Agenda 06/08/2010 Item #10C
Agenda Item No. 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 1 of 8
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recommendation to authorize a budget amendment to reallocate funds in the amount of
$2,000,000 from Reserves to the South Reverse Osmosis Raw Water Wellfield Pipeline
Repair Project, project number 70030.
OBJECTIVE: The public purpose is to provide a reliable raw water supply for the reverse
osmosis water treatment system at the South County Regional Water Treatment Plant
(SCRWTP) that serves customers throughout the water service area. This action is to obtain
approval to reallocate funds from Reserves to the South Reverse Osmosis (SRO) Raw Water
Wellfield Pipeline Repair Project, project number 70030. The funds will be used to confirm the
integrity of the raw water transmission system, complete repairs and replacement of the failed
pipeline and ancillary components, re-commission the raw water system, and seek legal
remedies.
CONSIDERATIONS: On March 9, 2010, Agenda item 16(C)4, the Board of County
Commissioners (Board), approved a budget amendment in the amount of $900,000 to repair the
failed raw water pipeline in the SRO Well field. Haskins, Inc., the on-call underground utilities
contractor, was authorized to provide initial, emergency repairs to the pipeline. However, during
the replacement of the failed pipeline other issues became evident:
(1) The engineer of record recommended installation of additional air release valves
(ARV's) throughout the raw water system requiring additional evaluation, design and
construction.
(2) The transmission system could not be pressure tested for re-commissioning due to
malfunctioning gate valves.
(3) The forensic engineering analysis to determine the cause of the failure and the
collateral pipeline damage was still in progress.
(4) The cost to complete the repair, and mitigate the risk and impact of future failures,
would exceed the current budget approved by the Board. Completion of the repairs and
re-commissioning of the system was suspended pending completion of the forensic
engineering evaluation and budget amendment approval.
Critical elements of the repair and re-cOlmnissioning of the raw water transmission main project
are as follows (see Attachment A):
· Phase I: initial repair of failed pipe.
· Phase II: forensic evaluation ofthe pipeline failure.
· Phase III: risk identification and mitigation of the impact of potential future failures.
· Phase IV: complete repairs, implementation of risk and impact mitigation measures, and
re-commissioning !he system. ..
· Phase V: return to long-term, sustainable operation.
Malcolm Pirnie Inc., the firm contracted to oversee the comprehensive forensic evaluation of the
pipe failure, presented its report on April 15, 2010 (the report summary is Attachment B).
Phases I and II of the pipe repair are now complete. A consulting engineering firm will be
Agenda Item No, 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 2 of 8
contracted to perform an evaluation of the AR V's, surge analysis, and design necessary to
complete the repairs, re-commission the raw water system, and minimize the potential for any
future recurrence of this type of catastrophic failure. Staff issued a work order to Malcolm Pirnie
to provide technical support services to oversee the work during design, repair, replacement and
re-commissioning of the pipeline. A contractor will be retained through the underground utilities
contract to complete the construction and re-commissioning of the pipeline.
Staff has estimated $200,000.00 within this budget amendment for potential legal costs should
that course of action be required.
FISCAL IMPACT: A Budget Amendment is required to transfer funds from Capital Reserves
to Project 70030, SRO Well field Pipeline Repair. The source of funding is Water User Fees
(412).
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: Public Utilities Division staff and the County Attorney's
Office are currently engaged in conversations with Reynolds, Inc., Hazen and Sawyer P .C., and
Camp Dresser & McKee, Inc., as to their respective liability pertaining to the pipe failure and the
resulting collateral damage. If those parties do not offer a reasonable contribution to repair the
damaged pipeline, prevent similar pipeline failures in the future, and otherwise make the county
whole, the County Attorney's Office will present the Board with an Executive Summary
requesting authorization to commence suit against those parties. This item has been reviewed by
the County Attorney's Office and is approved as to legal fonn and sufficiency-SRT.
GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMPACT: This project meets current Growth Management
Plan standards to ensure the adequacy and availability of viable public facilities.
RECOMMENDATIONS: That the Board of County Commissioners, as Ex-officio Governing
Board of the Collier County Water-Sewer District, approve a budget amendment to reallocate
funds in the amount of $2,000,000 from Reserves, to the South Reverse Osmosis Raw Water
Wellfield Pipeline Repair Project, project number 70030.
Prepared by: Alicia Abbott, Senior Project Manager, Public Utilities Planning and Project
Management.
Agenda Item No. 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 3 of 8
COLLIER COUNTY
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Item Number:
Item Summary:
iDe
Recommendation to authorize a budget amendment to reallocate funds in the amount of
$2,000,000 from Reserves to the South Reverse Osmosis Raw Water Wellfield Pipeline
Repair Project, project number 70030. (Jim DeLany, Public Utilities Administrator)
6/8/2010 9:00:00 AM
Meeting Date:
Approved By
Scott R. Teach Deputy County Attorney Date
County Attorney County Attorney 5f27f2010 4:04 PM
Approved By
Phil E. Gramatges, P.E. Project Manager, Principal Date
Public Utilities Division Public Utilities Engineering 5f27f2010 4:05 PM
Approved By
Kelsey Ward Manager - Contracts Administration Date
Administrative Services
Division Purchasing & General Services 5f27f2010 5:14 PM
Approved By
Paul Mattausch Director - Water Date
Public Utilities Division Water Sf28f2010 9:26 AM
Approved By
Jeff Klatzkow County Attorney Date
Sf28f2010 11 :45 AM
Approved By
Pamela Libby Manager - Operations-Water~ Date
Public Utilities Division Water Sf28f2010 12:01 PM
Approved By
Steve Carnell Director - Purchasing/General Services Date
Administrative Services
Division Purchasing & Generai Services Sf28f2010 1:17 PM
Approved By
Thomas Wi des Director - Operations Support - PUD Date
Public Utilities Division Utilities Finance Operations S/28f2010 3:16 PM
Approved By
James W. Delony Public Utilities Division Administrator Date
Public Utilities Division Public Utilities Division Sf28f2010 4:02 PM
Agenda Item No. 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 4 of 8
Approved By
OMB Coordinator
Date
County Manager's Office
Office of Management & Budget
5/28f2010 4:20 PM
Approved By
Susan Usher
Management/Budget Analyst, Senior
Date
Office of Management &
Budget
Office of Management & Budget
6f1/2010 2:46 PM
Approved By
Leo E. Ochs, Jr.
County Manager
Date
County Managers Office
County Managers Office
6f2f2010 8:17 AM
DOCO
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Agenda Item No. 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 6 of 8
. Executive Summary
Malcolm Pimie was authorized on March 2,2010 to investigate a 30-inch pipe failure in
the South Reverse Osmosis (RO) Wellfield. Malcolm Pimie assembled a forensic team
of experienced professionals to review information related to the design, construction,
materials and operation of the wellfield transmission main to determine the probable
cause of the pipe failure and recommend actions that might reduce the risk or impact of
future failures. After reviewing these parameters, the forensic team collaborated on this
report, which documents the opinions and recommendations related to the probable
causes of the failure and provides recommendations to help identify and mitigate the risk
of future failure. Additional testing and study required to confirm or validate the'
opinions and recommendations contained in this report is identified herein.
On February 19, 2010, approximately 750 feet of 30-inch fusible PVC raw water
transmission main in the South RO Wellfield failed, automatically shutting down the
reverse osmosis process train at the South County Regional Water Treatment Plant
(SCRWTP). The failure occurred in at least two sequential stages over a period of no
more than a few seconds.
The initial failure was caused by improper bedding of the pipe in the trench during
construction. Contrary to the contract documents, the pipe was laid either directly on cap
rock or on a broken piece of rock supported by cap rock, The rock gradually gouged the
pipe wall creating a weak point in the pipeline. After less than one-year of service, the
pipeline ruptured at the weak point created by the rock. Escaping water from the initial
rupture caused the pipe near the weakened point to fracture violently, breaking the pipe
into multiple pieces at the point of initial failure.
Under normal circumstances, the initial failure would have instantly released most of the
pipeline pressure and the damage would have been contained within the immediate area
of the failure. However, air entrapped in the pipeline was responsible for the second
stage or collateral failure of 750-feet of pipe extending in both directions from the initial
point of failure.
Air Release Valves (ARVs) are designed to remove air from pipelines to reduce pumping
cost and"prevent the secondary or collateral damage described above. The engineer of
record designed the wellfield transmission main with ARVs generally located at the
design "high points" to evacuate air from the pipeline. However, the ARVs proposed by
the contractor and approved by the engineer are not recommended for unstrained raw
water. Additionally, the installation of the approved ARV did not follow the
...
. .
Collier County Public Utilities Planning and Project Management
Department
South Reverse Osmosis Wellfield Transmission Main Failure
~8
Agenda Item NO.1 OC
June 8, 2010
Page 7 of 8
Executive Summary
manufacturer's recommendation design. It is probable that the ARVin the immediate
area of the pipe failure, and others within the wellfield, were non-functional allowing air
to be entrapped in the pipeline. Also, additional high points were created in the pipeline
during construction allowing air to reside permanently in the pipeline without means to
remove it.
The forensic team looked closely at the pipe material used for the transmission main.
The manufacturer's quality control testing was obtained and evaluated. A separate
failure occurred in Collier County during pressure testing of the 1-75 crossing of this
same transmission main. The team evaluated a third-party, independent report of that
incident, including the pipe material testing, to determine if the pipe met the technical
specification, Multiple field examinations of the failed pipe and the site conditions
resulted in the opinion that the fusible 30-inch PVC pipe used in the raw water
transmission main meets the standards referenced in the contract documents and is
suitable for the raw water transmission main as long as the pipe is installed in accordance
with the contract documents and the industry standards.
The Malcolm Pimie team evaluated the County operation of the well field and
transmission main to determine if there was any action that may have been contributory
to the failure event. After reviewing the operating data before and during the event, the
forensic team concluded that aU actions initiated automatically or by County staff were
well within normal operating procedures and within the normal ranges of flow and
pressure for the system. Operation of the SCRWTP or South RO Wellfield did not cause
or contribute to the pipe failure.
A summary of the Findings and Recommendations are as follows:
Findings:
1. The pipe failure occurred in two stages: an initial failure caused by construction
deficiency and collateral damage caused by entrapped air in the pipeline.
2. The CEl services provided during construction did not eliminate all non-conforming
construction sjte conditions.
3. The 30-inch PVC pipe met the specifications and was suitable for the wellfield
application.
4. The extent of the longitudinal failure of the fusible PVC is attributed in part to the
physical characteristics of PVC pipe material, the fused joint connection of the pipe
segments and entrapped air in the pipeline.'
5. The installed ARVs were not suitable for the application and were not installed
according to manufacturer's recommendations.
6. The SCRWTP operations did not contribute to the transmission main failure.
..
Collier County Public Utilities Planning and Project Management
Department
South Reverse Osmosis Wellfield Transmission Main Failure
~D
Agenda Item No, 10C
June 8, 2010
Page 8 of 8
Executive Summary
Recommendations:
1. The ARV size, type and location should be re-evaluated based on As-Built
conditions. Wellhead ARVs should also be re-evaluated.
2. The Surge Analysis should be updated to incorporate As-Built materials and
conditions.
3. Additional testing and microscopic examination of the failed pipe should be provided
to confIrm the opinions and conclusions contained herein.
4. The pipeline should be carefully excavated in select locations tp examine pipe
bedding to help evaluate the risk of similar failures in the future.
...
. r
Collier County Public Utilities Planning and Project Management
Department
South Reverse Osmosis Wellfield Transmission Main Failure
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