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Item H2BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Meeting Date: Dec.19. 2007 Division: BOCC Bulk Item: Yes No x Department: DISTRICT 3 Staff Contact Person: Tammy Malby AGENDA ITEM WORDING: A RESOLUTION OF THE MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS REQUESTING THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION PROVIDE PROJECT OVERSIGHT TO ASSIST IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT MANAGEMENT FOR THE FLORIDA KEYS ITEM BACKGROUND: PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION: CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES: STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: TOTAL COST: N/A_ BUDGETED: Yes No COST TO COUNTY: N/A SOURCE OF FUNDS: REVENUE PRODUCING: Yes — No _ AMOUNT PER MONTH Year APPROVED BY: County Mayor, `Sonny" McCoy 7 DOCUMENTATION: DISPOSITION: Revised 8/06 Included x Not Required AGENDA ITEM # RESOLUTION NO. A RESOLUTION OF THE MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS REQUESTING THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION PROVIDE PROJECT OVERSIGHT TO ASSIST IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT MANAGEMENT FOR THE FLORIDA KEYS; PROVIDING FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO EVALUATE WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES, EFFICIENCIES AND ECONOMIES OF SCALE. WHEREAS, Monroe County (County) is authorized by Florida Statute Sec 125.01(1) to provide, assist in providing, and fund centralized wastewater treatment systems; and WHEREAS, Section 6, Chapter 99-395, Laws of Florida, and the County's Comprehensive Plan requires that certain wastewater treatment levels be achieved by the year 2010, which levels can best be achieved by central wastewater treatment; and WHEREAS, The Sanitary Wastewater Master Plan (the "Master Plan") for the Florida Keys was adopted by the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners on May 18, 2000; and WHEREAS, it is understood that sustaining accessible and adequate water supplies are essential to the people and economies throughout the County; and WHEREAS, the governments of the United States, the State of Florida, and Monroe County have recognized the need to initiate and fund projects for the design, construction, and operation of wastewater treatment systems within Monroe County; and WHEREAS, the funding sources and grants from local, state and federal sources to advance the provision of wastewater treatment facilities are limited in amount and availability; and WHEREAS, the State of Florida, through the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) should provide project oversight in excess of their normal capacity to ensure that the money is spent in away that maximizes environmental benefits and minimizes costs. WHEREAS, the State has designated a number of entities in the Florida Keys to be the responsible parties for the sewering of the Florida Keys; and WHEREAS, this fragmentation of responsibility and authority has produced a proliferation of small, less than efficient systems; and WHEREAS, the disparity in costs of excessive small plants in lieu of more centralized plants in the range of one-half to those approaching one thousand GPD is well documented; and WHEREAS, the long term operation costs of these small plants will be borne by generations of the citizens of the Florida Keys; and WHEREAS, it is in everyone's benefit to have one comprehensively engineered program for the severing of this unique archipelago; and WHEREAS, there are finite water resources available and reuse is a logical source; and WHEREAS, a well engineered, comprehensive wastewater treatment system for the Florida Keys will save this county initially and for generations to come; now therefore BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF MONROE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS that: Section 1: The County hereby expresses its support to provide wastewater treatment for the Florida Keys that is both cost effective and environmentally correct based upon the professional evaluation and design. Section 2: The County requests that the State commit the resources of the DEP to serve as the entity to manage the funding, the design and the implementation to advance the provision of wastewater treatment facilities for the Florida Keys. Section 3: In assessing potential sites and wastewater treatment management alternatives, the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners will rely on the professional advice from experts considering the initial and long-term costs, environmental impacts, and system reliability associated with the implementation of such alternatives and all such activity should be considered within the purview of DEP when bond proceeds are utilized. PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County, Florida at a regular meeting of said Board held on the 19th day of December, 2007. Mayor Charles McCoy Mayor Pro Mario DiGennaro Commissioner Sylvia J. Murphy Commissioner George Neugent Commissioner Dixie Spehar ATTEST DANNY L. KOLHAGE, CLERK By: Deputy Clerk BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA By: Mayor Charles McCoy MONROE COUNTY ATTORN Y AR VEp AS TO F 67'S ZANNE A. NU ON COU ©ate 2 T Y Marco Rubio Speaker a The Florida House of Representatives Environment & Natural Resources Council January 15, 2008 The Honorable Charles McCoy, Mayor Monroe County Board of County Commissioners 530 Whitehead Street Key West, Florida 33040 Dear Mayor McCoy: Stan Mayfield Chair I am writing to follow-up on my December 4, 2007, letter to Mayor Di Gennaro in which I acknowledged receipt of the Keys Wastewater Plan. As I indicated in that letter, my council staff completed an initial review of the plan and subsequently discussed the plan with staff from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). In brief, the submitted plan has two fundamental deficiencies that must be addressed. As explained below, the plan must be revised to provide the requested priority of sequencing projects and to provide proposed sources of funds needed to complete the necessary projects. Staff reviewed the plan to determine if it addressed all the items requested in my July 25, 2007, letter to Mayor Di Gennaro inviting the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners to serve as the coordinating local government entity for this project. My understanding is the Board of County Commissioners adopted a resolution on August 8, 2007, agreeing to serve in the capacity of a local coordinating entity for wastewater concerns in the Florida Keys. In my July 25, 2007, letter I indicated the local government entity would be expected to provide the following items: • A single comprehensive plan identifying existing and proposed projects, including a priority of sequencing projects, needed to meet the comprehensive wastewater needs in the: Keys; • The status of existing and proposed projects and whether they are expected to meet the 2010 deadline; • A listing of the projected and actual project costs associated with completed and proposed projects; 222 The Capitol, 402 South Monroe Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1300 850-488-9238 Fax: 850-414-5048 January 1.5, 2008 Page 2 • A listing of existing and proposed sources and amount of funds needed to complete the necessary projects. Based on our review, the following items are not addressed by the plan prepared and submitted by the Monroe County Engineering Division: The submitted plan does not, as requested, provide "a priority of sequencing projects." On page 2, under "Section 2 Implementation Schedule," the plan states: "Each wastewater developed and submitted its own priority schedule based on project scope, finding availability and 2010 compliance. There is currently no comprehensive plan that prioritizes the projects on a county -wide basis." The lack of a plan that prioritizes the projects on a county -wide basis was a fundamental reason for requesting the Board of County Commissioners to serve as the coordinating local government entity and requesting that it provide a comprehensive plan needed to meet the comprehensive wastewater needs in the Keys. Without a priority of sequencing projects or even the identification of criteria by which projects could be prioritized, we are in the same position of not being able to determine how to best take advantage of potential State funding. The plan presents funding sources and amounts that have been secured to date ($601 million), and the amount that remains unfunded ($336 million). The unfunded cost is about 36% of the total estimated project costs since inception and more than half of what remains to be paid. The plan does not appear to include "proposed sources" of funds -- other than those secured to date -- needed to complete the necessary projects. The plan should propose new sources and amounts of funds needed to fund the identified unfunded costs required to complete the necessary projects. I believe it is imperative that these deficiencies be corrected as soon as possible in order to allow us to proceed with this project during the 2008 Legislative Session. As I have indicated in previous communications, the next step is to develop policy options for the State to assist with funding the Keys Wastewater Plan. Although the 2008 Legislature will face severe funding constraints, I remain committed to pursuing legislation that will put in place a process for the State to participate in the funding of an expedited implementation of a comprehensive waste water plan for the Florida Keys. Anticipating receipt of the plan, my council staff has already initiated this aspect of the project, and I have directed them to expedite this effort. However, the identified deficiencies in the plan must be addressed before any legislation can be developed or considered by the Legislature. In closing, I urge you and the other members of the Board of County Commissioners to continue our partnership and to do everything within your power to remain focused on our shared goal of protecting the natural resources of the Florida Keys. Once the deficiencies in the plan have been addressed, we should discuss how best to proceed with this initiative. January 1.5, 2008 Page 3 If there are any questions, please contact me or Tom Hamby. Sincerely, ,41,6: ....... Y Stan Mayfield Chair SM/bjr cc: The Honorable Marco Rubio, Speaker The Honorable JD Alexander, Chair, Senate General Government Appropriations The Honorable Ray Sansom, Chair, House Policy & Budget Council The Honorable Ron Saunders, Representative, District 120 The Honorable Dixie Spehar, Mayor Pro Tem The Honorable George Neugent, Commissioner, District 2 The Honorable Marco Di Gennaro, Commissioner, District 4 The Honorable Sylvia Murphy, Commissioner, District 5 Secretary Michael W. Sole, Florida Department of Environmental Protection Debbie Frederick, Acting County Administrator, Monroe County Tom Hamby, Council Director, Environment & Natural Resources Council