FOR: Water Subcommittee Meeting [May 29, 2024]
TO: Honorable Water Subcommittee Members
APPROVAL: Tanya Williams, Assistant City Manager
FROM: Toyasha Sebbag, Assistant to the City Manager
...Title
Request the Water Subcommittee provide feedback on using West Valley Water Rights in Combined Remedy. (ACTION)
...Body
BACKGROUND
In 2012, the City of Rialto/Rialto Utility Authority (City/RUA) and Rialto Water Services (RWS)/Veolia entered into a service contract referred to as the Concession Agreement (CA) for the design, construction, and financing of capital improvement upgrades and the operation and maintenance of RUA facilities.
The Concession Agreement provides, in part, that RWS shall operate and maintain the Rialto Water System, except for the treatment of perchlorate and other contaminants not complying with certain drinking water standards. Pursuant to the Concession Agreement, the City/RUA is responsible for equipping groundwater wells with wellhead treatment for purposes of addressing the perchlorate and other contaminants not complying with drinking water standards. It is the responsibility of the City/RUA to operate and maintain the treatment systems for various wells prior to water entering into the Rialto Water System.
In September 2010, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the Interim Action Record of Decision to the Source Area Operable Unit (SAOU) of the B.F. Goodrich Superfund Site, now referred to as the “Rockets, Fireworks, and Flares Superfund Site.” The EPA’s Remedy for the SAOU required Emhart Industries to install, operate, and maintain a groundwater pump and treatment system to intercept and control the spread of contaminated groundwater from the 160-acre parcel. The EPA Remedy is designed to capture and remove perchlorate and trichloroethylene (TCE) in the groundwater in the Rialto-Colton Groundwater Basin (Basin) emanating from a 160-acre parcel located in north Rialto.
Effective September 1, 2015, the City/RUA entered into a Four-Party Implementation Agreement (Implementation Agreement) with Emhart Industries (Emhart), the County of San Bernardino (County), and the City of Colton (Colton), to implement the interim remedial action plan as required by the Consent Decree as entered on July 2, 2013. The remedial action required by the Work Consent Decree was selected and approved and is overseen by the EPA.
The County and Emhart agreed that the EPA Remedy would be combined with an existing groundwater extraction and treatment remedy designed and constructed by the County to capture and remove perchlorate and TCE in the Basin due to the Mid Valley Landfill and required by the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board). This combined project is referred to as the Combined Remedy Project.
The Combined Remedy Project included:
1. Installing a new extraction well (EW-1), located at the northwest corner of Jerry Eves Park, and piping to the water treatment system located at the northeast corner of Miro Way and Linden Ave.,
2. Expanding the existing County groundwater treatment system at the Rialto 3 Well site to treat extracted water from EW-1, referred to as the Combined Remedy Treatment Facilities,
3. Upgrading the chlorination station at the Combined Remedy Treatment Facilities site,
4. Constructing an inter-tie between Rialto and Colton to deliver Colton’s water rights produced out of EW-1, and
5. Implementing improvements to Colton’s drinking water distribution system, specifically modifications made by Emhart to a reservoir and pump station.
One of the requirements of the project was to revise the City/RUA’s drinking water permit to include the Combined Remedy Project. On or about September 18, 2019, the City/RUA applied to the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water (DDW) for an amendment to the Permit. Part of the purpose of the amendment was to add EW-1 as a groundwater source and add the expansion of an Ion Exchange (IX) and Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) treatment units at the Combined Remedy Treatment Facilities as an approved treatment for EW-1, Rialto 3, and Miro 3 wells.
After a couple of years of discussions and providing documents and studies to the DDW, on September 15, 2022, the DDW issued a final amendment to the City/RUA’s permit. Full operation of the Combined Remedy Project began in January 2023, with the approval of the City Council/Rialto Utility Authority Board of an agreement with Veolia Water West Operating Services, Inc (Veolia) to operate and maintain the Combined Remedy Project and the Chino No. 2 Treatment System on December 13, 2022.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
On April 30, 2024, Emhart reached out to the City/RUA about an arrangement regarding the temporary use by Emhart and Rialto of certain West Valley Water District (WVWD) water rights in the Rialto-Colton Basin (RCB) to implement the remedy for Operable Unit 1 (OU1) of the Rockets, Fireworks, and Flares Superfund Site (RFF Site).
On May 15, 2024, staff met with the County, Emhart, and West Valley Water District to discuss the remedy for OU1. WVWD advised that it has 1,000 acre-feet (AF) of RCB water rights for the October 2023 through September 2024 water year.
The group collectively agreed pending notification to its governing bodies that:
1. Rialto, in consultation with Emhart, would arrange to pump up to the amount available from WVWD, from EW-1, using WVWD RCB water rights, and will inform Emhart and WVWD on a monthly basis of the amount pumped using such rights.
2. Rialto would keep the water pumped at EW-1 using WVWD water rights in Rialto’s municipal water supply system for distribution to its customers and, in exchange, WVWD would retain in its municipal water supply system, an equivalent amount of water produced at the Roemer treatment plant that it would have otherwise delivered to Rialto via the Cedar intertie.
3. Rialto would be responsible for the lifting (electrical) costs of pumping the WVWD rights at EW-1, and WVWD would bear no cost associated with the production of such water. Rialto would not pay WVWD for water that would otherwise be delivered via the Cedar intertie but that is not delivered under this arrangement.
This item is administrative and operational in nature; therefore, it does not require Council or Board approval.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
This request is not a “Project” as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Pursuant to Section 15378(a), a “Project” means the whole of an action, which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. According to Section 15378(b), a Project does not include: (5) Organizational or administrative activities of governments that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
Approval of the proposed action also complies with the following City of Rialto Guiding Principles, General Plan Goals and Policies:
Our City government will lead by example, and will operate in an open, transparent, and responsive manner that meets the needs of the citizens and is a good place to do business.
Goal 3-8: Promote affordable and quality water service capable of adequately meeting normal and emergency water demands to all areas in Rialto.
Policy 3-8.4: Advocate regular evaluation of the entire water supply and distribution system to ensure its continued adequacy, reliability, and safety.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed the staff report.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
There is a net zero change in the operating budget because the costs associated with pumping water are offset by the reduction in other costs, resulting in no overall budgetary impact.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
There will not be any impact on the Capital Improvement Budget from the proposed action.
Licensing
Payment of a Business License tax is not required for the proposed action.
RECOMMENDATION
Request the Water Subcommittee provide feedback on using West Valley Water Rights in Combined Remedy. (ACTION)