[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 88 (Friday, May 7, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25241-25242]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-10916]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9145-7]
Notice of a Project Waiver of Section 1605 (Buy American
Requirement) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(ARRA) to the City of Coldwater, MI (Coldwater)
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The EPA is hereby granting a project waiver of the Buy
American requirements of ARRA section 1605 under the authority of
section 1605(b)(2) [manufactured goods are not produced in the United
States of a satisfactory quality] to Coldwater, Michigan for the
purchase of high-speed, high-efficiency magnetic bearing turbo-
compressors that will be used in the city's sludge treatment process.
This is a project-specific waiver and it only applies to the use of the
specified product for the ARRA funded project being proposed. Any other
ARRA project that may wish to use the same product must apply for a
separate waiver based on project-specific circumstances. These turbo-
compressors, which are supplied by ABS USA of Meriden, Connecticut, are
manufactured in Sweden, and meet Coldwater's performance specifications
and requirements. The Acting Regional Administrator is making this
determination based on the review and recommendations of EPA Region 5's
Water Division. Coldwater has provided sufficient documentation to
support its request. The Assistant Administrator of the Office of
Administration and Resources Management has concurred on this decision
to make an exception to Section 1605 of ARRA. This action permits the
purchase of high-speed, high-efficiency magnetic bearing turbo-
compressors for Coldwater's activated sludge project that may otherwise
be prohibited under Section 1605(a) of the ARRA.
DATES: Effective Date: March 26, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew Lausted, SRF Program Manager
(312) 886-0189, or Puja Lakhani, Office of Regional Counsel, (312) 353-
3190, U.S. EPA Region 5, 77 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 60604.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with ARRA Section 1605(c) and
pursuant to Section 1605(b)(2) of Public Law 111-5, Buy American
requirements, EPA hereby provides notice that it is granting a project
waiver to Coldwater, Michigan for the acquisition of high-speed, high-
efficiency magnetic bearing turbo-compressors that are manufactured in
Sweden.
Section 1605 of the ARRA requires that none of the appropriated
funds may be used for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or
repair of a public building or public work unless all of the iron,
steel, and manufactured goods used in the project are produced in the
United States, or unless a waiver is provided to the recipient by the
head of the appropriate agency, here EPA. A waiver may be provided if
EPA determines that (1) Applying these requirements would be
inconsistent with the public interest; (2) iron, steel, and the
relevant manufactured goods are not produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory
quality; or (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured
goods produced in the United States will increase the cost of the
overall project by more than 25 percent.
The ARRA-funded project will provide improved aeration for
Coldwater's activated sludge treatment process, allowing the Wastewater
Treatment Plant (WWTP) to meet the stringent ammonia-nitrogen effluent
discharge limits required for this facility placed into effect in May
2007. Following a study of the cause for these ammonia-nitrogen
effluent discharge excursions, it was determined the WWTP's current
organic treatment process was not capable of handling the maximum day
and peak ammonia-nitrogen loading occurrences experienced by the
facility. The existing multistage centrifugal aeration blowers cannot
be turned down sufficiently to adequately meet the low and average
aeration requirements on the WWTP. These blowers also have insufficient
capacity to meet the peak aeration requirements alone, and need
supplemental aeration blowers to meet these demands. Relative to
conventional technologies and equipment, the high-speed, high-
efficiency turbocompressors offer more turndown potential and the
ability for the WWTP to meet the low, average, and peak aeration
requirements in combination with the existing aeration blowers. The
selected equipment can operate at 38% of its rated capacity, providing
exceptional turndown. Coldwater selected the magnetic bearing
technology because of its ability to avoid overheating and its track
record of providing long-standing reliable service--key advantages over
the competing airfoil bearing technology. Further, as Coldwater
initiated its evaluation of the equipment for selection and design
phases well before the enactment of ARRA, the decision to do was
clearly not an attempt to avoid application of the Buy American
provisions of ARRA. Coldwater's submissions clearly articulated
functional reasons that justified their technical specifications and
requirements.
The April 28, 2009 EPA HQ Memorandum, ``Implementation of Buy
American provisions of Public Law 111-5, the `American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009','' defines reasonably available quantity as
``the quantity of iron, steel, or relevant manufactured good is
available or will be available at the time needed and place needed, and
in the proper form or specification as specified in the project plans
and design.''
The applicant met the requirements specified for the availability
inquiry as appropriate to the circumstances by conducting an extensive
investigation into all possible sources for high-speed, high-efficiency
turbo-compressors. Based on the investigation, five companies
manufacture these machines, but only two (ABS and one other company)
used magnetic bearings. Moreover, both of the companies that use
magnetic bearings manufacture their machines overseas. Therefore,
Coldwater believed that there was no domestic product of satisfactory
quality available.
EPA's national contractor prepared a technical assessment report
dated December 24, 2009, based on the submitted waiver request. The
report determined that the waiver request submittal was complete, that
adequate technical information was provided, and that there were no
significant weaknesses in the justification provided. Therefore, based
on the information provided to EPA and to the best of our knowledge at
this time, the high-speed, high-efficiency magnetic bearing turbo-
compressors necessary for this project are not manufactured in the
[[Page 25242]]
United States, and no other U.S. manufactured product can meet
Coldwater's project performance specifications and requirements.
The purpose of the ARRA is to stimulate economic recovery in part
by funding current infrastructure construction, not to delay projects
that are ``shovel ready'' by requiring communities such as Coldwater to
revise their standards and specifications and to start the bidding
process again. The imposition of ARRA Buy American requirements on such
projects otherwise eligible for ARRA State Revolving Fund assistance
would result in unreasonable delay and thus displace the ``shovel
ready'' status for this project. To further delay project
implementation is in direct conflict with a fundamental economic
purpose of the ARRA, which is to create or retain jobs.
The State and Tribal Programs Branch has reviewed this waiver
request and has determined that the supporting documentation provided
by Coldwater is sufficient to meet the criteria listed under Section
1605(b) of the ARRA and in the April 28, 2009, ``Implementation of Buy
American provisions of Public Law 111-5, the `American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009' Memorandum'': Iron, steel, and the
manufactured goods are not produced in the United States in sufficient
and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality. The
basis for this project waiver is the authorization provided in section
1605(b)(2) of the ARRA. Due to the lack of production of this item in
the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and
of a satisfactory quality in order to meet Coldwater's project
performance specifications and requirements, a waiver from the Buy
American requirement is justified.
The March 31, 2009, Delegation of Authority Memorandum provided
Regional Administrators with the authority to issue exceptions to
Section 1605 of the ARRA within the geographic boundaries of their
respective regions and with respect to requests by individual grant
recipients. Having established both a proper basis to specify the
particular good required for this project, and that this manufactured
good was not available from a producer in the United States, Coldwater
is hereby granted a waiver from the Buy American requirements of
Section 1605(a) of Public Law 111-5 for the purchase of high-speed,
high efficiency magnetic bearing turbo-compressors using ARRA funds as
specified in the community's request of December 21, 2009. This
supplementary information constitutes the detailed written
justification required by Section 1605(c) for waivers ``based on a
finding under subsection (b).''
Authority: Pub. L. 111-5, section 1605.
Dated: March 26, 2010.
Walter W. Kovalick,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2010-10916 Filed 5-6-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P