Disaster Debris Removal, Management, and Disposal Services (Pre-Event)

Dorchester County, South Carolina is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) for pre-event Disaster Debris Removal, Management, and Disposal Services to be activated following hurricanes or other natural or man-made disasters. The procurement seeks qualified contractors to provide comprehensive debris management services including emergency roadway clearance, debris removal and hauling from public rights-of-way and public facilities, temporary debris staging and reduction site (TDSRS) management, debris processing and reduction, household hazardous waste handling, private property debris removal when directed, documentation for FEMA reimbursement, and public communication support. All services must comply with FEMA Public Assistance Program requirements, OSHA regulations, and environmental protection standards. Pricing shall be submitted on a unit price basis using the County's electronic pricing table, with all-inclusive unit prices that encompass labor, supervision, equipment, fuel, materials, transportation, mobilization, demobilization, overhead, and profit. The RFP evaluation criteria include firm qualifications and experience (25 points), technical approach and methodology (20 points), disaster response and mobilization capability (15 points), past performance and references (15 points), resource capacity and equipment (10 points), and cost proposal (15 points). The written questions deadline is April 21, 2026 at 8:00 a.m., with proposals due electronically through the OpenGov Procurement Portal by May 5, 2026 at 2:00 p.m., and the resulting contract shall commence July 1, 2026 for a term of one year with up to four additional one-year renewal options.

The RFP documentation does not specify set-asides or restrictions on organization types, disadvantaged enterprise requirements, or incumbent vendors. No work is guaranteed under this pre-event, indefinite quantity contract unless activated by declaration of an emergency or disaster event, meaning the contract represents a pre-positioned resource agreement rather than a guaranteed purchase. Contractors must maintain comprehensive insurance coverage including general liability ($1,000,000 general aggregate), automobile liability ($1,000,000 combined single limit), workers' compensation per South Carolina requirements, and professional liability ($1,000,000 per occurrence). The County reserves the right to award contracts to multiple firms to ensure adequate response capacity and has reserved discretion to reject any or all proposals, waive informalities, request clarification, and negotiate pricing if in the County's best interest. Specific award values or budget ranges are not disclosed in the available documentation; however, the Cost Calculation Table provided for scoring purposes references hypothetical service quantities including 150 miles of push operations, 75,000 cubic yards of vegetative debris removal, 25,000 cubic yards of construction and demolition debris, and additional services such as white goods removal (2,000 units), stump grinding (2,500 stumps), and dead animal removal (300 units), which serves as the evaluation framework for cost comparison among proposals.