Water well destruction services for two permanently inactive water wells at Hidden Dam, Hensley Lake in Madera County, California.

This Sources Sought Notice is for Market Research ONLY to determine the availability, capability and interest of small business firms for a potential small business category type set-aside. 

NO AWARD will be made from this Sources Sought Notice. 

NO SOLICITATION, SPECIFICATIONS, OR DRAWINGS ARE AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME as this is solely for Market Research. Please do not request such documentation.  Requests for any of this information will go unanswered. 

If the conditions at FAR 19.502-2(b) are met the contracting officer is required to set the acquisition aside for small business concerns. If set-aside, FAR 52.219-14, requires that the small business contractor will self-perform at least 50% of the cost of the contract, not including the cost of materials. Accordingly, interested contractors having the skill, capabilities, and workload capacity to complete the described project (either through self-performance and/or the managing of subcontractors) are invited to provide their capability statements to the point of contact listed below.  All responses will be used to determine the appropriate acquisition strategy for a potential acquisition. 

The purpose of this notice is to obtain a snapshot of current market capabilities and gain knowledge of potential small business sources to include small business in the following socioeconomic categories: Certified HUB Zone; Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Serviced-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) and 8(a) small business concerns to perform well destruction services.  Other than small business are encouraged to express interest and submit capability statements as well.   

Contractors’ capabilities will be reviewed solely for the purpose of determining an appropriate acquisition strategy to include whether this prospective action is appropriate to be set-aside for the small business community or should proceed as an unrestricted full and open acquisition.   Other than small businesses are encouraged to respond to this NOTICE to provide a greater context of current market capabilities. However, per the Federal Acquisition Regulations, preference will be given to the small business categories as listed above. In determining the acquisition strategy, the Government must ensure there is adequate competition among the potential pool of available contractors.

The Government estimates issuing a solicitation in December, 2024.

The Government intends to award firm-fixed price purchase order.

The NAICS Code is 237110 water and sewer line and related structures construction. The size standard is $45,000,000.  Product Service Code is Z2LC (Repair or Alteration of Tunnels and Subsurface Structures).

GENERAL SCOPE:

The Sacramento District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a requirement for water well destruction services for two permanently inactive water wells at Hidden Dam, Hensley Lake in Madera County, California. The demolition will be conducted pursuant to all applicable state and federal requirements, including but not limited to the requirements of the California Department of Water Resources, Water Well Standards Part III. Destruction of Water Wells, Section 23. Requirements for Destroying Wells, and the Madera County Water Well Program.

Work to be Performed.

1. General Information.
   1. The Contractor shall furnish all labor, materials, equipment, transportation, and supplies necessary to fulfill the terms and conditions stated in this contract. The Contractor shall be responsible for all costs related to performing water well destruction services for two permanently inactive water wells (“Water Well #1” and “Water Well #3”) at Hidden Dam, Hensley Lake in Madera County, California. All work, materials and equipment shall be subject to the control and approval of the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR).
2. Water Wells #1 and #3.
   1. The following information is known from an October 1999 Well Completion Report for Water Well #1:
      1. Total Depth: 1027 feet
      2. Depth to First Water: 827 feet
      3. Casing Material and Diameter: PVC, 6.25 inches
      4. Annular Material: Bentonite
      5. Plumbing: Original pump and plumbing remain in the well.
      6. Hydrogeologic Conditions: Granite and bedrock.
      7. Contamination: Arsenic present.
      8. Access: This well is approximately 50 feet from a paved roadway and immediately beside a private access dirt roadway.
   2. The following information is known from an October 1999 Well Completion Report for Water Well #3:
      1. Total Depth: 852 feet
      2. Depth to First Water: 696 feet
      3. Casing Material and Diameter: PVC, 6.25 inches
      4. Annular Material: Bentonite
      5. Plumbing: Original pump and plumbing remain in the well.
      6. Hydrogeologic Conditions: Granite and bedrock.
      7. Contamination: Arsenic present.
      8. Access: This well is approximately 125 feet from a paved private access roadway and immediately beside a private access dirt roadway.
3. Services to be Performed.
   1. Well Destruction. The Contractor shall destroy the Water Well #1 and the Water Well #3 pursuant to all applicable state and federal requirements, including but not limited to the requirements of the California Department of Water Resources, Water Well Standards Part III. Destruction of Water Wells, Section 23. Requirements for Destroying Wells, and the Madera County Water Well Program.
   2. California Department of Water Resources Section 23 requirements include:
      1. Preliminary Work. Before the well is destroyed, it shall be investigated to determine its condition, details of construction, and whether there are obstructions that will interfere with the process of filling and sealing. This may include the use of downhole television and photography for visual inspection of the well.
         1. Obstructions. The well shall be cleaned, as needed, so that all undesirable materials, including obstructions to filling and sealing, debris, oil from oil-lubricated pumps, or pollutants and contaminants that could interfere with well destruction are removed for disposal. The enforcing agency shall be notified as soon as possible if pollutants and contaminants are known or suspected to be in a well to be destroyed. Well destruction operations may then proceed only at the approval of the enforcing agency. The enforcing agency should be contacted to determine requirements for proper disposal of materials removed from a well to be destroyed.
         2. Where necessary, to ensure that sealing material fills not only the well casing but also any annular space or nearby voids within the zone(s) to be sealed, the casing should be perforated or otherwise punctured.
         3. In some wells, it may be necessary or desirable to remove a part of the casing. However, in many instances this can be done only as the well is filled. For dug wells, as much of the lining as possible (or safe) should be removed prior to filling. Investigation to determine the well’s condition, details of construction, and whether obstructions will interfere with the process of filling and sealing.
      2. Filling and Sealing Conditions. Following are requirements to be observed when certain conditions are encountered:
         1. Wells situated in unconsolidated material in an unconfined groundwater zone. In all cases the upper 20 feet of the well shall be sealed with suitable sealing material and the remainder of the well shall be filled with suitable fill, or sealing material. (See Figure 9A, of Bulletin 74- 81.)
         2. Well penetrating several aquifers or formations. In all cases the upper 20 feet of the well shall be sealed with impervious material. In areas where the interchange of water between aquifers will result in a significant (See Note 1) deterioration of the quality of water in one or more aquifers, or will result in a loss of artesian pressure, the well shall be filled and sealed so as to prevent such interchange. Sand or other suitable inorganic material may be placed opposite the producing aquifers and other formations where impervious sealing material is not required. To prevent the vertical movement of water from the producing formation, impervious material must be placed opposite confining formations above and below the producing formations for a distance of 10 feet or more. The formation producing the deleterious water shall be sealed by placing impervious material opposite the formation, and opposite the confining formations for a sufficient vertical distance (but no less than 10 feet) in both directions, or in the case of "bottom" waters, in the upward direction. (See Figure 9B.) In locations where interchange is in no way detrimental, suitable inorganic material may be placed opposite the formations penetrated. When the boundaries of the various formations are unknown, alternate layers of impervious and pervious material shall be placed in the well.
         3. Well penetrating creviced or fractured rock. If creviced or fractured rock formations are encountered just below the surface, the portions of the well opposite this formation shall be sealed with neat cement, sand-cement grout, or concrete. If these formations extend to considerable depth, alternate layers of coarse stone and cement grout or concrete may be used to fill the well. The limiting dimensions of coarse stone are usually considered to range between ¼ and 4 inches. Fine grained material shall not be used as fill material for creviced or fractured rock formations.
         4. Well in noncreviced, consolidated formation. The upper 20 feet of a well in a noncreviced, consolidated formation shall be filled with impervious material. The remainder of the well may be filled with clay or other suitable inorganic material.
         5. Well penetrating specific aquifers, local conditions. Under certain local conditions, the enforcing agency may require that specific aquifers or formations be sealed off during destruction of the well.
      3. Placement of Material. The following requirements shall be observed in placing fill or sealing material in wells to be destroyed:
         1. The well shall be filled with the appropriate material (as described in Subsection D of this section) from the bottom of the well up.
         2. Where neat cement grout, sand-cement grout, or concrete is used, it shall be poured in one continuous operation.
         3. Sealing material shall be placed in the interval or intervals to be sealed by methods that prevent free fall, dilution, and/or separation of aggregate from cementing materials.
         4. Where the head (pressure) producing flow is great, special care and methods must be used to restrict the flow while placing the sealing material. In such cases, the casing must be perforated opposite the area to be sealed and the sealing material forced out under pressure into the surrounding formation.
         5. In destroying gravel-packed wells, the casing shall be perforated or otherwise punctured opposite the area to be sealed. The sealing material shall then be placed within the casing, completely filling the portion adjacent to the area to be sealed and then forced out under pressure into the gravel envelope.
         6. When pressure is applied to force sealing material into the annular space, the pressure shall be maintained for a length of time sufficient for the cementing mixture to set.
         7. To assure that the well is filled and there has been no jamming or "bridging" of the material, verification shall be made that the volume of material placed in the well installation at least equals the volume of the empty hole.
      4. Materials. Requirements for sealing and fill materials are as follows:
         1. Impervious Sealing Materials. No material is completely impervious. However, sealing materials shall have such low permeability that the volume of water passing through them is of small consequence. Suitable impervious materials include neat cement, sand-cement grout, concrete, and bentonite clay, all of which are described in Section 9, Subsection D, "Sealing Material" of these standards; and well-proportioned mixes of silts, sands, and clays (or cement), and native soils that have a coefficient of permeability of less than 10 feet per year. Examples of materials of this type are: very fine sand with a large percentage of silt or clay, inorganic silts, mixtures of silt and clay, and clay. Native materials should not be used when the sealing operation involves the use of pressure. Used drilling muds are not acceptable.
         2. Filler Material. Many materials are suitable for use as a filler in destroying wells. These include clay, silt, sand, gravel, crushed stone, native soils, mixtures of the aforementioned types, and those described in the preceding paragraph. Material containing organic matter shall not be used.
      5. Temporary Cover. During periods when no work is being done on the well, such as overnight or while waiting for sealing material to set, the well and surrounding excavation, if any, shall be covered. The cover shall be sufficiently strong and well enough anchored to prevent the introduction of foreign material into the well and to protect the public from a potentially hazardous situation.

CAPABILITY STATEMENT

The following requests are designed to inform the US Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, of current service contractor market capabilities. Please provide your response to the following.  The submission is limited to 10 pages.

1) Offeror's name, UEI #, address, point of contact, phone number, and e-mail address.

2) Offeror's experience and capability to complete (either through self-performance in excess of 50% or the managing of one or more subcontracts as a Prime) contracts of this magnitude and complexity and comparable work performed within the past 6 years. Describe the Prime’s self-performed effort, brief description of the project, customer name, timeliness of performance, customer satisfaction, and dollar value of the project.  

3) Offeror's socioeconomic type and business size (Certified HUB Zone; Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Serviced-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) and 8(a) small business concerns).

The Capabilities Statement will not be considered an offer (proposal) or a bid for any future Request for Quotes/Proposal that may result from this notice. Moreover, it will not restrict the Government to an ultimate acquisition approach. 

This notice is for information and planning purposes only.  The respondents will not be notified of the results of any review conducted of the capability statements received.

Please notify this office in writing via email by 13:00PM, Monday, December 2nd, 2024. Submit response and information through email to: Michael.c.mctague @usace.army.mil. Please include the Sources Sought No. W9123825S0006 in the subject line.