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• Operation Complexity — ease of operating and maintaining the system from a <br /> technical standpoint, considering organizational readiness and necessary staff <br /> qualifications/certifications, and the ability to enhance the system in the event of <br /> additional and or more stringent drinking water regulations. <br /> Weighting 15% <br /> • Institutional Complexity - Ease of implementation and management from an <br /> institutional standpoint (e.g., willingness of external partners, complexity of <br /> agreements and administration). <br /> Weighting 10% <br /> The resulting combination of the project cost (Capital, O&M plus system improvements <br /> unique to each option) and the relative benefit scores after applying the criteria developed, <br /> as outlined in Attachment 1, illustrate how the four options compare on a total cost/total <br /> benefits basis. The option that best meets the City's need for safe, reliable drinking water <br /> into the foreseeable future is Option 3 (two new groundwater wells) which provides the <br /> lowest cost option at nearly half the price of the baseline project while also being one of the <br /> highest benefit alternatives. <br /> Two new groundwater wells outside of the influence of PFAS will achieve a high-quality, <br /> reliable, and cost-effective water supply option to replace the 3,500-acre feet of loss due to <br /> PFAS. The baseline (Option 1) has a slightly higher level of benefits but is twice the cost. <br /> Two new groundwater wells located outside of the influence of PFAS provide the City's most <br /> beneficial and least-cost option to achieve a high quality, reliable, and cost-effective water <br /> supply option to replace the 3,500-acre feet of loss due to PFAS over the next 20 years. The <br /> baseline (Option 1) has a slightly higher level of benefits but is twice the cost. The reduced <br /> baseline (Option 2) is a marginally lower cost but substantially fewer benefits. Notably, any <br /> PFAS treatment option requires competency in treating water, a skill set the City does not <br /> currently possess. The Zone 7 purchase option (Option 4) is the costliest option because the <br /> ongoing cost of the water purchases is about three times the unit cost of the capital required <br /> to develop two new wells to extract the City's groundwater quota. The Zone 7 cost of service <br /> accounts for all aspects of water management for the region (including addressing the <br /> regional PFAS issue) which goes beyond groundwater extraction costs alone. <br /> It should be noted that the recommendation of two new wells outside of the PFAS influence <br /> rather than treating the PFAS contamination does not deter the City from the efforts to <br /> ensure this vital water source for the city and region is protected for future generations, and <br /> that proactively addressing the existing pollution continues to be a priority. Zone 7's PFAS <br /> management strategy of monitoring, blending, treating, managing, and diversifying is <br /> consistent with others in the water industry. The City will continue to work on this issue, <br /> supporting Zone 7's role as the overseer of the groundwater basin. <br /> NEXT STEPS <br /> Concurrent with performing the water supply alternatives analysis, staff coordinated with Zone <br /> 7 on its groundwater modeling and capacity planning efforts. One of the first activities for <br /> implementing two new wells is receiving assistance from Zone 7 with siting and sizing the new <br /> City well capacity. Zone 7 is currently in the process of updating its groundwater model to <br /> Page 4 of 6 <br />