Agenda Item Wording:
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Approve an Emergency Contract with Holloway Environmental - Approve a 1-year emergency contract with Holloway Environmental not to exceed $144,000 to dispose of the 2024 biosolids stockpile generated at the Visalia Water Reclamation Facility and the appropriation of $220,000 from the Wastewater Fund.
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Prepared by: Ben Litwack, Public Works Manager, ben.litwack@visalia.city, 713-4671
Nick Bartsch, Public Works Director, nick.bartsch@visalia.city, 713-4052
Department Recommendation: Staff recommends that Council approve an emergency contract with Holloway Environmental in the amount of $144,000 to dispose of the 2024 biosolids stockpile generated at the Visalia Water Reclamation and appropriate an additional $220,000 from the Wastewater Fund (431) to cover the additional transport and disposal costs (transportation contract to be awarded in separate contract).
Summary:
The Visalia Water Reclamation Facility must remove over 6,000 tons of biosolids from its 2024 stockpile by December 31, 2025, as required by State-issued Waste Discharge Requirements. Due to new limitations at the Tulare County Landfill, the City can no longer rely on it as the sole disposal site. After reviewing multiple vendors, Holloway Environmental was selected for its regulatory compliance, competitive pricing, and capacity to accept the full stockpile. Staff plans to complete hauling within six to seven weeks and will issue a formal RFB for future disposal services in 2026.
Background Discussion:
The Visalia Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) generates biosolids as a byproduct of the wastewater treatment processes. These biosolids must be removed and properly disposed of in compliance with the facility’s Waste Discharge Requirements (WDRs), issued by the State Water Resources Control Board. Under current regulatory conditions, the entire 2024 biosolids stockpile must be removed by December 31, 2025.
In recent years, the City has utilized the Tulare County Landfill for biosolids disposal. However, due to the specialized handling required for biosolids and the landfill’s need to accommodate other wastewater agencies in Tulare County, the landfill has significantly reduced the quantity of biosolids it will accept. As of mid-2025, the landfill has limited biosolids acceptance to 100 tons every other week, effectively constraining the City’s ability to meet the required disposal timeline.
The current 2024 biosolids stockpile is estimated at over 6,000 tons, making it infeasible to comply with WDR deadlines using the landfill alone.
Given the time-sensitive nature of the required biosolids disposal and the diminished availability of the landfill, staff solicited quotes from four qualified biosolids disposal facilities:
• Holloway Environmental
• Red Rock Environmental Group
• Bakke Ag Services
• City of Paso Robles Solid Waste and Recycling
Bakke Ag Services was initially identified as the most cost-effective option; however, upon further review, it was discovered that Bakke does not hold a valid Waste Discharge Identification (WDID) number. As a result, they are not authorized to receive and land-apply biosolids under current regulatory requirements and were, therefore, disqualified.
Of the remaining vendors, Holloway Environmental submitted a competitive gate fee of $24 per ton, maintains appropriate regulatory permits (including a valid WDID), and has demonstrated past performance handling large biosolids volumes from other agencies. Holloway’s site location and capacity also provide the most feasible and reliable solution given the City’s time constraints.
After consulting with the City’s contracted biosolids hauler, Mike Clark Trucking, staff developed a disposal plan utilizing seven covered trucks to haul approximately 200 tons per day, five days per week. Based on this schedule, staff anticipates the entire 2024 stockpile can be removed within six to seven weeks once hauling begins. While the deadline for removal of the 2024 stockpile is December of 2025, because the cost disposal of the material based on weight, it is most cost effective for the City to perform this work while the material is driest, in the late summer and early fall.
Staff intends to initiate a formal Request for Bids (RFB) process in early 2026 to secure biosolids disposal services for subsequent years.
Fiscal Impact: It’s estimated that 6,000 tons of biosolids remain from the 2024 stockpile. Holloway is proposing a gate fee of $24/ton for a total of $144,000 in gate fees. Since Holloway’s disposal site is in Lost Hills, additional funds will need to be appropriated from the Wastewater Fund (431) to pay for the additional transit time required to haul the biosolids to Lost Hills instead of the Tulare County Land Fill. The biosolids operating budget currently has $154,500 budgeted for hauling and disposal in 4336-55700. It’s estimated that disposal and hauling will total $370,800. Staff is requesting that an additional $220,000 be appropriated from the Wastewater Fund (431) to cover the increased hauling and disposal costs.
Prior Council Action: N/A
Other: N/A
Alternatives: N/A
Recommended Motion (and Alternative Motions if expected):
recommendation
I move to approve a 1-year emergency contract with Holloway Environmental not to exceed $144,000 to dispose of the 2024 biosolids stockpile generated at the Visalia WRF and appropriate an additional $220,000 from the Wastewater Fund.
Environmental Assessment Status: N/A
CEQA Review: N/A
Deadline for Action: 8/18/2025
Attachments:
Bakke Ag Quote
Holloway Quote
Paso Robles Quote
Red Rock Quote
W9
COI
Levine Act
Contract