The City of Alamo Heights conducted a Risk and Resilience Assessment (RRA) of its water utility as required by the America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018. The assessment was performed by engineering firm Freese & Nichols and found the City to be well positioned to handle threats to its water system due to redundant supply methods, security measures, and excess capacity. The RRA and accompanying Emergency Response Plan have been submitted to the EPA for certification and will need to be updated every five years to maintain compliance with federal regulations.

1. CITY OF ALAMO HEIGHTS
ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE DEPARTMENT
CITY COUNCIL AGENDA MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Phil Laney, Assistant City Manager
SUBJECT: A Briefing presenting the findings from the Risk and Resilience Assessment for
City Utilities conducted under the American’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018
(AWIA)
DATE: February 28, 2022
SUMMARY
A briefing presenting to City Council the findings from the Risk and Resilience Assessment for
the City’s Water Utility. The Risk and Resilience Assessment (RRA) is a requirement under
America’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) 2018. The RRA was conducted by the City’s
contract engineering firm, Freese & Nichols, Inc. (FNI).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
American’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) of 2018, Section 2013, requires that all community
water systems serving populations greater than 3,300 persons will assess risks to and resilience of
its system. The Risk and Resiliency Assessment (RRA) is conducted following national,
generally-accepted standards developed jointly by several independent agencies that oversee
water infrastructure components. Risk is assessed in terms of dollars per year, and existing
resiliencies, in the form of physical attributes, procedures, practices, staffing, etc., are assessed to
reduce the likelihood of interruptions of potable water services.
On April 12, 2021, City Council approved a professional services agreement with Freese and
Nichols, Inc. to provide assistance in identifying risks to the water system, resiliency to those
risks, and the subsequent response if an emergency occurs with the City’s water system.
The City’s RRA of the Water Utility evaluated a broad spectrum of both assets and associated
threats. From this evaluation, FNI generated a prioritized list of recommended mitigation
measures based on the existing system resilience, likely hazards, and the cost/benefit ratio for
implementation. The RRA found the City to be well positioned to handle any threats or risks due
to redundant methods to supply water to customers, active security measures, passive security
measures, and excess capacity. Moreover, the City is performing far better than many other
similarly sized communities.
In addition to the RRA, AWIA 2018 Emergency Response Plan (ERP) focuses on potable water
service providers and can be incorporated as an extension of the City’s Emergency Management
Plan. The ERP catalogues all resources associated with operating the potable water system,
support and supplier contact information, and local and regional response organization hierarchy.

2. Emergency response procedures were generated to response to applicable emergencies, detailing
required staff, materials, and communication frameworks.
The completed Risk and Resiliency Assessment and Emergency Response Plan have been
submitted for certification to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Both the RRA and ERP are to be updated every five years at a minimum to maintain Federal
compliance.
POLICY ANALYSIS
American’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) of 2018, Section 2013, requires that all community
water systems serving populations greater than 3,300 persons will assess risks to and resilience of
its system. The Risk and Resiliency Assessment and Emergency Response Plan required under
AWIA assess the likelihood of interruptions of potable water services, provide recommendations
to minimize those interruptions, and develop actions plans to respond to emergency situations
involving the potable water services. The City’s compliance with these Federal regulations
provide residents confidence in the health and safety of their potable water services.
FISCAL IMPACT
On April 12 2021 City Council approved funding in the amount of $54,425.00 to Freese and
Nichols, Inc. for services associated with the development of the Risk and Resiliency Assessment
and Emergency Response Plan.
______________________
Phil Laney
Assistant City Manager
Buddy Kuhn
City Manager