NAICS Code: 541690 Request for Quotations The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region VIII Office, is soliciting quotations from individuals and companies that may have the qualifications to complete several activities for the public water system supervision (PWSS) program. If you are interested, please submit the following: (1) A statement of qualifications which should be brief, but should include the resumes of the staff who would be completing the SOW tasks. When listing these qualifications, please identify staff experience in working with public water systems (PWSs) , either as a consultant or as a PWS operator. Please also list all relevant degrees that the staff may have. (2) A statement of staff availability. EPA is particularly interested in knowing how much lead time a contractor would need to respond to individual work requests. It is important that those submitting quotations be able to visit a site on very short notice, particularly when problems, such as bacterial contamination, should arise at a PWS facility. (3) The fully-loaded hourly rate(s) of the staff person(s) who would do the work. Under this contract, billing will be done as hourly rates plus expenses. All indirect costs and administrative costs must be folded into the hourly rate. Expenses are limited to those incurred by the field staff while performing their duties, or in the preparation and delivery of contract reports (such as xeroxing, photo development, and postage) (4) A list of any public water systems that the contractor currently retains as a client. Also, please note which staff currently act as PWS operators for any Wyoming public water system. (NOTE: This information will not necessarily disqualify a candidate from consideration). The full package should be no more than 20 pages in length. Please submit this information to Maureen Martin at the address listed below. U. S. EPA, Region VIII (8TMS-G) 999 18th Street, Suite 300 Denver, CO 80202-2466 The deadline for submittal is 4 pm on Monday January 10, 2003. Please note that more than one award may be made from this solicitation, based on geographic location. (As mentioned in Item # 2 above, it is imperative that the contractors be able to respond quickly in the event of an emergency at a public water system.) Awards will be made based on price and best value. To determine best value, EPA will evaluate the quotations using the following criteria: (1) Technical expertise (2) Staff experience preparing sanitary survey reports, or similar reports that evaluate the structure and operations of public water systems (3) Geographic location of field staff (4) Familiarity with the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141) (5) Ability to respond to individual work requests in a timely manner (6) The proposed hourly rate and associated expenses (7) Past performance, for those contractors who have completed tasks in this Statement of Work under previous contracts; or past performance on other similar kinds of work. If you have any questions about this proposal, please submit them in writing to Maureen Martin, Contracting Officer, at the address above, or by e-mail to
[email protected]. No phone calls will be accepted. Request for Price Quotes: Hourly Rate plus Expenses STATEMENT OF WORK Field Support for Wyoming Public Water System Regulatory Program Purpose The purpose of this contract is to procure field services for the Wyoming public water system (PWS) regulatory program. Background The National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141) require all PWSs to routinely monitor for microbiological, chemical and radionuclide contaminants, and to meet certain treatment technique requirements. The PWS regulatory program is implemented by the U. S. EPA Region VIII office in Denver, CO. As implementing agency for the Wyoming PWS regulatory program, EPA Region VIII has several responsibilities. Some of these require personnel to make site visits to Wyoming PWSs, or to have face-to-face meetings with Wyoming's state and local environmental or public health agency officials. For instance: (1) EPA is required to ensure that sanitary surveys are conducted at each PWS within specified regulatory time-frames. A sanitary survey is a thorough on-site review of PWS facilities, operation, maintenance and management that emphasizes technical assistance rather than enforcement. Sanitary surveys also require collection and interpretation of select information before the on-site visit. (2) As part of a technical assistance effort, EPA Regional staff collect water samples for microscopic particulate analysis (MPA). These MPA samples are used to determine whether a PWS using a ground water source might be "under the direct influence of surface water." (3) When a PWS is having problems with microbiological, chemical, or radionuclide contamination, the operator often asks EPA for assistance in correcting the problem. The assistance may necessitate a visit to the PWS. (4) There may be some small water systems in Wyoming that meet the definition of a public water system, but have not been notified by EPA. These systems need to be identified and their names entered into the PWS regulatory database at EPA. (5) The 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments enacted several new requirements for public water systems. Water system operators may need on-site technical assistance and training to comply with the new requirements. (6) Some state, county, and local environmental and public health agencies also have regulatory authority that applies to water systems in Wyoming. On occasion, staff from these agencies have requested training on drinking water topics. It is in the interest of EPA Region VIII to provide this training to help ensure that all agencies work together in a coordinated manner. (7) On occasion, it is necessary to confirm that a PWS has actually completed all the steps necessary to allow it to be "deactivated" (i.e., no longer meets the legal definition of a "public water system"). It is also occasionally necessary to confirm that a PWS has completed all of the actions mandated in an administrative order. In both instances, the best way to make these confirmations is to visit the facility, take photographs, and possibly collect water samples. (8) As appropriate, EPA Region 8 also investigate problems at private residences, or at facilities too small to meet the legal definition of a public water system. Regional staffs provide technical assistance to help these small water systems correct any water quality problems. Because EPA Region VIII is located in Denver, it is difficult to send Agency personnel to Wyoming every time one of these actions are needed. For this reason, the Region is soliciting proposals from contractors. The majority of the work will be located in the Eastern part of Wyoming. Responsibilities The contractor will receive written (FAXed or e-mailed) assignments from the contract's Work Assignment Manager for the some or all of the following seven tasks: (1) Site visits to public water systems to conduct sanitary surveys. At the beginning of the contract year, the Work Assignment Manager will send the contractor a list of Wyoming PWSs that must have sanitary surveys completed. After receiving the list, the contractor will conduct the sanitary surveys at the assigned facilities and prepare a written report for each one. The scheduling of these survey visits is left to the discretion of the contractor. However, EPA reserves the right to designate certain surveys as "high priority". "High priority" surveys must be completed as soon as possible. All of the sanitary survey visits must be completed by January 31, 2004. The contractor will prepare a written report for each sanitary survey. The reports must have the following features: ? They must use a standardized format specified by EPA Region VIII, and they must be provided in a WordPerfect format. ? They must include at least one color photo of each source, treatment and storage facility at the public water system. ? They must include an updated schematic of the PWS, which shows any changes made in system configurations. EPA Region VIII will provide the contractor with a paper copy of each schematic before the contractor makes the site visit. It is then the responsibility of the contractor to mark-up the schematic as appropriate, and get the PWS operator's signature on the page (to confirm that he/she agrees with the changes). ? The text at the end of the report (the "summary" section) must include a brief summary of any deficiencies found at the facility, and some recommendations on how to correct them. ? For each sanitary survey completed at public water systems that use ground water, the contractor must fill out a "ground water under the direct influence of surface water" screening form. The screening form will be provided by EPA. ? For each sanitary survey, the contractor must mark-up a PWS inventory summary form that will be provided by EPA. ? Latitude/longitude measurements will be collected only if there has never been a measurement previously determined for a system's source(s), treatment facility(ies), and/or storage tank(s). Measurements will only be recorded on the PWS inventory summary sheet. The contractor must demonstrate to the Work Assignment Manager that they can collect latitude/longitude measurements to within 25 meters of accuracy. Each sanitary survey report must be e-mailed to the contract's Work Assignment Manager within 30 days after the site visit. The accompanying photos can either be e-mailed (e.g., those from a digital camera) as a separate file attachment, or mailed. The hand-corrected PWS schematics, inventory summary sheets, and any other pertinent information collected during the survey, e.g. treatment equipment manufacturer's spec sheets, must be mailed back to the Work Assignment Manager. If, during a sanitary survey visit, the contractor discovers conditions at a public water system that could pose an immediate risk to public health, he/she will immediately contact the Work Assignment Manager by telephone to provide a report of the situation. The contractor will also give highest priority to the completion of the sanitary survey report and relaying it to the Work Assignment Manager by e-mail. There may be occasion when a representative of the EPA, state, county, or local agencies will accompany the contractor during a sanitary survey. In these instances, the contractor will still be responsible for the completion of the sanitary survey report. (2) Site visits to public water systems to collect drinking water samples for microscopic particulate analysis. After receiving a written work request from the Work Assignment Manager, the contractor will collect the MPA samples using the protocols specified in the "EPA Consensus Method." Each sample takes approximately 8 - 10 hours to collect. Once the sample is collected, the contractor will package it and either hand-deliver or mail it to a certified laboratory (one that has been approved by EPA to conduct the analysis). For each site visit, the contractor will prepare a brief (i.e., no more than one page) report using a form approved by EPA.. The reports will be sent to EPA within 30 days after the site visits. (NOTE: The public water system pays the lab costs for the MPA analysis. It is understood that the lab may send the results to EPA later than the 30-day deadline.) (3) Technical assistance visits to public water systems that are having problems. After receiving a written work request from the Work Assignment Manager, the contractor will visit a facility to provide technical assistance. Examples of possible problems include microbiological contamination in the system; failure to maintain adequate disinfectant residual; and failure to meet the Surface Water Treatment Rule turbidity criteria. The contractor will assess the problem and offer suggestions on how to make corrections. For each site visit, the contractor will prepare a brief report (i.e., no more than 2 pages) for EPA. These reports will include findings and suggestions on how to correct problems at the facility. The reports will be sent to EPA within 30 days after the site visit. On occasion, the contractor may receive a written request to visit a water system that does not meet the legal definition of a public water system. In these instances, the contractor will visit the facility, offer advice on how to correct the problem, and prepare a brief report for the Work Assignment Manager. (4) Identification of potential PWSs that are not currently on EPA's inventory of regulated systems. This task can be accomplished while traveling to assigned sites. Here, the contractor is requested to watch for any new facility developments that might meet the definition of a public water system, and to report these systems to EPA. (EPA will provide the contractor with a current list of existing PWSs.) (5) Training and technical assistance on the 1996 SDWA Amendments. After receiving a written work request from the Work Assignment Manager, the contractor will provide training or technical assistance to PWSs that are striving to meet the new drinking water regulatory requirements. After each training or technical assistance visit, the contractor will send the Work Assignment Manager written confirmation (preferably an e-mail) that the assignment was completed and a description of the training provided. (6) Training for state and local agency personnel. At the written request of the Work Assignment Manager, the contractor will conduct one or more training sessions for state and local agency personnel on selected drinking water topics. Examples: How to collect a total coliform sample; chemical monitoring requirements for PWSs. (7) Site visits to confirm completion of specified actions. At the written request of the Work Assignment Manager, the contractor will visit PWS facilities, take photos and collect other pertinent information to confirm that a PWS has completed the actions either: (1) mandated in a administrative order; or (2) necessary to allow that PWS to be deactivated. The contractor will send EPA a summary report within 30 days after the visit. End of Contract Reporting At the end of the contract period, the contractor will prepare a brief (i.e., only a few pages, at the most) report summarizing how many tasks were completed under each of the areas of responsibility listed above. Additional reporting requirements are specified under specific areas of responsibility. Additional Requirements (1) For all site visits, the contractor will inform the PWS operator that they are contract employees (not EPA employees) who have been hired by EPA to provide various forms of technical assistance. At all times, the contractor will be courteous to the PWS operators and will suggest, but not insist, that the PWS operators follow advice given during the visit. (2) If the contractor observes that a PWS is not complying with any of the drinking water regulations or, if conditions at the facility pose an immediate public health risk, the contractor will immediately inform the Work Assignment Manager. (3) Some written work requests will require an expedited response, particularly in the case of drinking water emergencies. (4) All work performed by the contractor will be done in accordance with pertinent Occupational Safety and Health Administration requirements. (5) EPA may require the contractor to travel to Denver near the beginning of the contract year to meet staff and review files of facilities where sanitary survey visits will be conducted. Duration of contract The contract will be in place from the award date until January 31, 2004. Billing The contractor will submit monthly invoices to EPA which list the number of hours and expenses. All hourly charges must be for field work, or for any activities associated with field work (such as travel, per diem, lab analyses of drinking water samples, report preparation, xeroxing, photo development, and postage). Unless prior written approval is obtained by the Work Assignment Manager, this contract will not fund any administrative or indirect charges, including QA review of the reports by anyone other than the field personnel. All indirect charges must be considered in the proposed hourly rate. All expenses will be itemized and must be in accordance with EPA cost reimbursement policies. All travel and per diem charges must be made at the same rates as those allowed EPA personnel.