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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem Q06 Q6 BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COUNTY of MONROE Mayor James K.Scholl,District 3 The Florida Keys Mayor Pro Tern Michelle Lincoln,District 2 Craig Cates,District 1 David Rice,District 4 Holly Merrill Raschein,District 5 Board of County Commissioners Meeting December 10, 2025 Agenda Item Number: Q6 2023-4586 BULK ITEM: Yes DEPARTMENT: Sustainability TIME APPROXIMATE: STAFF CONTACT: Rhonda Haag N/A AGENDA ITEM WORDING: Approval to advertise for Construction Engineering &Inspection (CEI) services for RESTORE-funded canal restoration projects on Big Pine Key, funded by Sub- Recipient Grant Agreement#250064231.01 from The Gulf Consortium passed through from the federal granting agency of the Gulf Coast Restoration Council, for Monroe County's share of the Gulf Consortium Pot 3 RESTORE funds. ITEM BACKGROUND: This item is for approval to advertise for Construction, Engineering and Inspection services for RESTORE-funded canals on Big Pine Key, as funded by the Sub-Recipient Grant Agreement for $12,444,530.00 from the Gulf Consortium. RESTORE Act funds came about as the result of the civil and criminal settlements of responsible actors (namely BP) in the aftermath of the Deep-Water Horizon Oil Spill. RESTORE Act legislation passed by Congress in 2010 directed those funds to the States and communities along the Gulf that were directly and indirectly impacted in order to restore and protect their environments, water quality and habitats. The funds discussed here are those distributed to the State of Florida's 23 Gulf Coast counties which formally organized as the Gulf Consortium. The purpose of the Consortium was to determine the use and distribution of its share of settlement monies in compliance with the RESTORE Act. The funds currently total approximately $290 Million. Over the course of about 5 years, the Gulf Consortium worked on priorities, eligibility, distribution formulas, and then drafted and approved its State Expenditure Plan (SEP). Each county submitted eligible environmental and water quality restoration projects into the plan, and each county was allocated an equal share of the funds (about $12.6 M). Monroe County submitted canal restoration as its project. The County Commission approved the inclusion of this project, and its full allocation to this project, with Resolution 276-2016. 2515 The six canal restoration projects are for Canals #293, #295, #297, #299, #300 and#315 within the Big Pine Key area of the Avenues, which represent some of the worst water quality throughout the Florida Keys. The canals are geographically located near each other and were included in one grant application to improve the cost efficiencies of the projects and to enhance the effectiveness of the nearshore water quality by constructing all of the projects in one time frame rather than spread out over several years. These projects will restore canal water quality, and provide healthy, diverse, and sustainable living for coastal and marine resources. Additionally clean water will restore and conserve the health, diversity, and resilience of key coastal, estuarine, and marine habitats. The County is nearing completion of design and permitting for the majority of the six canals, the work of which was funded by the County's share of the annual DEP Stewardship appropriation. Most projects are close to being shovel ready. Each canal requires organic removal, backfill, and air curtain. The Agreement includes tasks for the construction, oversight, and post monitoring effectiveness of the projects. The operations and maintenance of the weed gate/air curtain required for each project will be funded by an assessment set up on each canal. The residents have participated in meetings hosted by the County and voted to proceed with the project with an understanding of the requirement for an assessment. Currently, the canal waters have poor circulation, weed wrack loading, organic sediment accumulation, and excessive depths. The restoration work aims to improve the oxygen level, remove accumulated organics from within the canals, and add physical barriers to minimize additional organic accumulation in these areas. These technologies will improve the water quality in the canals. It will take 3 years to construct the projects and post-monitoring, and maintenance will take place up to an additional year after construction has ended. The entire project is estimated at 4 years. Background: The Monroe County Canal Water Quality Restoration Program was established under the auspices of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association (NOAA) Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) Water Quality Protection Program (WQPP) a set of guiding principles geared toward improving canal water quality while ensuring no degradation of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary nearshore waters. The program evaluates, constructs and implements canal restoration technologies to improve canal water quality throughout the Florida Keys in order to restore and preserve the marine environment of the Florida Keys that supports unparalleled biodiversity and an annual $1.3 billion tourism industry. Keys' tourism is a strong economic engine for both the local and state economies, and it relies almost entirely on clean water. The restoration of water quality in Monroe County's residential canals is a complex and costly venture that requires long-term commitments from participating entities. Through the development of the program, Monroe County has documented areas where costs and project schedules can be managed to reduce the expense associated with implementing and operating canal restoration projects. In 2013, Phase II of the Monroe County Canal Management Master Plan (CMMP) was completed. The Plan evaluated the conditions of the Keys canals, prioritized the need for water quality improvement, and identified appropriate restoration options for each canal: • Culvert • Air Curtain • Organic Removal • Backfill 2516 The CMMP selected the technologies above that could address the specific Class III water quality exceedances (dissolved oxygen (DO) and nutrients) within the canals and surrounding near shore waters. Depending upon the specific canal(s) selected, one or a combination of techniques were proposed. As part of the Canal Restoration Demonstration Program, Florida International University (FIU) assessed the effectiveness of the various technologies implemented by Monroe County and its partners by comparing treated canals against nearby, unaltered controls over a period of three years. Based on data collected during the limited monitoring period, FIU made the following conclusions about the organic removal and backfilling technology(s): • Organic removal: The removal of organic material from the canal bottom showed immediate and drastic improvements in environmental conditions, though observations suggest further steps may need to be taken to preserve the conditions that this technology quickly generated. • Backfilling: This technique resulted in an immediate change in the canal's water quality by significantly improving the water column's DO content. The decreased water depth allowed light to penetrate to the sediment. As a result, there were measurable increases in benthic vegetation, fish diversity and abundance and inhabitants of the sea walls. • Air Curtains: The use of air curtains or weed gates appeared to be effective in reducing the amount of seaweed wrack entering into the canals. However, canals that only implemented a weed barrier as their treatment method displayed no improvement in water quality parameters. Using these results from the Demonstration Program along with water quality data from the CMMP, the County is proposing to move forward with organic muck removal, backfill, and air curtain restoration projects at Canals #293, #295, #297, #299, #300 and#315 on Big Pine Key. In November 2020, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) amended Chapter 28-20 Land Planning Regulations for the Florida Keys Area of Critical State Concern in Monroe County to include a new Work Plan for Canal Restoration implementation. The Work Plan sets forth a definitive timeline for canal restoration with essential milestones for the completion of the program within the next 10 years. The County has taken action to create a Canal Restoration List containing 96 projects estimated to cost $538 Million to implement, ranging from $200,000 to $50 million/project. PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION: November 2016: the BOCC approved the inclusion of canal restoration projects in the State Expenditure Plan and allocation of the entire allocation of Monroe's share of Gulf Consortium pot funds ($12.6m) to canal restoration projects (Resolution 276-2016). 2013 through 2018: the BOCC designated Commissioner Neugent to serve as Monroe County's representative on the Gulf Consortium to develop the State Expenditure Plan and to advocate for inclusion of Monroe's canal restoration project and, since 2014, to serve as an elected member of the Consortium's Executive Committee. September 21, 2012: Monroe County joined the Gulf Consortium by approving the Inter-local Agreement to participate in a consortium of counties to develop a State Expenditure Plan for RESTORE Act funding allocated to the Florida's 23 Gulf Coast counties. (Resolution 246-2012). October 16, 2023: Approval of a grant application to the Gulf Coast Restoration Council for Monroe County's share of the of the Gulf Consortium Pot 3 RESTORE funds for $12.65 M with no match pursuant to the approved project for Monroe County in the State Expenditure Plan: Canal Restoration. These funds will be used for 6 canal restoration projects on Big Pine Key. The Monroe County Board of 2517 County Commissioners retroactively ratified the grant application submitted October 6, 2023, and provided authorization for the County Administrator to sign all necessary documents in connection with this grant. March 25, 2025: Approval of a $12,444,530.00 sub-recipient grant Agreement from The Gulf Consortium passed through from the federal granting agency of the Gulf Coast Restoration Council, for Monroe County's share of the Gulf Consortium Pot 3 RESTORE funds, to be used for up to 6 canal restoration projects on Big Pine Key. INSURANCE REQUIRED: No CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES: N/A STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approval. DOCUMENTATION: FINANCIAL IMPACT: Effective Date: N/A Expiration Date: N/A Total Dollar Value : TBD Total Cost to County: None Current Year Portion: TBD Budgeted: N/A Source of Funds: RESTORE Grant CPI: N/A Indirect Costs: Estimated Ongoing Costs Not Included in above dollar amounts: O&M for canal projects, which will be funded by assessments Revenue Producing: No If yes, amount: Grant: County Match: None Insurance Required: No Additional Details: 2518