TIER 2 UST

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) Underground Storage Tank (UST) Management Division issued an Invitation for Bid (IFB) solicitation for Tier II Environmental Assessment Investigations at Underground Storage Tank Facilities. The procurement seeks comprehensive environmental assessment services, including site-specific work plan preparation, receptor surveys, comprehensive surveys, ground penetrating radar surveys, soil borings, well installation, sample collection, laboratory analyses, aquifer characterization, and free product recovery testing. The contractor must be capable of performing work on a minimum of five facilities concurrently during any 60-day period and must be a UST Class I certified site rehabilitation contractor in good standing. Key deliverables include determining the horizontal and vertical extent of petroleum chemicals of concern released from regulated UST systems, following predefined standard operating procedures and performance standards. The solicitation schedule included key dates such as questions due by November 25, 2020 at 2:30 PM ET, bid submissions originally due December 10, 2020 (later extended to January 5, 2021) at 2:30 PM ET, and award posting projected for January 12, 2021. Evaluation criteria focus on the lowest responsible and responsive bidder, with DHEC reserving the right to reject bids appearing above usual, customary, and reasonable costs or based on the contractor's prior performance history.

The contract is funded through the State Underground Petroleum Environmental Response Bank (SUPERB) Account and does not specify specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises. The initial contract term is one year with two one-year renewal options, potentially extending the contract to a maximum of three years from January 18, 2021, through January 17, 2024. The contract was ultimately awarded to Midlands Environmental Consultants, Inc. located in Lexington, SC, with a total evaluated contract amount of $53,478.00. The bidding process required contractors to submit unit prices for each assessment component on a standardized Assessment Component Competitive Pricing Proposal form, with a percentage markup for report preparation and project coordination. The solicitation included a comprehensive bidding schedule with 35 line items covering various environmental assessment activities, with quantities ranging from 1 to 450 units. Contractors must obtain a state vendor number, maintain an approved Annual Contractor Quality Assurance Plan, and comply with applicable regulations including R.61-98 and the UST Management Division Programmatic QAPP 4.0.