Combo RFQ SOI EF SOW PsCs 127EAS24Q0001 (Drafted).pdf

127EAS24Q0001

Southwestern Region

Sierra National Forest, Balsam Site Prep

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial services prepared in accordance with (IAW) the format prescribed in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

Solicitation 127EAS24Q0001 is issued as a request for quote (RFQ).

This procurement is being issued as a 100% SMALL BUSINESS SET ASIDE.

North American Industrial Classification Standard (NAICS)115310, Size standard of $11.5 Million.

This solicitation document incorporates provisions and clauses of those in effect through Federal

Acquisition Circular 2023-04 and Agriculture Acquisition Regulation (AGAR) last updated 11 March

2021. The result of this requirement will be a firm fixed priced (FFP) contract.

ATTACHMENTS:

1. Schedule of Items (SOI)

2. Evaluation Criteria

3. SOW

4. RFQ Provisions and Clauses

5. Project Maps

6. Wage Determination

CONTRACTOR MUST SUBMIT:

1. Completed and Signed SOI

2. Past Performance Document

3. Technical Approach Document

4. Reps and Certs

• Please see evaluation criteria attachment for further information.

There will be a site visit for this requirement on 9 November 2023 at 9:00 PST. All wishing to attend the site visit will meet at 29688 Auberry Road, Prather CA, otherwise know as the High Sierra Ranger District and will proceed from there to the project location. Please RSVP for the site visit by emailing olivia.roe@usda.gov.

All questions pertaining to this acquisition shall be asked no later than, 20 November 2023 at 10:00AM, PST. Questions shall be sent to Perry Rinato via email at perry.rinato@usda.gov. Email must be titled, “127EAS24Q0001 – RFQ Question”.

It is the responsibility of the offeror to view the website for any changes or amendments to this RFQ.

Quotes are due to Perry Rinato via email at perry.rinato@usda.gov no later than, 27 November 2023 at

10:00AM, PST. Quote emails must be titled, “127EAS24Q0001 – RFQ Submission”.

mailto:olivia.roe@usda.gov

Schedule of Items/Price Schedule

SCHEDULE OF ITEMS

PROJECT Sierra National Forest, Balsam Site Prep

UNIT Southwest Zone

SOL # 127EAS24Q0001

ITEM

NO.

DESCRIPTION

UNIT

of

ISSUE

UNIT

QTY

UNIT

PRICE

TOTAL PRICE

BASE: Units 35, 36, 37, 38,40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, &

49. Treatment and preparation for future tree planting IAW the

Statement of Work.

Acre 504 $_________ $_________________

BASE: Roadside Hazard

Treatment. Felling and pilling of units 108 & 109

Acre 151 $_________ $_________________

BASE: Surface blading.

Treatment of roads 8S47, 8S47A, 8S33, 8S33A, 8S08 and 9S03.

Miles 9.8 $_________ $_________________

BASE: Ditch and water control feature Cleaning.

Miles 9.8 $_________ $_________________

BASE: Culvert, funnel, intake/discharge cleaning Each 60 $_________ $_________________

BASE: Culvert Hand work.

Clearing of trees, stumps and other woody vegetation

Each 60 $_________ $_________________

Option: Units

1,2,3,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14 &

15. Treatment and preparation for future planting. Steep ground units. IAW the statement of

Work.

Acre 575.17 $_________ $_________________

TOTAL $

NOTES 1. Responses for quantities less than those listed in the numbered items may be rejected

2. Responses without prices for each item and sub-item may be rejected.

PRICE SUBMITTED BY

Signature

Phone:

Vendor Fax:

Address Email:

Cage

Code POC:

UEI

Evaluation Criteria and Instructions for Quote Submission

The Government intends to award a firm fixed price contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the

Government, price and other factors considered.

The Government will evaluate proposals using a tradeoff process to determine the best value to the

Government. This process permits tradeoffs among cost or price and non-cost factors and allows the

Government to determine a quote the most advantageous proposal based upon the evaluation factors specified in the solicitation.

The evaluation factors for this acquisition are: (1) Technical Approach, (2) Past Performance, and (3)

Price. The Government may perform a comparative evaluation (comparing offers to each other) to select the contractor that provides the best value, considering the evaluation factors in this solicitation.

The Government will evaluate proposals based on the perceived value of the proposed technical approach and past performance, as well as the proposed price.

A technical approach document shall be provided as part of the quote and address the contractor’s proposed plan of accomplishing the required work by detailing the steps, equipment, manpower, or any other relevant factors the contractor plans to use for this project. The document shall not be longer than

15 pages in total length.

The Technical Approach factor will be evaluated based on the offeror’s understanding of the requirements, the soundness of the proposed approach, and the feasibility of successfully completing the contract within the required timeframe. The contractor shall identify the methods for completing work identifying and explaining how the contractor will develop the required outcomes of the SOW.

The Past Performance factor will be evaluated based on the offeror’s recent and relevant experience providing similar services to those required by this solicitation. To rate past performance, the contractor shall provide a list of no more than 3 projects of a similar nature that they have completed, and provide points of contact and contract information for the end users of the projects.

The Government reserves the right to make an award to other than the lowest priced quote or other than the highest technically rated offeror if it is determined to be in the best interest of the Government. The

Government will make a best value determination by considering the relative importance of price and non-price factors, as well as any tradeoffs made among those factors.

Offerors that do not submit all sections of evaluation factors may not be considered for contract award.

Responses should be submitted on the most favorable terms that the offeror could make to the

Government.

The Government reserves the right to reject any or all offers or to make award without conducting negotiations.

52.217-4 Evaluation of Options Exercised at Time of Contract Award. (June 1988)

Except when it is determined in accordance with FAR 17.206(b) not to be in the Government’s best interests, the Government will evaluate the total price for the basic requirement together with any option(s) exercised at the time of award.

Sierra National Forest, Balsam Site Preparation

Statement of Work

Description of Work:

The intent of this contract is to treat the remaining fuels and prepare the identified areas for future tree planting on the Balsam area of the High Sierra R.D. on the Sierra National Forest. Work on this project shall be done in a manner that does not damage residual trees and vegetation not specified to be treated or other resources.

This treatment requires the contractor to fell standing dead trees, to thin, where appropriate, stands and roads of surviving conifer saplings and to treat the created and existing slash, brush and remnant Creek fire right of way material. The remnant Creek fire material may consist of piles of slash not appropriately placed, log decks, and other natural material that will need to be piled in a manner suitable for burning.

Created slash is the slash created by the contractor’s activities. Existing slash is the slash already present on site. This includes trees that have fallen or already have been felled, branches or tops that have fallen and live and dead brush. It is expected that 90% of vegetation within the units will be treated. All the slash is to be treated. One example of this treatment would be to pile the material for future burning. Alternative proposals for treating this hazard are encouraged and will be considered, they must meet the objectives of reducing the hazard and preparing the site for planting. The project is in the Big Creek drainage area of the

High Sierra R.D. on the Sierra N.F.

Background:

In the fall of 2020, the project area burned in the Creek fire. This fire impacted over 300,000 acres of the

Sierra N.F. In the project area the fire burned at various intensities. In some units you will see stands where the fire has killed most of the above ground vegetation on site. In other areas, the fire damaged the stand, leaving it susceptible in the coming years to beetles and droughts. Post fire mortality has played a role in this area, creating a need to treat the stands imminently. This project is designed to prepare identified areas for planting and to treat the remaining fuels.

In the winter of 2023, the weather was extremely impactful on the stands and the road systems on the forest. Many roads received extensive damage, causing access issues and delaying implementation. The forest has been working to provide temp repairs to the roads, and while many roads do have a temp repair applied to them, they can easily be damaged again.

Project Location:

The area to be treated is in the Big Creek area of the High Sierra Ranger District, Sierra National Forest.

The main access road is Huntington Lake road off of Highway 168 just east of Shaver Lake. From the prather office follow highway 168 to the “top of the 4 lane”, continue towards Shaver Lake and through the town of Shaver Lake. Continue through Shaver Lake towards Huntington Lake, once past the Shaver Lake damn, you will find the entrance to the lake marina on your right, Huntington Lake Road is a left.

The units are not flagged. Additionally due to timbersales being attempted pre Creek fire, there will be multiple paint colors, and potential “boundary” trees in the area. The contractor MUST USE GPS and georeference the files provided for the boundaries. The contractor must provide their own devise for using this program. The contractors device is expected to have an accuracy of +_ 30 ft.

See vicinity and project area maps.

Location Description:

Units contain standing dead and down conifers and live conifers in various size classes and shrubs of various species and sizes within a variety of vegetation types, density and heights, logging and debris slash.

The contractor will be provided with a GPS File that can be used with commercially available handheld

GPS devises or a GEO Referenced PDF map that is compatible with Smart Phone applications such as

AVENZA PDF MAPS or GAIA Maps. facilitate locating the unit boundaries. The contractor must provide their own devise for using this program. Acres will be measured in GIS or with a hand-held GPS unit.

Note: Moving between segments may or may not require use of a transport. If the road surfaces are dirt it is usually acceptable to walk the equipment on that road, if however, the road surface is paved or chip sealed or otherwise improved it probably is not allowable to walk the equipment on these roads. Also some roads are not suited for a long transport. Some of the roads are also in poor repair. It is recommended that the contractor examine the routes to the units to determine the transport needs.

A. Accessibility: Work site access instruction as given here is for information only. It shall be the responsibility of the Contractor to determine the most suitable route to the project area. The

Government will not provide special maintenance or snow plowing to open roads or keep roads open.

B. The Contractor shall be responsible for obtaining all permits necessary for the transportation of equipment on Federal, state, county, and private roads. Some roads at the project site are controlled by private companies, and use will relay on their permission.

C. Boundaries: A GPS file with the designated track areas will be provided. It is up to the contractor to provide a means of displaying and following this GPS file, and to complete the contract to specification.

D. Examination of Project Work Area: The contractor is strongly encouraged to inspect the project work area. The Government has provided estimates of treatment area acreages. It will be assumed that the contractor has satisfied itself as to the nature of the work to be performed and the character of all conditions to be encountered. The attached maps (Section D) are intended to show only the general size and location of the project units.

E. "non-work areas" may exist within the boundaries identified for treatment. These "non-work areas" may consist of rock areas, groups of trees, or other special areas such as excessively steep slopes that either may not require actual treatment or may be inaccessible for treatment. If more than one-half acre of untreated "non-work areas" are found to exist, the Forest Service will measure the acres actually treated within the specified boundaries after work is completed. This measurement of actual work completed will be used to determine the total number of acres treated for payment, and a modification will be completed to reflect the exact number of acres treated.

F. Avoidance areas may exist within the contract, these may be flagged with various color combinations of flagging (Blue/Black candy stripe with white, or dayglow green and orange) when such areas are encountered, they will be avoided and work will not occur within these areas.

Maps:

Any maps included in the appendices are general in nature and are not to be considered as definitively identifying locations. The contractor shall be required to have a Global Positioning System (GPS) and a mobile electronic device with GPS capabilities (i.e. smart phone, tablets) with a program capable of reading a .pdf map for each piece of equipment and/or crew. The government will provide a file with location information compatible with the program Avenza. Devices using GPS must have submeter accuracy and be capable of accepting/uploading shapefiles or track logs compatible with ARCGIS 10.3 or newer. Due to the fire and several past attempted contracts, there is several colors of paint in places. It needs to be noted that the boundaries are to be followed using the GPS and georeferenced files and not the paint.

Required Outcomes:

Treat the stands and prepare the identified areas for future tree planting. Felling of snags (leaving 4 per acre) within the project site and the treatment of the slash and brush. Treatment can be completed through the use of hand and or mechanical treatments.

Priority Of Work and Work Conditions:

The Forest Service may specify the priority of work by item or sub-item (unit) within an item, without additional cost. Nothing in this section shall be construed to take away any of the Government's rights under the Suspension of Work Clause (52.242-14). Work may be performed at any time during the period of the contract, except during the following conditions:

A. In accordance with the fire plan in Section J.

B. When the Contracting Officer determines that adverse weather has made access or project production, unacceptable, too dangerous or ground damaging, or continued vehicular travel would cause unacceptable road damage.

C. Between dusk and dawn (unless otherwise agreed upon by the Forest Service and the

Contractor).

D. On Saturday and Sunday (unless otherwise agreed upon by the Forest Service and the

Contractor).

E. Contractor shall limit treatment operations within 300 feet of residences to weekdays and non-holidays only, between the hours of 7:00 am and 7:00 pm. Servicing and maintenance of machinery and equipment is excluded from this limitation.

F. Operations shall not occur during or 1-2 days after a storm event (1/2 inch of precipitation or greater) unless authorized by the Forest Service. The Forest Service may require the review of soil and conditions by soil scientist before operations can resume after a storm event. By written agreement, operations may occur if ground conditions are frozen.

G. Soils in the operating area must be dry enough to prevent rutting by a single pass of the equipment.

H. Contractor's equipment shall not cross meadows, "wet" stream channels, or other non-work areas, except by prior, written agreement with Contracting Officer.

I. Limited Operating Period (LOP). There are a number of limited operating periods applicable to this project. These include nesting birds (March 1 – August 15) and mammals of concern

(March 1 – June 15). All units are subject to the species limited operating period unless it is adjusted or waived by the District Biologist. Surveys are conducted in the spring to determine the presence of the species of interest. If not present the LOP may be waived for specific unit(s).

General Information:

Treatment requires the thinning of green trees, felling of snags (leaving 4 per acre) within the project site and the treatment of the slash and brush through the use of hand and or mechanical methods.

All the contractor’s activities must be accomplished without damage to resources or improvements.

The contractor is responsible for completing an 8ft fire line around the perimeter of units.

The project is paid for by the acre. Acres will be measured in GIS or with a hand-held GPS unit.

The Contractor must have on site a representative able to speak fluent English and understand the written

English language.

Licenses and Insurance:

The contractor shall obtain and maintain all appropriate insurance and licenses.

Contractor-Furnished Equipment:

The Contractor shall provide all transportation, equipment, tools, personnel, and supplies necessary to complete this project. Equipment shall be furnished on a fully operational basis, of modern design, and in good operating condition, with a competent, fully qualified operator. The Contractor shall be responsible for all fuel, lubrication, repair, and replacement for its equipment. All chainsaws and other motorized equipment shall be equipped with Forest Service approved spark arrestors and meet Calif. Division of

Industrial Safety specifications. The required equipment shall meet the following specifications:

A. The contractor may propose any equipment that can do the job to the specifications (without resource damage). The equipment must be able to work slopes up to 35% with possible short runs at a greater slope. There are areas where the equipment may need to work in tight spacing between living trees or protected resources. Tethered or winch-assisted logging operations:

o Steep slope operations using tethered or winch-assisted ground-based equipment will be limited to slopes less than 60 percent.

o Equipment should traverse steep slopes straight up and down with no sidehilling, o Equipment is allowed to weave between leave trees.

o Equipment must maintain traction to reduce soil displacement or rutting.

o Equipment, when able, should operate over continuous slash covered areas.

The contractor must be able to work between the trees without damaging the standing trees. The equipment shall have an OSHA approved rollover protection system. If piling is to be done with a tractor, it shall be equipped with a brush rake which is strong enough to pile the material, push brush from the ground and place this material in a pile that is properly constructed and free of dirt.

Piling is not to be done with a regular dozer blade. An alternative to the brush rake would be a grapple system capable of picking the slash up to place in the piles. The fire line is to be constructed with a regular blade. In the past, equipment such as feller- bunchers, processors, skidders, tractors and excavators have been used to complete similar work.

B. Be equipped with the tools and supplies necessary for making emergency and routine repairs and servicing.

C. Power or hand saw(s) may be needed for felling, slash pile maintenance and to prepare material to be piled.

D. Machine cutting/piling equipment shall be of the low ground pressure type

E. All equipment must be in good running condition with no excessive fluid leaks or overheating.

F. All chainsaws or other motorized equipment shall be equipped with Forest Service approved spark arresters. Spark arresters are not required on equipment powered by exhaust-driven turbo-charged engines or motor vehicles equipped with a maintained muffler as defined in

California Public Resources Code, Section 4442 and 4443.

G. Contractor shall be required to have a Global Positioning System (GPS) and a mobile electronic device with GPS capabilities (i.e. smart phone, tablets) with a program capable of reading a .pdf map for each piece of equipment and/or crew. A good program example is

Avenza. Devices using GPS must have sub-meter accuracy and be capable of accepting/uploading shapefiles or track logs compatible with ARCGIS 10.3 or newer.

Inspection Of Equipment:

The Government reserves the right to inspect the contractor’s equipment at any time during contract performance. If the equipment is not in proper working condition or is in need repairs it shall be rejected for use on Forest Service land. The decision of the Contracting Officer shall be final as to whether equipment is in suitable condition for acceptance.

Cleaning Of Equipment:

The Contractor shall certify in writing via email to the COR that off-road equipment is free of noxious weeds prior to each start-up of contract operations and for subsequent moves of equipment to contract area.

The certification shall indicate the measures taken to ensure that off-road equipment is free of noxious weeds and shall be identified.

The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer’s Representative at least 5 working days prior to moving each piece of equipment on to National Forest Land, unless otherwise agreed. Notification will include identifying the location of the equipment’s most recent operations. Unless the prior location of operation is known to be free of noxious weeds as documented in a Weed Risk Assessment (Section D), Forest Service may assume that the equipment is contaminated with noxious weed seeds. In general, because of the magnitude of the yellow star thistle infestation and other noxious weeds in northern and central California, equipment coming from off-forest sites will be considered contaminated and cleaning/washing will be required. Upon request of Forest Service, arrangements will be made for Forest

Service to inspect each piece of equipment prior to it being placed in service.

If the Contractor is working in a Forest Service project area that is known to be infested by noxious weeds, the contractor must clean off-road equipment prior to moving equipment into another Forest Service unit that is not infested with noxious weeds.

Contractor shall ensure that the equipment moved on to National Forest Land is free of soil, vegetative matter, or other debris that could contain or hold seeds. Contractor shall employ whatever cleaning methods necessary to ensure compliance with the terms of this provision and shall notify Forest Service prior to moving each piece of equipment onto National Forest Land. Notification will include identifying the location of the equipment's most recent operations. Upon request of Forest Service, arrangements will be made to inspect each piece of equipment prior to it being placed into service. This will prevent the introduction of the seeds of noxious weeds onto National Forest Land.

Definitions:

A. Brush – Live scrub vegetation, though some may be over 20 feet tall or woody plants such as

Arctostaphylos species i.e. (manzanita), Ceanothus species i.e. (deer brush) and various other species. This does not include small conifers.

B. Chips - The woody residue resulting from the mechanical shredding/chipping activity. Residue size is usually less than 2 inches, but occasionally is up 2 feet in length.

o Chip size for mastication.

o FINE TREATMENT

a. 75% <=6 inches (15.2 cm) in length

b. 20% >6 inches (15.2 cm) and <2 feet (.6 m) in length

c. 5% 2 feet (.6 m) through 6 feet (1.8 m) in length

d. With accumulations not exceeding 12 inches (45.7 cm) in depth

C. Conifer- A cone bearing tree with needles or leaf scales including, but not limited to ponderosa pine, sugar pine, incense cedar, Douglas fir, giant sequoia, and bull pine (also known as Grey pine); does not necessarily have cones at any given time.

D. Controlled - area within contract boundaries designated to be protected from all Contractor operations, these areas will be flagged on the ground and avoided during all operations.

E. Cross-Raked – Removal of mounds and gullies caused by tractor’s slash piling operations in order to prevent erosion of topsoil. Usually performed crossing from side to side of the unit, contour to the slope.

F. Cull Log – A non-utilized log over 18 inches in diameter on the small end, and 10 feet in length.

G. Damage Tree (Created) - Any damage created by work under this contract. Includes the stripping or removing of branches and debarking the bole of a leave tree in excess of ¼ of the circumference of the tree.

H. Damage Tree (Existing) – Includes any defect or deformity of a tree resulting from agents such as wind, snow, animals, insects, disease, and equipment. Indicators include dead or broken tops or branches, or debarking extending more than ¼ of the circumference of the tree.

I. D.B.H. - Diameter at Breast Height, measured 4 1/2 ft. above the ground on the uphill side of the tree trunk.

J. Downed Log –All or part of the trunk of a felled tree greater than 10 inches in diameter at the mid-point and at least 10 feet in length. Includes logs in all of the various stages of decomposition.

K. Ground Cover or Duff Layer - Living or dead vegetation. Usually consists of a composition of cast needles, fine sticks or twigs, live plants, and slash less than 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter large end.

L. Hardwood – A tree with broad, flat leaves including but not limited to oak, maple, willow, alder, cottonwood or dogwood.

M. Horizontal Plane – Acreage measured as though the terrain were level, with no adjustment for changes in slope.

N. Landscape Design- The design of a large area composed of interacting ecosystems that are repeated due to factors such as geology, soils, climate and human impacts.

O. Leave Tree – A healthy looking, well-formed, undamaged tree, to be left undisturbed. Oaks are to be included as leave trees.

P. Limited Operating Period (LOP) - A specified period of time during which certain activities are prohibited.

Q. Logging Slash – Slash/Debris created from previous logging or fuel treatment projects.

R. Mastication – The physical process of cutting, shredding and/or chipping vegetation.

S. Mineral Soil - State of soil, generally below where humus and large organic matter is not present. The absence of combustible material.

T. Noxious Weeds – Those plant species designated as noxious weeds by the Secretary of

Agriculture or by the responsible State official. The primary species of concern for the project area are: Yellow Star-Thistle, Medusa Head, Klamath Weed, Bull Thistle and Italian Thistle.

Any plant species designated as noxious by the California Department of Agriculture would be of concern if found in the project area. This list can be viewed at www.cdfa.ca.gov/weedhome.

U. Opening – An area where there are no leave trees or snags within 30 feet of each other.

V. Pile – An assemblage of slash and vegetation laid or lying one upon another to create a compact mound, bundle, heap or deck, that is soil free. A pile is created by the dozer pushing slash and vegetation with the brush rake during the piling operations.

W. Plastic Limit – A measurement of soil moisture.

X. Residual Tree or Leave Tree – Live tree(s) to be left standing and undamaged that comprise the forest following the Contractor’s operations.

Y. Riparian Vegetation – Plant species typically associated with and found in wet drainages. They include, but are not limited to alder, willow, cottonwood, or maple in the over story and sedges and rushes underneath.

Z. Shred/Cut/Chip - The physical process of cutting, shredding and/or chipping vegetation using a cutter head powered by hydraulic or mechanical means.

AA. Slash – Debris consisting of portions of brush and /or trees created naturally, by work under this contract or debris created prior to this contract including all brush and cut trees, tops, trunks, and branches. Material with diameters of 1 inches (cm) and larger, and over 3 feet (cm) in length.

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/weedhome

BB. Snag - A standing dead tree with a DBH of at least 16 inches (45 cm) and at least 20 feet (6 m) tall.

CC. Vegetation – A woody plant, live or dead, with no main stem, which does not usually grow higher than 8 feet. For example: ceanothus, manzanita, and choke cherry

DD. Windrow – A pile which is longer than it is wide.

Traffic control Plan:

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, when Contractor’s Operations are in progress adjacent to or on Forest

Service controlled roads and trails open to public travel, the Contractor shall furnish, install, and maintain all temporary traffic controls that provide the user with adequate warning of hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions associated with Contractor’s Operations. Contractor and Forest Service shall agree to a specific Traffic Control plan for each individual project prior to commencing operations.

Felling:

Felling shall be done so that no live trees, either hardwood or conifer, improvements or other resources are damaged. Dead trees within the unit boundaries shall be felled. The contractor shall fall the clearly dead trees. Trees that appear to be dying shall be felled only if approved by the Forest Service. The contractor shall leave four snags per acre. These should be amongst the largest available. They may be in a group. All snags that could hit a road or other improvement if they were to fall should be felled.

Felling may be by hand or machine except in areas too steep for machine work and areas specifically prohibited from machine work. Felling must adhere to all safety practices including PPE. Signs must be placed on the road to warn travelers of the felling activities. They shall be placed in both directions. When falling may impact the road, road guards must be in place for traffic control. Felling must not damage live trees.

Stump heights must be less than 12 inch measured on the low side. Trees hung up during falling must be dealt with till they are safely on the ground. Falling green trees to accomplish this requires COR approval.

The government will determine if this material will be made available to the contractor. Trees shall be felled so that they can be treated as required. Trees felled into the road must be cleared promptly and without damaging the road. The road shall be promptly cleaned of bark and other residual of the felled tree.

All stumps along the roadways will be flush cut. Including stumps that are remnants of previous work.

There are several high stumps, these will need to be recut to meet specifications.

When possible:

A. Provide hiding cover and retain the structure underneath the canopy of mature Black Oaks and

Incense Cedar trees 30 inch DBH and larger by not treating trees and brush vegetation growing within the canopy.

B. If possible, take advantage of existing visible cavities on 2 to 3 mature Black Oaks per acre.

Where no visible cavity is present, select a mature Black Oak with a full dominant crown to reach the 2 to 3 oak per acre requirement.

C. Do not disturb live trees or dead trees that are leaning (like a ladder) against a mature Black oak or an Incense cedar 30 inch DBH or larger.

D. Prevent damage to protected resources and improvements during felling operations is imperative.

E. Trees shall be felled into a location that facilitates follow up treatments. This includes not felling into streamside management or other controlled areas, areas too steep for future work, across roads or into meadows.

F. Any trees hung up during falling must be dealt with and put on the ground.

G. All project created stumps, including those of shrubs, shall be less than 12 inches high as measured from the uphill side.

H. All unobstructed stumps shall be severed below the lowest live limb. This includes trees and brush.

I. Effort shall be made to fall in such a manner that the fallen trees are not felled on top of one another.

Skidding:

If the contractor’s proposal includes the skidding of logs the following guidelines apply:

A. Existing skid trails shall be used whenever possible.

B. New skid trails shall be constructed only with government approval.

C. Operations shall be conducted to minimize the number of skid trails required.

D. Skidding shall not damage residual vegetation, other resources or improvements.

E. Skidding on natural surface roads is approved but repair of the road surface will be required.

Skidding may be allowed on oiled or paved roads with COR approval. If allowed the skidding must be completed without damage to the road, curbs and road apron. Road surface must be cleaned promptly including all the bark and dirt left on the road after skidding.

Landings:

If the contractor’s proposal includes the decking of logs at a landing the following guidelines apply:

A. The use of existing landings is preferred. It is desired to minimize both the number of and the size of the landings.

B. New landing construction shall be done only after consultation with and approval by the government. Cutting of living trees shall be avoided during landing construction and only done with government approval.

C. When possible decks and slash piles in the landings shall be placed away from the landings edge.

D. Logs shall be decked not piled.

E. If whole tree yarded, the tops shall be decked. If the landing is too small, it may be necessary to pile the limbs and tops outside the landing.

A fire line around the perimeter of landings and disposal sites is required. It is to be one dozer blade wide

(approx. 10 ft), scraped to mineral soil and water bars placed where necessary and completed in a timely fashion. The fire line shall be around the perimeter of the landing not directly adjacent to the deck or pile.

Piling:

If the contractor’s proposal includes piling of slash for future burning (by the government) the following guidelines apply. This applies to piles in the units, on landings and on disposal sites. Piles in landings and disposal sites should be placed near the center of the site and not be so big that they would damage timber outside the landing when burned.

A. If piling is the agreed upon slash treatment, the contractor shall pile at least 90% of the slash greater than 3 feet in length and all material over 3 inches in diameter. The piles shall be free from dirt and built in a haystack shape. Manzanita and other live brush shall be uprooted and crushed before being placed in a pile, this facilitates making a tightly compacted pile and creating small pieces that are left behind as ground cover, which is often lacking when piling brush. Slash and vegetation may be left in place where vegetation is so close to leave trees that the removal of the vegetation would cause damage to the leave trees. Leave trees and vegetation not specified to be treated shall be left undisturbed. The Contractor is not required to clear and pile bear clover. It is desired to leave four down logs per acre. It is preferred that they not be directly adjacent to a road or burn pile. They should be aligned so as not to roll.

B. If piling with a dozer/brush rake, the brush rake shall be suspended approximately 6 inches (15

cm) above ground level, to retain a 50% soil, duff and smaller fine material ground cover. This material should not be so much as to be a fuels hazard. Materials which are less than 3 inches in diameter and less than 24 inches in length may be left to attain the ground cover requirements. If the slash cover exceeds 50%, the Contractor shall pile the smaller fuels to meet the slash piling requirements. If a grapple tool is used the same cover requirements apply.

C. The Contractor shall cut the slash (both created and existing), as necessary, into lengths that allow piling without injuring the residual crop trees, and the burning of the pile without damaging residual vegetation. The contractor must not damage the standing trees when moving this material. In areas where there are no standing live trees that could be damaged longer material may be piled. In these areas fewer and larger piles facilitate burning.

D. Piles or any portion thereof shall be located in openings at least 15 feet from the nearest leave trees, drainages, Control Areas (CA), or unit boundaries, and 30 feet from snags. There may be areas where pile placement is difficult because of the remaining crop trees. The contractor may have to push the material to a suitable pile location. A suitable location is one where the pile may be burned without damaging the crop trees or other protected vegetation. The size of the pile shall be adjusted to the size of the opening and the size of the surrounding trees. If the opening is large the pile may be large, if the opening is small the pile size must be adjusted.

The size of the surrounding trees also is a consideration for the pile size. If the trees are large and the limbs are farther from the ground the pile may be a little larger but if the surrounding trees are smaller with the crown near the pile, the pile must be smaller. More space is required above (uphill) the pile than below. The piles should be worked from all sides.

E. Piles shall be at least 15 feet inside of the unit perimeter. There must be enough room to construct a fire-line by machines around the pile and that when the pile is burned it will not damage the outside vegetation.

F. Piles shall be compact and be as free of dirt as possible. If, in the judgment of the Contracting

Officer’s Representative or other designated official, the piles contain excessive soil, the piles shall be broken apart, re-piled, and the soil dispersed over the area. To create a more compact pile, push large logs piled parallel in the base of the pile and continue to push additional slash on top. The length of the pile shall be approximately equal to its width, and the height shall be at least half of its diameter. Materials overhanging the pile’s edge that are greater than 6 feet (2

m) in length, shall be cut off and placed into the pile. When building piles with log like material care should be taken to build the pile so the logs will not roll both during the pile construction and as much as possible during burning.

G. All materials partially pushed over, hung up, left in an unsafe position, shall be either reworked with the tractor or felled by hand.

H. Soil disturbance caused by the Contractor’s operations which may cause erosion shall be cross raked on the contour.

I. Existing water bars shall be left intact. The Contractor shall avoid water bars or lift the implement blades prior to driving over them. The Contractor shall restore, at no cost to the

Government, water bars in skid trails, fire lines, spur roads, road blocks, and other items affected by his/her operations. Erosion work must be completed in a timely manner. This means that the erosion structures must be maintained and in working condition when a weather event is predicted regardless of progress of the other work.

J. Grapple piling shall adhere to the same specifications as stated for tractor piles. To minimize ground disturbance the contractor shall operate in a fashion that maximizes the use of the boom and minimizes the amount of area the machine tracks over. The operator shall work the pile from all sides. This will help prevent fire from creeping out of the pile when burned. The pile shall not be connected to areas of un-piled material (example: non-work areas, areas with only small ground cover, snag patches, streamside zones, unit boundaries).

K. Fire lines: If piling of material is part of the proposal fire lines must be constructed around the piles. This can be around each individual pile or groups of piles, however When possible, the contractor shall use singular control lines to encompass larger consolidated acres of piled vegetation. Multiple control lines containing numerous smaller piles across a common area may only be permitted if a larger singular control line is not practicable.

o For example, if five acres are covered with piles, the five acres shall be lined with a control line around the perimeter of the 5 Acres.

o Alternatively, if the same five-acre area only contains one or two piles, it is acceptable for control lines to encompass only the individual piles. If these two larger piles are individually lined within the 5 Acre area, a control line to contain both the individually lined piles together is not required.

o Any deviations may only be permitted with approval from the COR or Contracting

Officer. The fire line shall be 8-10 feet wide and constructed to mineral earth. Where appropriate water bars shall be installed. The water bars need to be completed before anticipated rain events. The fire line must be constructed without damage to residual vegetation or other resources.

L. Hand piling may be required in some of the areas. The piles shall be well constructed in a haystack shape and the material in the pile densely placed. Hand piles are the least preferred pile type.

M. Piles may not be constructed on top of snags, rocks or logs.

N. All current decks, piles and material within units will need to be piled in the units per the above specifications.

Mastication:

If the proposal includes mastication the material treated must be ground to smaller than 2 feet in length.

The material should be ground into the soil to reduce the flammability and continuity of the remaining mulch. This style of mastication/mulching is commonly referred to as subsoil mastication/mulching.

Usually, a drum type masticating machine works better than a disk for this type of treatment.

A combination of mastication and felling and piling is acceptable.

Thinning Specifications:

Some sections of the project area are occupied by surviving trees. Where the trees occur in groups that are closer together than 20 feet the contractor shall thin them to a spacing of 20 by 20 feet between boles. If the trees are less than 16 inch DBH the spacing shall be 18x18. The surviving trees are a mix of ponderosa and sugar pine, doug fir, cedar and white fir. No live conifers greater than 30 inch shall be cut.

Selection of the leave trees shall be made with the following:

A. Leave Trees Selection: Leave trees shall generally be the tallest, most vigorous, healthy, largest crown, and straightest stems that are free of damage due to insects, diseases, physical or mechanical causes. The Contractor shall select leave trees based on the following priorities:

o Healthy undamaged trees at the required spacing intervals.

▪ Crown class - must be either vigorous dominant or co-dominant.

▪ Crown ratio - 30% or more of the total height must be live crown.

▪ Vigor - healthy and vigorous in appearance. Terminal growth must be equal to or greater than that of competitors.

o If no healthy, undamaged tree exists within the spacing requirements, leave the best, disease free, tree available, including oaks, to meet the stocking requirements.

▪ A tree with minor mistletoe infection: Minor mistletoe infection is defined as a tree with 20 percent or less of the crown infected and with no mistletoe within one foot of the main bole.

▪ Trees with crown damage may be left providing there are no signs of rot, and the tree has established a new leader (top) with a minimum of two years growth visible.

o Within categories listed above, selection shall be made based on the following priority order:

▪ Black Oak

▪ Sugar pine (rust free)

▪ Ponderosa pine

▪ Douglas Fir

▪ Incense cedar

▪ White Fir

▪ Canyon Live Oak

▪ The ponderosa and sugar pine are to be favored but that does not mean select an inferior ponderosa or sugar over a better cedar or white fir. The intention is to have a ponderosa dominated stand but not a monoculture. Therefore, a sugar pine, white fir or cedar should be selected about 20% of the time. It should still meet the other specifications regarding form and vigor and be disease free.

Generally, the resulting species composition should be 80% Ponderosa pine with the remaining species percentage being other suitable species from the priority list.

Note: As stated elsewhere live, conifers greater, than 30 inch DBH, black oaks greater than 4inch DBH and live oaks greater than 20 inch DBH are not to be cut.

Fisher rest site (Preserving Pacific Fisher habitat): Fisher rest sites will be flagged with green glo, white and red candy stripe tape and avoided. When possible, provide hiding cover and retain the structure underneath the canopy of mature Black Oaks and Incense Cedar trees 30-inch DBH and larger by not treating trees and brush vegetation growing within the canopy. If possible, take advantage of existing visible cavities on 2 to 3 mature Black Oaks per acre. Where no visible cavity is present, select a mature Black Oak with a full dominant crown to reach the 2 to 3 oak per acre requirement. Do not disturb live trees or dead trees that are leaning (like a ladder) against a mature Black Oak or an incense cedar 30-inch DBH or larger.

HAND_WORK: In the area identified on the map as such, falling and thinning can only be done by chainsaws. No mechanical equipment may enter. Material will need to be hand piled. All work must abide by LOPs. This may be waived by USFS personnel.

Roadside Hazard Specifications

All dead and dying (trees turning red) or trees marked by Forest Service personnel for removal, will be felled. Felling shall be done so that no live trees, either hardwood or conifer, improvements or other resources are damaged. Dead trees within the unit boundaries shall be felled. The contractor shall fall the clearly dead trees. Trees that appear to be dying shall be felled only if approved by the Forest Service. NO

SNAGS WILL BE LEFT ALONG THE ROAD CORRIDOR. All snags that could hit a road or other improvement if they were to fall should be felled.

Felling may be by hand or machine except in areas too steep for machine work and areas specifically prohibited from machine work. Felling must adhere to all safety practices including PPE. Signs must be placed on the road to warn travelers of the felling activities. They shall be placed in both directions. When falling may impact the road, road guards must be in place for traffic control. Felling must not damage live trees.

Stump heights must be less than 12 inch measured on the low side. Trees hung up during falling must be dealt with till they are safely on the ground. Falling green trees to accomplish this requires COR approval.

The government will determine if this material will be made available to the contractor. Trees shall be felled so that they can be treated as required. Trees felled into the road must be cleared promptly and without damaging the road. The road shall be promptly cleaned of bark and other residual of the felled tree.

All large vegetation shall be cleared from the roadside hazard corridor. It is expected that 90% of the vegetation is cleared through cutting, ripping, pulling, etc. This vegetation shall be piled with the slash.

All stumps along the roadways will be flush cut. Including stumps that are remnants of previous work.

There are several high stumps, these will need to be recut to meet specifications.

All roadside hazard falling units will have the material piled within the unit following the piling specifications mentioned above. It is acceptable to move and pile the material in a neighboring unit.

MEASUREMENT: Roadside hazard will be measured by the acre.

Surface Blading

Surface blading is keeping a native or aggregate Roadbed in a condition to facilitate traffic and provide proper drainage. It includes maintaining the Crown, Inslope or Outslope of the Traveled Way, Turnouts, and Shoulder; repairing Berms; blending approach road intersections; and cleaning bridge decks, Drainage

Dips, and Lead-off Ditches.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Surface blading shall be performed before and then every 30 days of operation while contract time is started. This is necessary to facilitate traffic and proper drainage. Ex. If the POP is 90 days, surface blading will be performed on day 0, 30, 60 and 90.

• The surface blading shall preserve the existing cross-section. Surface irregularities shall be eliminated and the surface left in a free-draining state and to a smoothness needed to facilitate traffic. Surface Material which has been displaced to the Shoulders or Turnouts shall be returned to the Traveled Way. The blading operation shall be conducted to prevent the loss of surface Material and to provide for a thorough mixing of the Material being worked.

• Water, taken from Water Sources designated on Contract Area Map shall be applied during blading if sufficient moisture is not present to cut, mix, or compact the surface Material. Through use of a larger sprayer like application, such as a water tender.

• On native surfaced roads, Material generated from backslope sloughing, and ditch cleaning may be blended with the surface Material being worked. On aggregate surfaced roads, this Material shall not be blended with Surface or Base Course Material unless agreed otherwise.

• Roadway backslopes or Berms shall not be undercut, nor shall new Berms be established unless agreed otherwise.

• Berms shall be repaired by placing Material, as needed to restore the Berm, to reasonably blend with existing line, grade, and cross-section.

• Drainage Dips and Lead-off Ditches shall be cleaned and maintained to reasonably blend with existing line, grade, and cross-section.

• Intersecting roads shall be bladed for a distance of 50 feet to assure proper blending of the two riding surfaces.

• Rocks or other Material remaining on the Traveled Way after the final pass that are larger than 4 inches in diameter or are larger than the maximum size of imported surfacing shall be removed from the Traveled Way.