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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-24-2011 Steering Committee Agenda Packet AN. ., Wednesday, August 24, 2011 Orange County Sanitation District r 5:00 P.M. Regular Meeting of the = Administration Building Steering Committee - ,� Conference Rooms A & B 10844 Ellis Avenue Y' t Fountain Valley, CA 92708 (714) 593-7130 AGENDA DECLARATION OF QUORUM: PUBLIC COMMENTS: If you wish to speak,please complete a Speaker's Form and give it to the Clerk of the Board. Speakers are requested to limit comments to three minutes. REPORTS: The Committee Chair and the General Manager may present verbal reports on miscellaneous matters of general interest to the Directors. These reports are for information only and require no action by the Directors. CONSENT CALENDAR: 1. Approve minutes of the July 27, 2011 Steering Committee meeting. ACTION ITEMS: No action items. INFORMATION ITEMS: 3. Public Affairs Report 4. Teeter Plan 08/24/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 1 of 3 CLOSED SESSION: During the course of conducting the business set forth on this agenda as a regular meeting of the Board, the Chair may convene the Board in closed session to consider matters of pending real estate negotiations,pending or potential litigation, or personnel matters,pursuant to Government Code Sections 54956.8, 54956.9, 54957 or 54957.6, as noted. Reports relating to(a)purchase and sale of real property;(b)matters of pending or potential litigation;(c) employment actions or negotiations with employee representatives; or which are exempt from public disclosure under the California Public Records Act, may be reviewed by the Board during a permitted closed session and are not available for public inspection. At such time as the Board takes final action on any of these subjects, the minutes will reflect all required disclosures of information. Convene in closed session. (1) CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RE. EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(a)) Case: Mladen Buntich Construction Company v. Orange County Sanitation District; OCSD v., Buntich Cross-Claim, Orange County Superior Court Case No. 00491934 (2) CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL RE. ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (Government Code Section 54956.9(b)) Significant Exposure to Litigation Number of Potential Cases: 2 Claim of Kiewit Infrastructure West re. Secondary Activated Sludge Facility Claim of Shea Construction re. Trickling Filters at Plant No. 2, Job No. P2-90 (3) CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATORS (Government Code Section 54956.8) Property - the following 1,808.15 assessed acres Kings County, California: 046-400-016 320 acres 046-400-017 320 acres 046-400-018 240 acres 046-430-005 80 acres 046-430-006 80 acres 046-430-008 40 acres 046-430-015 80 acres 046-430-019 20 acres 046-430-038 308.15 acres 046-430-039 320 acres Negotiator(s): James D. Ruth, James Herberg, Lorenzo Tyner, Jim Colston Negotiating Parties: Francisco Rodriguez Under Negotiation: price and terms of payment 08/24/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 2 of 3 (4) CONFER WITH DISTRICT NEGOTIATORS (Government Code Section 54954.5(f)) ( Agency Designated Representatives: James D. Ruth, General Manager; Robert Ghirelli, Assistant General Manager; Jim Herberg, Assistant General Manager, Jeff Reed, Director of Human Resources; and, Richard Spencer, Human Resources Supervisor. ( Employees: OCSD Managers' Group (5) PUBLIC EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE EVALUATION (Government Code Section 54957(b)(1)) Title: General Manager Reconvene in regular session. Consideration of action, if any, on matters considered in closed session. OTHER BUSINESS AND COMMUNICATIONS OR SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA ITEMS, IF ANY: ADJOURNMENT: The next Steering Committee meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 28, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. Accommodations for the Disabled: Meeting Rooms are wheelchair accessible. If you require any special disability related accommodations, please contact the Orange County Sanitation District Clerk of the Board's office at(714)593- 7130 at least 72 hours prior to the scheduled meeting. Requests must specify the nature of the disability and the type of accommodation requested. Agenda Posting: In accordance with the requirements of California Government Code Section 54954.2,this agenda has been posted outside the main gate of the Sanitation District's Administration Building located at 10844 Ellis Avenue, Fountain Valley,California,not less than 72 hours prior to the meeting date and time above. All public records relating to each agenda item,including any public records distributed less than 72 hours prior to the meeting to all,or a majority of the Board of Directors, are available for public inspection in the office of the Clerk of the Board. NOTICE TO DIRECTORS: To place items on the agenda for the Committee Meeting, items must be submitted to the Clerk of the Board 14 days before the meeting. Maria E.Ayala Clerk of the Board (714)593-7130 mayala(@ocsd.com 08/24/11 Steering Committee Agenda Page 3 of 3 STEERING COMMITTEE Meeting Date To Bd. of Dir. 08/24/2011 AGENDA REPORT Item Number Item Number 3 Orange County Sanitation District FROM: James D. Ruth, General Manager Originator: Michael Gold, Public Affairs Manager SUBJECT: Public Affairs update GENERAL MANAGER'S RECOMMENDATION Information Only SUMMARY This report is the monthly Public Affairs Division update that includes legislative and political information from Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, lobbyists' activities, and outreach education and communication programs to member cities, employees and the public. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Public Affairs Update Hydrogen Energy Station commissioning event On August 16, OCSD hosted the commissioning event for our hydrogen energy station. This public-private partnership is collaboration between Air Products, Fuel Cell Energy, UC Irvine and OCSD. The collaborative partnership received significant grant funding from South Coast Air Quality Management District, the California Air Resources Board and the US Department of Energy. Over 100 guests attended the event, including Congressman Dana Rohrabacher. Leading up to the event, staff secured a great deal of positive press coverage, including: Orange County Register— story, video and slide show, OC Weekly, Los Angeles Times, MSNBC, Daily Pilot, Fuel Insider, and many more. It has been lighting up Facebook and the "Twittersphere. " Two of the stories are attached to this report. Grants update As a result of tight federal and state budgets as well as this being the season for considering and adopting new budgets, there has been very little grant activity during the past quarter. ENS Resources sent over some grant opportunity notices through the Department of Housing and Urban Development — a Healthy Communities Grant with the US EPA. Page 1 of 3 After reviewing this opportunity, which focused on water supply savings, we determined that OCSD did not have applicable projects. Staff also reviewed grant opportunities for emergency preparedness through FEMA and California's Emergency Management Agency. These grants were for emergency planning activities but OCSD cannot apply to these grants because we have an approved emergency response plan. The grants are specifically to develop an emergency response plan. Outreach records We set an agency record this year for tours reaching an all-time high number of 2194 tour guests visiting OCSD in fiscal year 2010-11. We also reached 1300 guests through the speakers' bureau and participated in ten community events. As our communication through the web and social media grows, we expect our tour and speaker numbers to grow next year. One item of note, as a result of Facebook, more guests are coming on our monthly open tours. We are currently scheduling presentations with community groups, such as Chambers of Commerce and Rotary Clubs and have six scheduled over the next few months. If you would like a member of the Public Affairs team to speak with a community group, please contact us. Federal Legislative Update Legislative Advocate: Eric Sapirstein, ENS Resources Capitol political highlights Following the debt ceiling debate, Congress adjourned for their month long recess in August. They will return in September to focus on the debt reduction and the major focus will be on the new "Super Committee." The six members from each house and each party will be meeting to come up with a plan, by Thanksgiving, to reduce spending and the debt and possibly tax reform measures. The Super Committee is structured so that once adopted by them, the House and Senate can only hold an up or down vote. There will be no changes or amendments taken and limited debate. This structure is designed to avoid parliamentary maneuvers. HR 2765 We are very pleased to report that HR 2765 is now in print. The "Sunshine on Conflicts Act" deals with the ten percent income rule and appointments to state and regional water boards. Our Steering Committee members may know this bill as the "Doug Davert law!" The bill is being carried by Congressman Gary Miller and seeks to repeal the current income rule and replace it with a straight conflict of interest provision. As written, the bill gives US EPA 120 days to write new regulations or the law is automatically repealed. Page 2 of 3 We continue to work with EPA on a regulatory fix, which they can do without the bill. In any event, we are very pleased that this bill is moving forward and we are gathering support from Republicans and Democrats. State Legislative Report Legislative Advocates: Christopher Townsend, Heather Dion and Casey Elliott, Townsend Public Affairs State political highlights The State Legislature returned to work after their July recess on August 15. For the first time in years, they adjourned on time after approving the State Budget. They will be in session until September 9 and they have until September 26 to pass bills out of the Appropriations Committees. As we near the end of the session, the fate of several bills OCSD has been tracking has already been decided. Several bills are either dead or two-year bills, meaning they will return next session. The attached matrix has the latest status of OCSD's priority bills. SB 482 (Kehoe) Last month, we reported to you on SB 482, a high-priority bill for OCSD dealing with beach monitoring. Staff has been working diligently on this bill with CASA and others. As a result of our lobbying efforts and strong opposition to the bill, we are pleased to report that working with the author's office, we have secured amendments that greatly improve the legislation. The amendments to the bill will cap the amount collected by the State Water Board until 2016 and spread the costs among all NPDES dischargers. These changes will minimize costs to OCSD. As a result of these changes, the author specifically requested that OCSD change its position from oppose to neutral. Attached is OCSD's revised letter to Senator Kehoe with our new position on SB 482. PRIOR COMMITTEE/BOARD ACTIONS N/A ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Attachments: Orange County Register article on Hydrogen Energy Station Los Angeles Times Article on Hydrogen Energy Station SB 482 (Kehoe) letter OCSD Bill Matrix CEQA N/A BUDGET / DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY COMPLIANCE N/A Page 3 of 3 Print Article: O.C. human waste now powers hydrogen cars Page 1 of 2 THE (}RANCIRE CQUN'TY P%EGISTER O.C. human waste now powers hydrogen cars By PAT BRENNAN 2011-08-09 16:11:34 An experimental fuel cell is turning the Orange County Sanitation �— - District into a filling station for hydrogen cars. The fuel cell, which produces both hydrogen and electricity from waste gas at the Fountain Valley sewage treatment plant, began a three-year demonstration run June 1; a "grand opening"will be held \ Aug. 16. If it proves useful, the project could be expanded in coming years. In any case, the Sanitation District should soon become a major stop on California's "hydrogen highway," which, despite a lull in public attention, is gradually taking shape. "This is totally unique," said Jeffrey P. Brown, a senior engineer at the Sanitation District. "Nobody else is doing electricity and vehicle fuel at the same time." Even as more hydrogen cars are being leased by auto dealers in Orange County or deployed by UC Irvine --about 100 so far--the main problem continues to be a lack of refueling stations. "It becomes a chicken and egg deal," Brown said. "You have to have infrastructure to support the cars." But the picture is starting to change, and to change quickly, said Scott Samuelsen, an engineering professor at UCI's Henry Samueli School of Engineering and director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center. Two new stations will soon be opened in Irvine and Lake Forest, among 12 to 14 expected to open in Southern California as part of a state alternative vehicle program. UC Irvine has an existing hydrogen station at Jamboree Road and Campus Drive in Irvine, often with motorists waiting in line to fill up at its single pump. And several automakers who now lease hydrogen cars to consumers have announced plans to sell them outright within a few years. "California continues to be one of the three leading areas in the world for hydrogen vehicles, the other two being Germany and Japan," said Samuelsen, whose research group has been deeply involved in the Sanitation District's fuel cell project. "Creating projects like this is looking very promising," he said. "All of a sudden, this technology is producing hydrogen 24/7. It's causing wastewater treatment plants to say, 'My goodness, this could be a win-win."' Hydrogen cars emit virtually no pollution,just water and nitrogen. Depending on how the hydrogen is derived, its manufacture can result in little or no pollution as well. http://www.ocregister.com/common/printer/view.php?db=ocregister&id=311456 8/15/2011 Print Article: O.C. human waste now powers hydrogen cars Page 2 of 2 Most is now made from natural gas, which produces some air pollution. The Sanitation District's fuel cell produces some waste carbon dioxide as it manufactures hydrogen, Samuelsen said. But it is not considered an addition to the carbon dioxide believed to drive global warming, in part because the same amount would be emitted by the sewage used for its source if it had not been processed into hydrogen. The gas comes from the Sanitation District's "digesters,"where bacteria break down sewage that flows into plant. The waste gas, mostly methane but with some impurities, must pass through a pre-treatment system before being sent to the fuel cell, said Edward Torres, director of operations and maintenance at the Sanitation District. The cleaned-up gas then flows into the fuel cell, where it combines with heat and steam to generate hydrogen. The hydrogen then produces electricity through an electrochemical reaction, producing more heat and steam, which is recycled and and combined with methane to yield more hydrogen. While other agencies have fuel cells that produce electricity, this is the first, Samuelsen and Brown said, to produce both electricity and hydrogen. The district can turn up the amount of electricity produced, and turn down the hydrogen if demand is low, and do the opposite if demand is high. "It will always be 100 percent utilized, either producing hydrogen or electricity," Torres said. "That's the key thing; there's no stranded asset." Waste heat from the system also could be recycled, for example for use in the digesters, though for the demonstration project the waste-heat feature is not being used. The three year demonstration project will cost$8 million to $9 million, Torres said, and is being funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the state Air Resources Board and the South Coast Air Quality Management District. The fuel cell is made by Fuel Cell Energy Inc., in Connecticut, with Air Products and Chemicals Inc. of Pennsylvania leading the project. It's only the latest example of human waste turned to useful purposes at the Sanitation District. The district has been using methane to run lighting and other electrical systems for years. And it cooperates with the Orange County Water District to convert wastewater into highly purified drinking water using the Groundwater Replenishment System. "People say, 'Use every part of the pig but the squeal,"' Brown said. "We try to use everything we can." ©Copyright 2011 Freedom Communications.All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy I User Agreement I Site Map http://www.ocregister.com/common/printer/view.php?db=ocregister&id=311456 8/15/2011 Fountain Valley hydrogen station fills 'er up with sewer gas August 11,2011 I 1:42 pm � 1 . • As General Motors,Toyota,Mercedes-Benz and other major automobile manufacturers prepare to bring hydrogen cars to market by 2015,the availability and sustainability of the hydrogen fuel to power them remains an issue. Later this month,what is believed to be the world's first sewage-powered hydrogen fuel station will open in Fountain Valley,offering a renewable-energy solution to one piece of the sustainability puzzle. "This is a paradigm shift,"said Scott Samuelsen,director of the UC Irvine National Fuel Research Center that engineered the system. "This is the epitome of sustainability,where we're taking an endless stream of human waste and transforming it to transportation fuel." The new station is powered with a Soo-kilowatt fuel cell capable of producing 12o kilograms of hydrogen gas, and fueling as many as 30 cars,per day,Samuelsen said. Designed as a three-year demonstration project and funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy,the station will be accessible to drivers of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles who have arranged for access through the vehicle manufacturer. rl r On the public side of the Orange County Sanitation District off the 405 Freeway at Euclid Avenue, the hydrogen gas is created from the methane generated by human excrement,garbage disposal waste and whatever else makes its way to the sewer in Orange County.The so-called digester gas from the district's wastewater treatment plant is conditioned to reduce contaminants and to create a quality of biogas that can be fed to the fuel cell.The biogas is then heated to the point of decomposition, at which point it is released as hydrogen gas that is transported to the pump for dispensing. "What's special about this is it increases the efficiency for the fuel cell,"Samuelsen said. "There's a synergy there that we're able to take advantage of to create hydrogen that's not only renewable but requires almost no expenditure of energy from the sewer gas to generate the hydrogen." `JJHl SAN, 4 i ORANGE COUNTY SANITATION DISTRICT i - 0 / iNE E11V\H`.. August 1, 2011 The Honorable Christine Kehoe California State Senate phone: State Ca itol (714)ss2-2412411p fax: Sacramento, CA 95814 (714)962-0356 www.ucsd.cum Re: SB 482 (Kehoe): Neutral mailing address: PO Box B127 Fountain Valley. CA Dear Senator Kehoe: 92728-8127 street address:1084a Ellis Avenue On behalf of the Orange County Sanitation District (OCSD), I am pleased to Fountain Valley, CA inform you that working with your staff, the County Association of 92708-7018 Environmental Health Administrators and the California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) we have changed our position from opposed to Member neutral for SB 482 Agencies Cities OCSD discharges into coastal waters and working collaboratively with the Orange County Health Department, we contribute to local monitoring Anaheim Brea efforts. Buena Park Cypress We real) appreciate the work of our staff distributing the costs of the Fountain Valley Y pp Y g Fullerton program across all NPDES permit holders and stormwater fee payers and Garden Grove Huntington Beach capping costs until 2016. These changes are positive because the Irvine monitoring program benefits millions of Californians that use coastal La Habra La Palma beaches every year. We look forward to working with the State Water Board Los Alamitos on developing a fee schedule that is fair and equitable across all NPDES Newport Beach Orange permit holders and stormwater facilities. Placentia Santa Ana Seal Beach As a result of these changes, OCSD is pleased to remove our opposition to Stanton SB 482. If there are any questions, please contact Michael Gold, Public Tustin Villa Park Affairs Manager at the Orange County Sanitation District, 714-593-7529 or Yorba Linda mgold ocsd.com. County of Orange Sincerely, Sanitary Districts /Z Costa Mesadacv ( "v Midway Citv Water Districts _ Larry R. Crandall Chairman, Board of Directors "To maintain world-class leadership in wastewater and water resource management " OCSD Legislative Bill Tracking- 2011 updated 7/2011 Bill Number Author Summary OCSD Position Notes Status AB 213 Silva Requires State Agencies to notice"interested Support Two-year bill parties"of proposed actions on rules and regulations. AB 262 Harkey Revises the boundaries of the Santa Ana Watch Two-year bill Regional Water Quality Control Board to include south Orange County. AB 457 Wagner Allows bidders of public contract work to Oppose Offering amendments for Two-year bill recover full attorney's costs for challenging reciprocity an award if their bid is determined to be invalid due to errors or omissions of the agency. AB 512 Gordon This bill would expand the definition of an Support On Senate floor,third reading eligible renewable generating facility to include facilities that have a generating capacity of no more than 5 megawatts to allow bill credits for generating renewable energy. AB 646 Atkins Changes exsiting law so that during labor Oppose In Senate Appropriations negotations,agencies are no longer allowed to declare an impasse and impose a contract. Instead,the agency must appoint a mediator to recommend a settlement. AB 741 Huffman Allows the creation of voluntary assessment Support This bill is sponsored by IRWD Enacted districts to finance the cost of converting septic to sewer,connecting to a community system and replacing damaged sewer laterals. AB 1178 Ma This bill seeks to clarify existing law to Support On Senate floor,second reading prohibit discriminatory restrictions on the disposal of solid waste based on its place of origin. AB 1354 Huber Eliminates the 5%retention requirements for Oppose Two-year bill public work contracts and prohibits any contract retention amount. OCSD Legislative Bill Tracking- 2011 updated 7/2011 Bill Number Author Summary OCSD Position Notes Status SB 482 Kehoe Shifts the responsbility of beach testing from Neutral OCSD has been working with In Assembly Appropriations th Department of Public Health to the State CASA on amendments.The Water Resources Control Board and allows amendments will clarify who pays the Board to levy fees on wastewater for the program and cap the total treatment agencies to pay for administration cost until 2016. of the program. SB 293 Padilla Changes the withholding provisions in public Oppose In Assembly Appropriations works contracts,lowering the threshold from 10%to 5% SB 771 Kehoe This bill expands the energy sources that are Support In Assembly Appropriations eligible to receive funds through the Renewable Resources Trust Fund to include digester gas and waste gas to fuel cell power generation.This bill changes the current definition of eligible renewable energy to include digester or other gasses from wastewater treatment. SB 900 Steinberg Support Consistent with our efforts at the Assembly inactive file Provides that a person would not be federal level to change the 10 disqualified from being a member of a percent income rule. RWQCB if they receive,or a significant portiontheir income from a person subject to waste discharge requirements,or an applicant for waste discharge requirements, that govern discharges not within the jurisdiction of that RWQCB. OCSD Legislative Bill Tracking- 2011 updated 7/2011 Bill Number Author Summary OCSD Position Notes Status Bell-related Bills AB 162 Smyth Requires that if an independent audit reveals irregularities,the findings are sent to the State Controller. AB 187 Lara Authorizes the Controller to establish a high- risk audit program to identify agencies the State Auditor views as being at risk of waste, fraud or abuse. AB 229 Lara Requires the Controller to receive all audits within 9 months of preparation and directs the Controller to develop a plan to review all local agency audits. AB 253 Smyth Requires the Controller to develop guidelines for local government audits based on input from a specified group of city officials AB 1287 Buchanan Requires all agencies to comply with GAO standards for audits and requires auditors to complete a GAO quality control review. AB 1344 Feuer Prohbits employment contracts from having automatic renewal clauses or automatic Watch increases in excess of cost-of-living adjustments.Also,this bill requires all meetings be noticed on an agency's website (if they have one). SB 46 Correa Requires all public officials to file statements of economic interest and these statements to be filed on the public agency's website. SB 186 Kehoe Give the State Controller discretion to audit or investigate any local agency to ensure compliance with laws,ordinances and grant agreements and allows the Controller to charge the agency for the cost of the investigation. OCSD Legislative Bill Tracking- 2011 updated 7/2011 Bill Number Author Summary MD Position Notes Status SB 449 Pavley Authorizes the Controller to conduct reviews of local agencies finances to determine if there may be problems and develop a committee of officials to assist agencies with finanical problems(upon request).