Amend_002_Continuation_Pages.pdf

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION

STANDARD FORM 30

CONTINUATION SHEET

SOLICITATION NUMBER

127EAS22Q0025

PAGE OF PAGES

2 3

SEE BELOW FOR QUESTIONS AND GOVERNMENT RESPONSES.

Question 1: Section C.7-2-1.4 of the Solicitation states that “all felled trees shall be lopped, scattered and laid flat”.

However, in some cases, the trees to be felled are so crowded and the amount of limbs that those trees will generate will be so great that it will not be possible to lay the logs flat on the ground. Thus, there will be logs laying on top of the limbs.

Additionally, there are already numerous downed trees that will need to be bucked and moved in order to prevent jack strawing of the trees to be felled.

Therefore, following section C.7-2-1.4 may more than double the contract bid verses simply felling the trees with no limning, bucking and laying flat.

Please provide clarification at your earliest convenience

Government Response: The overall plan is to allow firewood cutters access to all of the material as part of the Personal Use Fuelwood Permit program.

The Contractor shall strive to get the bole of the tree to lay flat on the ground, or otherwise stable and safe for firewood cutters to safely cut on the material. This can be accomplished by directionally felling each tree to a lay that allows a minimal amount of work by the Contractor for the bole to lay flat on the ground.

In essence, the bole of the tree shall not be left suspended by its branches, which would present a safety hazard to firewood cutters that are not trained/skilled in this procedure.

In certain circumstances and certain areas in the project, it is acknowledged that it would be a substantial task to prevent “jack strawing”, and thus it will be acceptable to allow some material to be left jack strawed.

However, jack strawing must be kept to a minimum, and must be limited to areas that have dense timber with high mortality. All of the boles of the trees need to be stable, unsuspended by limbs, and the jack strawing shall not exceed a height of 6-feet, so that firewood cutters can reasonably access and cut on the material safely.

Question 2: Please clarify blue paint marked on trees. Some trees are marked with blue paint and some aren’t.

Government Response: The painted trees should be ignored for this contract. They were part of a Timber Sale that was marked before the tree mortality occurred and the markings are no longer relevant. Hazard Tree assessment and felling shall still follow the Specifications (C.7-2) in the Solicitation regardless of markings.

Question 3: Please clarify cutting parameters and max dbh to cut. Contractor visually and physically inspected large dbh trees in contract area next to roads and trails that were very hazardous but did not have any markings.

Government Response: All trees that are a threat according to the Specifications (C.7-2) should be cut.

Disregard all markings (see answer to question 1).

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION

STANDARD FORM 30

CONTINUATION SHEET

SOLICITATION NUMBER

127EAS22Q0025

PAGE OF PAGES

3 3

SEE BELOW FOR QUESTIONS AND GOVERNMENT RESPONSES.

Question 4: Please provide clarification regarding what types of equipment are allowed and which areas in the contract area to avoid with equipment?

Government Response: It is expected that much of this Contract can be performed without the use of equipment, except when needing to clear a large tree from a parking area, trail, or road.

The “type” of equipment must meet the Specification as written.

As per the Specification:

Mechanical equipment (if proposed) must be approved in writing by the COR or CO prior to starting work.

Otherwise, all mechanical equipment (including vehicles) must remain on roadways or in turnouts along the existing road system. If proposed and approved:

All equipment will use practices that limit soil disturbance such as using low ground pressure equipment (<10psi), driving on slash, and not driving on soils that are saturated, as determined by either the COR or a Forest Hydrologist.

No equipment (hand work only is required) within the 50-foot WBBZ of Dry Creek in some units.

Refueling is prohibited within 75-feet of the Dry Creek Riparian Conservation Area.

Question 5: Is all material staying in the forest or is any of the slash, logs, etc. being chipped, piled, moved or hauled once trees are felled, limbed and bucked?

Government Response: All material is staying in the forest. It should all stay in the unit where it is felled, except when felled across a parking area, trail, or road. This material must be moved off the parking area, trail, or road to allow safe passage past the material.

Limbing and bucking is not required beyond what is necessary to lay the material on the ground.

Slash, logs, etc. will not be chipped or piled as part of this Contract. It should all stay in the unit where it is felled, except when felled across a parking area, trail, or road. This material must be moved off the parking area, trail, or road to allow safe passage past the material.

The overall plan is to then allow firewood cutters to access all of the material as part of the Personal Use Fuelwood Permit program. A subsequent Contract may be released in the future for handling of any remaining material but is not part of this Contract.