DRAFT 12/12/05

Expectations for Scope of Work for Facilitation of

Regional Water Supply Plan Coordinating Committee

DRAFT 12/12/05

In July 2005, the King County Executive appointed a multi-stakeholder Scoping Committee for the purpose of developing a scope, schedule, and budget for a proposed regional water supply plan for King County. On October 31, the Scoping Committee for the Regional Water Supply Planning Process agreed to a Planning Framework Summary that calls for the development of specified technical work products that may be used to develop new and update existing Coordinated Water Supply Plans (CWSPs), initiation of a planning process under the Public Water System Coordination Act by September 2006, and a structure and procedure for managing the process. Among the recommendations, the Planning Framework Summary calls for the Scoping Committee to transition into a Coordinating Committee. It is expected that the Coordinating Committee will be facilitated by an outside consultant during this process.

Membership and Role of the Coordinating Committee: The Coordinating Committee is comprised of representatives from utilities, purveyors, tribes, state agencies, environmental groups, and local governments and is currently chaired by the Honorable Louise Miller. As the policy body for the process, the Coordinating Committeewill review, and to the extent feasible, coordinate and facilitate a number of studies, analyses, and projects that will produce new information and findings that will be useful for a King County plan and potentially forbroader regional water planning activities. The Coordinating Committee will charter Technical Subcommittees for each of the work elements and willmeet at least quarterly to receive update reports on the analytic pieces. The Committee will coordinate and integrate the information that is being developed in a timely manner with other available information and other appropriate water resource and supply planning processes. The Coordinating Committee will make periodic progress reports to the King County Council and other interested legislative bodies prior to presenting its final report.

Membership and Role of Executive Committee: A subset of the Coordinating Committee has been formed as an Executive Steering Committeeto assist in the logistics of this planning process. They will meet at least quarterly. The members are:

  • Louise Miller, Chair
  • Pam Bissonnette, Director, King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks
  • Chuck Clarke, Director, Seattle Public Utilities
  • Pete Lewis, Mayor, City of Auburn
  • Richard Reich, Office of the Tribal Attorney, Muckleshoot Indian Tribe
  • Ken Slattery, Manager, WA Department of Ecology Water Resources Program
  • Lloyd Warren, Board Member, Cascade Water Alliance

Their role will include setting the agendas, calling committee meetings, resolving disputes, pressing for the completion of desired outcomes and deadlines, assuring open communications, and facilitating both the Coordinating Committee and Technical Subcommittees.

Membership and Role of Technical Subcommittees: As mentioned earlier, Technical Subcommittees will be chartered by the Coordinating Committee to develop the following work elements:

  1. Regional demand forecast
  2. Supply alternatives analysis for King County
  3. Climate change analysis
  4. Reclaimed water
  5. Source exchange strategies
  6. Prioritization of tributaries to be addressed through source substitution for fish flow enhancement
  7. Small water systems strategy
  8. Implementing the Municipal Water Law

Membership will be from members or staff of members of the Coordinating Committee plus invited and interested participants. Technical Subcommittees, while free to undertake technical analyses, reviews, or other studies, are not the decision-makers for policies or policy assumptions. These are the purview of the Coordinating Committee. Conflicts on a Technical Subcommittee are to be referred to the Coordinating Committee.

Information and Work Products: Information and work products that are developed from the technical work will be incorporated as appropriate into the anticipated planning process, including CWSP updates. The final report of the Coordinating Committee will include a summary of the results and status of the key work elements. It will provide a recommendation on the scope for Coordinated Water System Planning in King County. This report will include recommendations on the area to be covered by revised/updated/ new CWSPs and participation in the planning process. At a minimum, the report will recognize that the Cascade Water Alliance (CWA) and King County intend to develop or update relevant CWSP(s) to include key elements of CWA’s proposed operations and facilities and the incorporation of reclaimed water, and that the County will initiate any update(s) necessary to meet CWA’s needs. Other utilities will be encouraged to participate in updating their CWSPs. Participation by utilities will be voluntary; no utility will be compelled to participate in the CWA/King County CWSP process. The goal is to complete the updating of existing CWSPs and obtain the necessary approvals by December 31, 2007. Additional information is available in the Planning Framework Summary (October 31, 2005).

King County also anticipates developing a resolution to be considered by the King County Council during the first quarter of 2006 that will endorse the planning process and state the Council’s intentions to initiate a formal planning process under the Coordination Act by September 2006.

Timelines and deadlines: Please refer to the attached Planning Framework Summary for a full description of work products and due dates. Here are the key benchmark dates:

1st Quarter 2006

  • Transition the Scoping Committee into the Coordinating Committee
  • Formation of the various technical committees
  • Prioritization of tributaries to be addressed through source substitution: Phase I
  • Reclaimed water feasibility study: Phase I
  • Strategy for addressing small or failing systems
  • New rules (in draft form) to implement the Municipal Water Law
  • King County Council Resolution

2nd Quarter 2006

  • Reclaimed water feasibility study: Phase II, completed by June 2006

3rd Quarter 2006

  • Climate change analysis
  • New rules (final adoption) to implement the Municipal Water Law
  • Supply alternatives analysis for King County
  • New demand forecast

4th Quarter 2006

  • Reclaimed water feasibility study: Phase III
  • Prioritization of tributaries to be addressed through source substitution: Phase II
  • Source exchange strategy
  • Begin CWSP updates

1st Quarter 2007

  • Ongoing CWSP updates

2nd Quarter 2007

  • Ongoing CWSP updates

3rd Quarter 2007

  • Ongoing CWSP updates

4th Quarter 2007

  • King County Council and WA Department of Health approve updated CWSPs

Expectations for Facilitation: The Executive Committee has recommended that the Coordinating Committee be facilitated by an outside consultant and that the facilitator work closely with the Executive Committee as part of this process. Below is a list of general tasks that would be part of the facilitation work.

  1. Facilitate four to six meetings annually of the Coordinating Committee, which is responsible for overseeing development of the work products agreed to in the Planning Framework Summary, 10/31/05.
  1. Attend meetings of the Executive Committee and work closely with the Executive Committee and its members to assure open communications, move the process forward, and to the extent possible, keep the varied interests participating.
  1. Work with Technical Subcommittee leads to facilitatekeeping the Coordinating Committee informed of progress and raising issues to the Coordinating Committee for policy decisions or conflict resolutions. Should the Technical Subcommittees need facilitation, that would not be part of this contract.
  1. Work with key staff leads to be aware of concerns and to keep their respective entities involved and participating in the process.
  1. Work with Technical Subcommittee leads and key staff leads to develop the actual work products. It is expected that Coordinating Committee member staff will write the work products, but the facilitator will need to monitor and work with them to accomplish this according to the Coordinating Committee’s direction.
  1. Work with the Executive Committee and King County to develop a resolution for the King County Council, and for any other elective bodies, endorsing and moving forward the planning process.
  1. Work with staff to provide meeting summaries to Coordinating and Executive Committee members.
  1. Provide such reports and presentation as are necessary to elected officials, stakeholder groups, etc.
  1. Assist in any efforts to develop funding for the planning process at the federal, state, and local levels.

Resources Available to the Facilitator:

  1. Staff from various member entities, including King County, Cascade Water Alliance, Seattle Public Utilities, Department of Ecology, and potentially others.
  1. Meeting facilities, arrangement of meeting locations, and setting up meeting logistics.

1