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1981 03 18 BAWA Minutes 10318-1 1 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE BAYTOWN AREA WATER AUTHORITY March 18, 1981 The Board of Directors of the Baytown Area Water Authority , Harris County, Texas, met in regular session on Wednesday, March 18, 1981 , in the Conference Room of the Baytown City Hall with the following attendance : Robert L. Gillette, President I . J. Butrick, Vice President • Peter R. Buenz, Secretary Harry F. Hartman, Board Member Absent : Dr. Robert E. Hill , Board Member The meeting was called to order and the following business was transacted: Minutes Board member Hartman moved for approval of the minutes ; Board member Butrick seconded the motion. The vote follows : Ayes: Board members Butrick, Buenz, Gillette and Hartman Nays : None Hear Report from Lockwood, Andrews and Newnam on Construc- tion Projects To date the contractor has had no success in pressuring the line to the required 160 pounds of pressure for two hours without any leaks . However, the contract has retained Pres- sure Systems , Inc. , a leak detection firm, to located leaks in the system. What the firm proposes to do is pump in nitrous oxide, fill the line under pressure, maintain that pressure for 24 hours and then measure the nitrous oxide con- centration on the outside of the pipe on the ground to deter- mine where the leaks are. The consulting engineers stated that the system sounds feasible from what little is known about the procedure. Nitrous oxide is an anesthetic when in 80% concentration; and approximately 5% concentration will be utilized for testing the BAWA line. Once the pressure is released, the nitrous oxide becomes a solution which leaves no toxic residual . After testing has been completed, the line will be flushed, sterilized and bacteriological tests will be conducted. • Previously, the test procedure utilized had been to introduce food coloring into the system to locate the leaks , pump the water out and repair the leak. The leak rate at 160 pounds is still approximately 72-8 gallons per minute. In response to a question from the Board, Mr. Styner explained that the line is pressure tested to the criteria outlined in the specifications , the line should perform satisfactorily throughout its design life. 10318-2 Minutes of the BAWA Board - March 18, 1981 In response to the inquiry regarding workmanship of the contractor, Mr. Styner explained that the engineers are limited to the instructions that can be given the contractor concerning construction methods. In other words, the contractor is the owner of the line and responsible for all its activity and any direction on how to accomplish that activity would be usurping that authority. The Consulting Engineers have had numerous discussions with the contractor related to workmanship. After a certain point , the problem becomes a legal matter. The engineers suggested that BAWA' s attorneys be consulted. The Board felt that while the line was being installed if improper methods of installation were being utilized, • those methods should have been corrected at that time, even to the point of replacing the Superintendent , Gene Crawford. The workmanship in installing this line was deplorable and the line to the east will probably have the same startup problems. The Board advocated that anything that could be done to eliminate some of the same problems with the other section of line be done and concurred that it appeared to be a good approach to attempt to locate all leaks in a particular section at one time. The Consulting Engineers obtained a production schedule of the entire job from Angleton in response to a request from the Board to verify man-hours worked. There have been approxi- mately 20 employees on the job for the entire time. The con- tractor has had employees on the job, working whatever amount of overtime necessary, including weekends. The expertise of the persons on the job is the question. Payment to Chisholm Trail Y Mr. Lanham reported that the wiring diagram had been provided and Chisholm Trail has been paid all but two (2%) of the contract amount . Receive Report from Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam on Estimated Cost of Additional Transmission Line The Consulting Engineers had been requested to develop cost estimates for additional transmission lines. Alternate No . 1 provides for a 30-inch line from the plant along Thomp- son Road to Lynchburg/Cedar Bayou and a 16-inch line to Bayway Drive. This would only provide a duplicate line from the plant to the connection on Bayway Drive at an approximate cost of $918, 700 . Alternate No . 2 would provide a 30-inch line from the plant along IH-10 to Barkuloo and 25-inch line along Barkuloo to Lynchburg/Cedar Bayou which line would handle plant expan- sion to serve the area north of IH-10 . The cost for Alternate No . 2 is $3, 374 , 100 . Included in this cost is approximately • $150, 000 for acquisition of right of way along IH-10 . However, if the right of way can be acquired from the highway department without cost that amount could be deducted from the estimate . The longer line will provide the same insurance as a duplicate line and will also assure water needs for 30-40 years to the north. Alternate No . 2 has been in the long-range planning from the beginning. 10318-3 Minutes of the BAWA Board - March 18, 1981 In response to a question from the Board, Fritz Lanham, General Manager, explained that BAWA needs to get into opera- tion to determine what the water needs will be prior to com- mitting to either alternate. If several contracts are nego- tiated for the sale of water, BAWA could probably finance either of the alternates. In any event , a bond sale would be required. The Administration can proceed with inquiry to the highway department regarding right of way. There is a provision in the highway department ' s contract that the highway department does have the right to request that any line in its right of way be moved. If BAWA purchased the right of way, the highway department would have to pay for • any relocation of the line. Report on Legislation Mr. Lanham reported that the proposed amendments in the legislation that established BAWA were introduced and should be on the consent calendar . Report Concerning Subsidence District Peter Buenz, representative on the subsidence district board, reported that BAWA is the second of only two surface water treatment plants in this area of Texas . The other plant is located on Federal Road. The City of Baytown is most fortunate to have the BAWA plant to serve this area. There being no further business to be conducted, the meeting was adjourned. 4h)( Peter R. Buenz, c etary •