COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Department of Public Works

 

DATE:

June 18, 2010

BOARD MEETING DATE:

June 29, 2010

SPECIAL NOTICE/HEARING:

None

VOTE REQUIRED:

Majority

 

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

FROM:

James C. Porter, Director of Public Works

SUBJECT:

Pescadero Landfill Closure Project (Project No. W0803 – F-246 [4])

 

RECOMMENDATION:

Adopt a resolution:

 

1.

Adopting plans and specifications, including conformance with prevailing wage scale requirements for the Pescadero Landfill Closure Project; and

   

2.

Authorizing the publication of a Notice to Contractors twice in a weekly local newspaper of general circulation published in the County; and

   

3.

Authorizing the Director of Public Works to call for sealed proposals to be received by Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 2:30 p.m., in the office of the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.

   

BACKGROUND:

The project site, Pescadero Landfill (Landfill), is the newer of the two inactive County owned disposal facilities in the Pescadero area. The Pescadero Transfer Station was constructed adjacent to the site to continue providing waste collection service for the area with disposal at the Ox Mountain Landfill when the landfill operation closed in 1986.

 

Your Board adopted Resolution No. 036749 on November 11, 1976 authorizing the execution of an agreement with the owner/operator of the Ox Mountain Landfill. The agreement required that a surcharge be placed on each ton of material disposed of in the landfill and remitted to the County to defray costs associated with the County-owned landfills (Pescadero and Half Moon Bay). The revenue collected pursuant to the agreement and subsequent agreements has been deposited in the Solid Waste Fund. The most recent agreement expired on December 31, 2009, resulting in no new revenue to the Solid Waste Fund for the purposes of managing the County landfill sites.

 

Although the Landfill has not accepted waste for many years, it is not considered “closed” by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board), the agency that is primarily responsible for regulating the Landfill. The Regional Board issued Waste Discharge Requirements Order No. R2-2006-0083 (Order) on December 13, 2006, which contains specific requirements, including: preparation and approval of a technical report for final cover closure design, installation of the final landfill cover, and a postclosure maintenance plan consistent with the California Code of Regulations Title 27. The final closure work must be completed by January 31, 2011.

 

In compliance with the Order, the “Landfill Closure Technical Report, Pescadero Solid Waste Disposal Site, San Mateo County, California” (Technical Report) was prepared, submitted, and approved by the Regional Board, Cal Recycle (formerly the California Integrated Waste Management Board), and the San Mateo County Environmental Health Services Division acting as the Local Enforcement Agency for the State.

 

On June 24, 2009 the San Mateo County Planning Commission (Commission) found that the Negative Declaration prepared for the project was complete, correct and adequate and prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act and applicable State and County guidelines. The Commission also approved a Coastal Development Permit for the implementation of the final Landfill closure plan as included in the Technical Report and as approved by the State agencies.

 

DISCUSSION:

The Pescadero Landfill Closure Project consists of installing a final landfill cover as described in the approved Technical Report. The plans and specifications for the work have now been prepared and staff is recommending that your Board authorize calling for bids for the proposed work, which will enable the County to meet the required deadline in the Order.

 

The Order also requires preparation of a postclosure maintenance plan. The purpose of the postclosure maintenance plan is to ensure that the final cover, once constructed, retains its integrity and effectiveness during a 30-year maintenance period through adequate and required maintenance and monitoring activities. The estimated cost of implementing the postclosure maintenance plan is $1,080,000 (average of $36,000 per year for 30 years). Funding for fiscal years 2010-11 and 2011-12 have been allocated from the remaining balance in the Solid Waste Fund. However, it is anticipated that the Solid Waste Fund will be depleted by the end of fiscal year 2011-12 and the General Fund may be impacted if no other source of revenue is identified to fund the postclosure maintenance. The Department of Public Works is looking for long-term funding solutions and will present identified options to the Environmental Quality Committee (EQC) during the upcoming fiscal year. Based on the feedback and recommendations of the EQC, we will present a recommendation for funding to your Board for consideration.

 

County Counsel has reviewed and approved the Resolution as to form.

 

Approval of the resolution contributes to the Shared Vision 2025 outcome of an Environmentally Conscious Community by preventing future environmental impacts to or from the Landfill and improving the quality of the existing grassland habitat.

 

FISCAL IMPACT:

The estimated cost of construction of the final cover is $1,500,000 and has been budgeted from the Solid Waste Fund.