Explanation
1. BACKGROUND:
This legislation will authorize the Director of Public Utilities to apply for a Federal ARRA (Stimulus) funded Transforming Waste to Value Program Grant through the Ohio Department of Development for the purpose of partially funding the Southerly WWTP Waste Digester Gas Utilization Improvements Project. The Transforming Waste to Value Program Grant is administered by the Ohio Department of Development, Ohio Energy Resources Division. The total cost of the project is $3,071,000.00. The amount of grant money requested is $1,000,000.00.
The Transforming Waste to Value Program Grant is administered by the Ohio Department of Development, Ohio Energy Resources Division. This grant is for the Southerly WWTP Waste Digester Gas Utilization Improvements Project. With the requested $1 million grant, the Department of Public Utilities plans to improve the existing digester gas system at the Southerly Wastewater Treatment Plant by converting waste digester gas to energy for use in providing building heat at that location. The project will install a new digester gas pipeline to deliver gas to two sets of boilers, including three Screen and Grit Building (SGB) boilers and three Service Building (SEV) boilers. The SGB boilers are fitted with both digester and natural gas connections. The four existing fuel oil SEV boilers have exceeded their useful life by over twenty years and will be replaced under this project with boilers equipped to burn gas.
Providing the digester gas line will increase the beneficial use of digester gas and reduce flaring of digester gas as waste during the heating season. Currently, excess digester gas is combusted at the waste gas burner. Once the digesters are fully operational, an estimated average of 700 MMBTUs of digester gas per heating season will be available for use in providing building heat. The proposed connection of the digester gas system to the SEV and SGB boilers allows the excess gas to be consumed as fuel rather than burned at the waste gas burner. In addition to providing an outlet for the excess digester gas, replacement of the SEV fuel oil fired boilers with gas fired boilers will reduce the greenhouse gas production by increasing the boiler efficiency and burning a cleaner fuel. Additionally, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, burning digester gas results in a carbon neutral footprint for the boilers.
2. EMERGENCY:
The grant application deadline was August 23, 2010 and the Department of Public Utilities is requesting City Council to deem this legislation an emergency measure in order to expedite the project so the terms and conditions of the grant application are accomplished.
3. FISCAL IMPACT:
The amount of grant money requested is $1,000,000.00. The total cost of the project is projected to be $3,071,000.00 and will be paid from the Sanitary Super Build America Bonds (Super B.A.B.s) Fund 669. Should the grant be awarded, the $1,000,000.00 grant will be a reimbursement to the city at the end of the project and used to reduce the total project cost.
Title
To authorize and direct the Director of Public Utilities to apply for a Federal ARRA funded Transforming Waste to Value Program Grant Agreement with the Ohio Department of Development, Ohio Energy Resources Division for the Southerly Waste Water Treatment Plant (SWWTP) Waste Digester Gas Utilization Improvements Project; and to declare an emergency. ($0.00)
Body
WHEREAS, the Ohio Department of Development, Ohio Energy Resources Division, has issued a federally ARRA funded grant through their Transforming Waste to Value Program, with the goal of converting municipal solid wastes and food and farm wastes to electricity, heat, fuel, and/or bio-products and to create jobs by building market-demand for Ohio manufacturers and distributors of biodigester components; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Public Utilities Southerly WWTP Waste Digester Gas Utilization Improvements Project meets the eligibility requirements of the grant; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to apply for said grant; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary for City Council to authorize Director of Public Utilities to apply for said grant; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily operation of the Department of Public Utilities in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the Director of Public Utilities to apply for the grant in order to expedite the project so the terms and conditions of the grant application are accomplished; for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property and safety; now, therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
Section 1. That the Director of Public Utilities, be and hereby is, authorized and directed to apply for a grant in the amount of $1,000,000.00 from the Ohio Department of Development, Ohio Energy Resources Division for the Southerly Waste Water Treatment Plant (SWWTP) Waste Digester Gas Utilization Improvements Project through the Transforming Waste to Value Program.
Section 2. That the Department of Public Utilities has committed to administer the grant through grant coordination, grant reporting, grant fund pay requests, and contract administration services.
Section 3. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this Ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approved nor vetoes the same.