Remedial Investigation (RI) and Optional Feasibility Study (FS) for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)

This Sources Sought Notice is for Market Research ONLY to determine the availability, capability and interest of small business firms for a potential small business category type set-aside. NO AWARD will be made from this Sources Sought Notice. NO SOLICITATION, SPECIFICATIONS, OR DRAWINGS ARE AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME as this is solely for Market Research. Please do not request such documentation. Requests for any of this information will go unanswered. If the conditions at Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO)19.104-1(a) are met the contracting officer is required to set the acquisition aside for small business concerns. Accordingly, interested contractors who have the skill, capabilities, and workload capacity to complete the described project (either through self-performance and/or the managing of subcontractors) are invited to provide their capability statements to the point of contact listed below. All responses will be used to determine the appropriate acquisition strategy for a potential acquisition. The purpose of this notice is to obtain a snapshot of current market capabilities and gain knowledge of potential small business sources to include small business in the following socioeconomic categories: Certified HUB Zone; Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Serviced-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) and 8(a) small business concerns to perform database updates to increase the capabilities, usability, and stability of currently existing applications. Other than small business are encouraged to express interest and submit capability statements as well. Contractors’ capabilities will be reviewed solely for the purpose of determining an appropriate acquisition strategy to include whether this prospective action is appropriate to be set-aside for the small business community or should proceed as an unrestricted full and open acquisition. Other than small businesses are encouraged to respond to this NOTICE to provide a greater context of current market capabilities. However, per the Federal Acquisition Regulations, preference will be given to the small business categories as listed above. In determining the acquisition strategy, the Government must ensure there is adequate competition among the potential pool of available contractors. The Government intends to award a Firm Fixed Price order with a Period of Performance of five (5) years from date of award. An estimated solicitation date has not yet been determined. The NAICS Code is 562910, Environmental Remediation Services. The Size Standard in Number of Employees: 1,000 Employees. Product Service Code is B510. GENERAL SCOPE: Regulatory & Data Governance Regulatory Framework: This Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) site is governed by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in which the work must strictly adhere to the developed Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Remedial Investigation (RI) Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) which utilizes the Uniform Federal Policy for Quality Assurance Project Plans (UFP-QAPP). The Contractor must transmit all documents and data via Fort Ord Data Information Site (FODIS). All actions are dictated by the Federal Facilities Agreement (FFA) with the regulatory community. The Contractor will anticipate significant comments on products generated for this effort and must present technically competent PFAS subject matter experts to address and resolve comments suitable for public consumption per EPA Risk Communication guidelines. The Contractor must demonstrate past experience executing CERCLA work under an active FFA alongside USACE, U.S. Army BRAC, U.S. EPA, California DTSC, and California Regional Water Quality Control Boards. Compliance Standards: All analyses must be conducted by Department of Defense (DoD) Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP)-accredited laboratories per DoD Quality Systems Manual (QSM) Table B-15 using DoD Module 3 data validation with Fort Ord Data Information Site (FODIS) upload and follow safety compliance per U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Manual (EM) 385-1-1 via an Accident Prevention Plan (APP) and Site Safety and Health Plan (SSHP). Technical & Key Personnel Qualifications: The Contractor must present an overview of qualified in-house staff or primary teaming partners (e.g., Professional Geologists/Hydrogeologists registered in California, Environmental Engineers with water treatment optimization expertise, Quality Assurance Chemists, and USACE EM 385-1-1 Certified Safety Professionals) and show the ability to identified commercial analytical laboratories possessing active DoD ELAP accreditation for PFAS analysis by LC/MS/MS compliant with DoD QSM criteria. 2. Field Characterization and Waste Management Subsurface Drilling: Per the PFAS RI QAPP, the Contractor must advance continuous soil borings advanced to groundwater (~100 feet below ground surface [bgs]) with discrete depth-interval profiling, conduct the installation of multi-cased wells per the Drilling, American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D5092 construction, and conduct multi-aquifer development including shallow water table (~100 ft bgs), intermediate Upper 180-Foot Aquifer (~225 ft bgs), and deep Seaside Groundwater Basin (up to 500 ft bgs). Groundwater Monitoring: Per the PFAS RI QAPP, the Contractor must conduct baseline, seasonal, and base wide sampling rounds for plume delineation. The Contractor will be expected to have an advanced understanding of the areas subsurface hydrology given the Salinas-Valley Aquitard and its various discontinuities as influenced by local potable water and agricultural pumping variations and inform the Government on modifications to the existing MODFLOW model. The Contractor will be expected to operate and maintain existing multi-well port systems in monitoring wells. Strict PFAS Sampling Cross-Contamination Mitigation: Per the PFAS RI QAPP the Contractor must adhere to strict avoidance of PFAS-containing field equipment, bailers, tubing, pumps, personal protective equipment (PPE), decontamination reagents, sunscreens, and vehicle materials and of documented PFAS Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and field blank / equipment rinsate validation programs. Investigation-Derived Waste (IDW) Protocols: The Contractor must be proficient at handling, containment, characterization, transportation, and disposal/destruction of PFAS-impacted drill cuttings, purge water, development water, and decontamination fluids in strict accordance with DoD and State of California regulations. 3. Specialized Comparative Studies HydraSleeve vs. Low-Flow: Per the PFAS RI QAPP the Contractor must demonstrate competency in the described field study assessing data quality, bias, and operational efficacy for PFAS passive sampling versus conventional purge techniques. The Contractor must demonstrate the ability to evaluate data comparability, turbidity impacts, sampling precision/accuracy, and relative bias for both short- and long-chain perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and past experience designing, executing, and reporting side-by-side comparative studies between passive sampling devices (specifically HydraSleeve) and conventional low-flow (minimal drawdown) purging/sampling techniques. Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) Plant Efficacy: The Contractor must evaluate influent, mid-bed, and effluent monitoring campaigns across multiple Groundwater Treatment System (GWTS) facilities for short- and long-chain PFAS removal kinetics and plant optimization comingled with co-contaminants. The Contractor must demonstrate technical capability conducting Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) bench-, pilot-, or full-scale efficacy evaluations targeting PFAS breakthrough and mass removal kinetics with preferred experience evaluating and optimizing existing pump-and-treat groundwater treatment plants (GWTPs) for PFAS removal across carbon bed changeout cycles, including influent/effluent/interstage monitoring, empty bed contact time (EBCT) assessment, competitive adsorption dynamics with co-contaminants (e.g., VOCs), and bed life forecasting. 4. Reporting & CERCLA Deliverables UFP-QAPP Addenda: The Contractor must optimized worksheets conforming to Intergovernmental Data Quality Task Force (IDQTF) standards for subsequent UPF-QAPP addenda adhering to Army Agency and DOW PFAS policies as issued. Remedial Investigation (RI) Report: Comprehensive documentation satisfying CERCLA § 104(b) and NCP 40 CFR § 300.430(d): Physical site characterization, hydrogeologic cross-sections, and Conceptual Site Models (CSM) (40 CFR § 300.430(d)(2)) including 3D lithologic and chemical plume fate-and-transport modeling. Baseline Risk Assessment comprising both a Baseline Human Health Risk Assessment (BHHRA) and a Baseline Ecological Risk Assessment (BERA) pursuant to 40 CFR § 300.430(d)(4). Stakeholder presentations support for the BRAC Cleanup Team (BCT) and community public meetings. Feasibility Study (FS): Development of remedial alternatives and screening against the nine NCP criteria pursuant to 40 CFR § 300.430(e)–(f), demonstrating compliance with CERCLA § 121 (42 U.S.C. § 9621) cleanup standards and Applicable or Relevant and Appropriate Requirements (ARARs). CAPABILITY STATEMENT The following requests are designed to inform the US Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District, of current service contractor market capabilities. Please provide your response to the following. The submission is limited to 10 pages. 1) Offeror's name, Unique Entity Identifier (ID), CAGE Code, address, point of contact, phone number, and e-mail address. 2) Offeror's experience and capability to complete (either through self-performance or the managing of one or more subcontracts as a Prime) contracts of this magnitude and complexity and comparable work performed within the past 5 years. Describe the Prime’s self-performed effort, brief description of the project, customer name, period of performance, customer satisfaction, and dollar value of the project. 3) Offeror's socioeconomic type and business size (Certified HUB Zone; Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Serviced-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) and 8(a) small business concerns). The Capabilities Statement will not be considered an offer (proposal) or a bid for any future Request for Quotes/Proposal that may result from this notice. Moreover, it will not restrict the Government to an ultimate acquisition approach. This notice is for information and planning purposes only. The respondents will not be notified of the results of any review conducted of the capability statements received. All capability statements must be submitted electronically via email no later than 30 November 2026, 10AM Pacific Standard Time (PST). Submit response to the following Point of Contacts: Davina Darden at davina.d.darden@usace.army.mil and Steven Griffiths steven.j.griffiths@usace.army.mil. Please include the Sources Sought No. W9123826X1CUS in the subject line.