Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services WRD-2024-1

Agency:	East Bay Municipal Utility District
State:	California
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	R - Professional, Administrative and Management Support Services
Posted:	Dec 19, 2023
Due:	Jan 29, 2024
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

EBMUD is soliciting proposals for Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services WRD-2024-1.

Please respond to this RFP no later than 4:00 p.m. on Monday, January 29, 2024. Completed proposal should be emailed to:

Email:

Sabrina Cheng, Administrative Secretary II
sabrina.cheng@ebmud.com
Subject: RFP Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services, WRD-2024-1

(Hard copies will not be accepted)

Questions

If you have questions regarding this RFP, please send an email to Joe Tam, Associate Civil Engineer, joe.tam@ebmud.com . To ensure a response, questions must be received no later than 12:00 pm on Friday, January 19, 2024.

RFP

Document	Type	Size
RFP FERC Strategic And Facilitator Consulting FINAL	PDF	1.2 MB

Attachment Preview

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

for Lower Mokelumne River

Relicensing Project Strategic

Consulting and Facilitation Services

WRD-2024-1

ADDENDA

Prospective bidders are responsible for reviewing any

published addenda regarding this bid at

ebmud.com/business-center

CONTACT

Joe Tam, Associate Civil Engineer

(510) 287-1389

joe.tam@ebmud.com

RESPONSE DUE

January 29, 2024

4:00 p.m. PST

SUBMIT ELECTRONICALLY TO*

Sabrina Cheng, EBMUD

sabrina.cheng@ebmud.com

*Hardcopy proposals will not be accepted

375 ELEVENTH STREET . OAKLAND . CA 94607-4240 . WWW.EBMUD.COM/BUSINESS-CENTER/

EAST BAY MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT

RFP for Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services

WRD-2024-1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. STATEMENT OF WORK ........................................................................................................... 3

A. SCOPE................................................................................................................................... 3

B. PROPOSER QUALIFICATIONS ............................................................................................... 3

C. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................................... 4

D. DELIVERABLES / REPORTS ................................................................................................. 25

II. CALENDAR OF EVENTS ......................................................................................................... 26

III. DISTRICT PROCEDURES, TERMS, AND CONDITIONS .............................................................. 27

A. RFP ACCEPTANCE AND AWARD......................................................................................... 27

B. EVALUATION CRITERIA/SELECTION COMMITTEE ............................................................. 28

C. PRICING.............................................................................................................................. 31

D. NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD AND PROTESTS................................................................ 31

E. INVOICING ......................................................................................................................... 32

F. LIQUIDATED DAMAGES ..................................................................................................... 33

IV. RFP RESPONSE SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION .......................................... 33

A. DISTRICT CONTACTS .......................................................................................................... 33

B. SUBMITTAL OF RFP RESPONSE.......................................................................................... 34

C. RESPONSE FORMAT........................................................................................................... 35

ATTACHMENTS

EXHIBIT A RFP RESPONSE PACKET .........................................................................................................A-1

EXHIBIT B INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS ................................................................................................B-1

EXHIBIT C CONSULTING AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT .................................................C-1

EXHIBIT D IRAN CONTRACTING ACT CERTIFICATION ........................................................................... D-1

REV 5/16/23

Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services

WRD-2024-1

I. STATEMENT OF WORK

A. SCOPE

East Bay Municipal Utility District (District) intends to award an eight-year contract to

the Proposer(s) who best meets the District’s requirements.

The District is preparing to initiate the Integrated Licensing Process (ILP) to seek renewal

of its existing 50-year FERC Project license, which expires March 31, 2031. Because the

ILP requires adherence to a defined schedule with review and comment periods and

strict filing deadlines, the District seeks the services of a consultant who is versed in the

FERC licensing process to provide strategic guidance in successfully managing the

relicensing process to prepare documents and filings as required. The District also seeks

assistance with public outreach and facilitating focus group meetings with interested

parties to gather input to incorporate into the regulatory submittals; this includes

development of materials to aid in those services.

Consequently, it is the intent of these specifications, terms, and conditions to describe

strategic consulting and facilitation services to support the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission (FERC) relicensing effort for the Lower Mokelumne River Project (Project),

License No. 2916.

East Bay Municipal Utility District (District) intends to award an eight-year contract to

the Proposer(s) who best meets the District’s requirements.

Proposers should outline as part of the proposal, their recommendations and plan to

meet the scope of the services requested.

B. PROPOSER QUALIFICATIONS

1. Proposer Minimum Qualifications

a. Proposer, Proposer’s principal, Proposer’s staff and any subconsultants

that are part of the team shall have been regularly engaged in the business

of providing strategy and facilitation support on projects involving original

or new hydropower licenses from FERC for at least eight (8) years, which is

the time typically needed to complete relicensing.

b. Proposer, Proposer’s principal, or Proposer’s staff shall have been

regularly engaged in the business of preparing and navigating through the

California State Water Resources Control Board application process for a

Clean Water Act section 401 water quality certification for at least eight (8)

years.

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Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services

WRD-2024-1

c. Proposer should demonstrate experience in tribal consultations and

collaborating with tribal entities and with California’s State Historic

Preservation Officer. Experience in the Mokelumne River Basin is

particularly desirable.

d. Proposer should demonstrate thorough experience with the regulatory

processes and federal and state laws that may impact the Project

relicensing, including, but not limited to: (1) NEPA/CEQA; (2) Endangered

Species Act; (3) Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act; and (4) Wild and Scenic

Rivers Act.

e. The Proposer must identify a facilitator with demonstrated experience

conducting meetings for a wide range of audience members from the

general public, technical focus groups, and regulators for the FERC

relicensing process.

f. Proposer shall possess all permits, licenses, and professional credentials

necessary to perform services as specified under this RFP.

g. Proposers with regional presence and regional experience in California and

with the Project are strongly preferred, although it is not mandatory.

C. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

On March 10, 1981, FERC issued a 50-year license to the District effective April 1, 1981,

for the Lower Mokelumne River Project 2916 (Project) located within San Joaquin,

Calaveras, and Amador Counties in California. The Project consists of the Pardee Dam

and Powerhouse (construction completed in 1929) and Camanche Dam and

Powerhouse (construction completed in 1964) and their associated reservoirs. In

addition to permitting hydropower generation, the license also prescribes terms for

Project operations related to dam safety, public safety, recreation, and environmental

protection.

In the early 1990s, FERC began a proceeding to determine whether modifications to the

facilities or operations of the Project were needed for the conservation of fish and

wildlife resources. The outcome was a Joint Settlement Agreement (JSA) between

EBMUD, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service that was executed in 1998. The JSA, which was subsequently included as an

amendment to license No. 2916, committed the District to implement new instream

flows and to undertake certain non-flow measures to protect the fishery resources of

the lower Mokelumne River.

The Project license will expire on March 31, 2031, and the FERC regulations require that

a licensee initiate the process for seeking a renewal of a license five to five and one-half

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Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services

WRD-2024-1

years before the existing license expires. As part of the relicense process, FERC will

reassess dam operations, giving equal consideration to power and non-power uses. The

District will also need to comply with numerous environmental and regulatory

requirements (e.g., National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), California Environmental

Quality Act (CEQA), and Clean Water Act 401 Water Quality Certification).

The relicensing process is formally initiated with FERC by filing a Notice of Intent (NOI)

and a Pre-Application Document (PAD). The NOI formally informs FERC and all

interested parties that the District is initiating the process to renew the FERC license.

The PAD is the foundation for issue identification, study plan development, and FERC’s

environmental analysis. The PAD generally includes the engineering, economic, and

environmental information relevant to the project that is reasonably available when the

NOI is filed. The District must expend significant time for document preparation and

estimates the licensing process could take at least 6 to 7 years. The District must initiate

the formal relicensing process by filing a Notice of Intent (NOI) and Pre-Application

Document (PAD) no later than March 31, 2026, and must file its License Application by

March 31, 2029.

As an extension of District staff, the consultant will assist the District with this

relicensing process to accomplish all phases of the relicensing effort extending through

the target license issuance date of April 2031. The services required will address the

following objectives: (a) assist in shaping and maintaining a strategic approach to

successfully manage the relicensing process; (b) assist in preparation of documents and

filings required by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) licensing process;

study needs, reviewing applicable resource and planning studies performed by the

District, and in meetings with license participants present findings and gather feedback

on those studies during the relicensing process and (d) prepare for, facilitate, and

document the engagement with external interested parties and other related

relicensing meetings, including any settlement negotiations.

Specific considerations associated with relicensing the Lower Mokelumne River Project

include Tribal and cultural interests, competing recreational interests, balancing flow

releases and biological ecosystem interests, optimizing management of reservoir

temperature, applying flexible reservoir operations management, managing for public

water supply while also generating hydropower and satisfying other Project purposes.

Task 1. Project Management

This task includes all aspects of information and document management by the

Consultant. Strong project management and communication will be needed to maintain

close coordination between the District and Consultant throughout the Project

relicensing process to ensure successful execution. This task also includes production of

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Lower Mokelumne River Relicensing Project Strategic Consulting and Facilitation Services WRD-2024-1

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