothers in an amount not to exceed $350,000 over a five-year period for the purchase of liquid calcium chloride for the SWIP.
Discussion
The City of Santa Monica’s Water Resources Division operates a multi-barrier treatment process at Arcadia WTP to provide high-quality, safe, and reliable drinking water for the City’s 93,000+ residents and over 2,700 commercial customers. The City’s Arcadia WTP was upgraded in 2010 as part of the Charnock Well Field Restoration Project that restored local groundwater supplies. However due to industrial contamination, the City was unable to fully utilize its second largest source of groundwater, the Olympic Well Field. The City is expanding the Arcadia WTP to include the Olympic Advanced Water Treatment Facility as part of the Olympic Well Field Restoration Project, which is expected to be operational by Spring 2024. The Olympic Advanced Water Treatment Facility, co-located at the Arcadia WTP, includes a new UV-AOP treatment process 3 of 6
followed by granular activated carbon filtration to destroy harmful industrial contaminants in the groundwater before it continues through the rest of the facility’s multi-barrier treatment process. The UV-AOP process utilizes hydrogen peroxide as a chemical oxidant to facilitate destruction of industrial contaminants. This compound is widely used at groundwater and water purification facilities throughout California and the United States.
The City’s SWIP facilities, including the new SWIP AWTF and upgraded SMURRF that purifies stormwater, urban runoff, brackish groundwater, and municipal wastewater to provide a drought resilient water supply for the city. To prevent corrosion in the recycled water distribution system and protect public health, liquid calcium chloride is added to the final purified water at the SWIP to re-mineralize the water. This compound is also widely used at water purification facilities throughout California and the United States.
Univar Solutions was selected as the primary vendor as they scored the highest in the evaluation. The full amount requested for Brenntag is being requested as a backup in the event Univar Solutions is unable to provide hydrogen peroxide because of sourcing issues similar to what occurred with many chemical companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Supply chain issues remain a concern to this day. Staff does not plan to expend the full amount with both vendors. By approving a spending authority that would cover the anticipated total expenditure to both vendors, the City would have the flexibility to source from two vendors and continue to provide uninterrupted clean drinking water. A backup calcium chloride vendor is not required for the SWIP as it is currently designated as a non-critical facility and operations can be paused if necessary.
Vendor Selection
Bidder Recommendation
Best Bidder Univar Solutions USA Inc (Hydrogen Peroxide), primary vendor Brenntag Pacific, Inc. (Hydrogen Peroxide), secondary vendor and Hill Brothers Chemical Co. (Liquid Calcium Chloride), primary vendor Evaluation
Criteria
Ability, capacity, and skill to provide the materials/services, experience, and price.
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Municipal Code SMMC 2.24.180
Submittals Received (Liquid Calcium Chloride)
Hill Brothers Chemical Co $1.57/gallon Thatcher Company, Inc $2.87/gallon Bid Data
Date
Posted Posted On
Advertise In
(City Charter & SMMC)
Vendors
Downloaded
Date Publicly
Opened
08/24/2023 City’s Online
Bidding Site
Santa Monica Daily
Press
12 09/28/2023
Best Bidder Justification
The bids were reviewed by a selection panel consisting of staff from the Water Resources Division of the Public Works Department. The bids were evaluated based on previous experience, ability to deliver, quality of product, cost, and compliance with City requirements. Based on the evaluation criteria, staff recommends Univar as the best and lowest bidder and primary vendor and Brenntag as the secondary vendor to provide hydrogen peroxide to the Arcadia WTP. Staff would only order from Brenntag if primary vendor Univar could not provide products on a timely basis. Staff also recommends Hill Brothers as the primary vendor for the purchase of liquid calcium chloride for the SWIP.
Environmental Review
The purchase and use of hydrogen peroxide and liquid calcium chloride at the City’s Arcadia WTP is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15301 (Class 1 - Existing Facilities) of the CEQA Guidelines. Section 15301 provides exemption for the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, or minor alteration of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no expansion of use beyond that existing at the time of the lead agency's determination. The purchase orders for hydrogen peroxide would allow for the operations of the UV-AOP treatment process as part of the expanded Arcadia WTP.
The purchase order for liquid calcium chloride would allow for the operations of postSubmittals Received (Hydrogen Peroxide) Univar Solutions USA Inc $3.27/gallon Brenntag Pacific, Inc. $3.69/gallon Hazma LLC $6.32/gallon
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treatment corrosion control as part of the SWIP AWTF and SMURRF. The purchase orders would not expand or materially change existing facilities or operations.
Therefore, the purchase orders for hydrogen peroxide and liquid calcium chloride are categorically exempt pursuant to Section 15301 of the CEQA Guidelines.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Water Fund to award a purchase order to Univar for the purchase of hydrogen peroxide as the primary vendor; to Brenntag for the purchase of hydrogen peroxide as a secondary vendor.
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Wastewater Fund to award a purchase order to Hill Brothers for the purchase of liquid calcium chloride.
Purchase Order Request (Univar – Primary – Hydrogen Peroxide) FY 2023-24 Budget
Request Amount Department Account # Future Years Total Contract Amount $240,000 50500003.525081 $960,000 $1,200,000
Purchase Order Request (Brenntag – Secondary – Hydrogen Peroxide) FY 2023-24 Budget
Request Amount Department Account # Future Years Total Contract Amount $280,000 50500003.525081 $1,120,000 $1,400,000
Purchase Order Request (Hill Brothers – Primary – Liquid Calcium Chloride) FY 2023-24 Budget
Request Amount Department Account # Future Years Total Contract Amount $70,000 51500001.525085 $280,000 $350,000
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval. 6 of 6
Prepared By: Alex Waite, Process Engineer
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Oaks Initiative Form - Brenntag
B. Oaks Initiative Form - Univar
C. Oaks Initiative Form - Hill Brothers