A04_44042665_SOW_Updated_9_2026.pdf

Statement of Work

BLM-Alaska

LIDAR Survey of Closed Mining Claims Ruby Mining District

1.0 Background

The Central Yukon Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has identified six areas of closed, excluded and unconveyed federal lands (CEUs) in the Ruby Mining District. CEUs are areas of federal land, typically former mining claims, surrounded by land managed by other entities, were selected by the State for conveyance but were not conveyed as part of the larger land conveyance processes due to encumbrances on the land at the time of conveyance. Encumbrances include active mine operations, unreclaimed closed mine operations, solid waste, and abandoned mine land (AML) features. This Statement of Work (SOW) has been created to assist in fulfilling the inventory requirements for the AML program. The data provided by the aerial survey will be interpreted by the BLM’s Hazard Management and Resource Restoration specialist and the Cultural Resources Specialist/ Archaeologist who will look for structures, vehicles, and landscape contours to guide future on-ground inventory work. Areas with no features identified in the LIDAR data can be eliminated from on-ground inventory, reducing time and costs for that phase of work.

There are six groups of CEUs within the Ruby Mining District along the Ruby-Poorman Road. The CEUs are all closed and abandoned federal mining claims that have been partially inventoried over the last decade both on the ground and from aircraft. These inventories have been limited by time, weather, transportation, and conditions on the ground including vegetation overgrowth, flooding caused by beaver activity, and lack of trail maintenance due to disuse, among other issues. Historical documentation and aerial imagery of these areas is not extensive, and the overgrowth of vegetation has made walking through or seeing many areas almost impossible. Each consecutive inventory conducted has revealed additional features not observed in previous inventories. Though this method of partial inventories is revealing additional features, it is not a quick process and is often affected by lack of knowledge on where features may be. The LIDAR survey will allow the mapping of the entire area prior to arriving on the site and will allow for more informed and targeted field work.

Several of the claims within these CEUs have been on the State Environmental Cleanup Action Plan (SECAP) as a priority for clean up in the last five years. The survey of these areas will move forward the cleanup process and allow for the lands to eventually be ready for conveyance to the State of Alaska.

2.0 Objective

The objective of this work is to generate a LIDAR dataset comparable in detail to USGS Quality Level 1. This dataset will assist in the completion of the inventory of abandoned mine land features and by extension, cultural resource features remaining on the six sites, as applicable. The data will be used by the HMRR/ AML and Cultural Resources programs to identify structures, vehicles, and contours in the landscape that help determine the historic use of the land. By identifying these features in the data provided by the LIDAR survey ahead of arriving on site, on-ground inventories in the near future can be targeted to these feature locations. The survey of these lands will allow the HMRR/ AML program to work jointly with the Cultural Resources/ Archaeology program to identify features that are hazardous to the environment and/or are not culturally significant and therefore should be removed. A removal planned by these programs will ensure that no historical or culturally significant features are affected and that all solid and hazardous wastes will be removed from the environment and the dataset from the LIDAR will assist removal contractors and ensure that historically significant cultural resources are avoided.

This action will assist in satisfying the inventory requirements for the Abandoned Mine Lands Program and the Cultural Resources Program. To achieve the goal of eliminating CEUs within the Central Yukon Field Office’s jurisdiction, this survey is pertinent.

3.0 Requirements

A LIDAR survey of the areas included in the table below and the attached map is requested in order to deliver a 0.5-meter bare-earth Digital Terrain Model for each of the six areas below.

Area/ Group Number of Claims Location Total Acreage for Area* Flat Creek 4 KM T16S R17E Sec 31 100 Solmon Creek 1.5 KM T16S R17E Sec 30 41 Poorman Townsite

32 KM T16S R17E Secs 7, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22

Greenstone Creek 6 KM T14S R17E Secs 4, 5, 8

Long Creek 31 KM T12S R17E Secs 28, 29, 32, 33 KM T13S R17E Secs 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 17

Trail Creek 8 KM T13S R18E Secs 3, 9, 10, 16

*Areas estimated using eGIS and include a 5-acre buffer on each to account for errors in estimation

3.1 Collection Parameters

The LIDAR point cloud should be collected with a nominal pulse spacing (NPS) of less than 0.35 m. The spatial distribution of geometrically usable points will be generally uniform and regular. The contractor shall process the data to classify bare-earth points utilizing standard ASPRS classification codes. The filtered bare-earth point cloud must retain sufficient ground detail in heavily vegetated areas. Each Area/Group shall be covered by a minimum of two flight lines with at least 50% swath overlap. Mapping groups may be combined and/or further buffered if appropriate for improved flight planning. Data voids [area greater than or equal to (4 × NPS)2 with no first return points] are not acceptable, except where caused by water, areas of low reflectivity, shadowing, or where filled in by another swath.

3.2 Accuracy

Given the challenges of accessing the site, there is no expectation that on-the-ground control or checkpoint surveys will be conducted, and therefore no specific requirements in terms of global accuracy. However, a narrative of the hardware and process to be used should be included in the proposal. The mapping system must utilize a Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) or Post-Processed Kinematic (PPK) GNSS receiver, and the Contractor shall provide metadata and trajectory logs showing that the system's absolute in-flight position. The Contractor must perform swath-to-swath geometric alignment to ensure the point cloud does not show striping or vertical offsets between adjacent flight lines. Relative vertical (swath-to-swath) accuracy shall not exceed 5.0 cm Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). The Contractor shall provide an internal quality report demonstrating these metrics.

3.3 Collection Conditions

Atmospheric conditions shall be cloud and fog free between the aircraft and ground during all collection operations. Ground conditions should be snow free, and free of extensive flooding or inundation. Light, undrifted snow cover is acceptable with prior approval. There are no specific requirements of leaf-on versus leaf-off collection, so long as penetration to the ground is adequate to produce an accurate and reliable bare-earth surface.

3.3 Areas Details and Access

Approximate acreage for each of the 6 areas is included with a buffer on each, however, it was created in GIS and the actual acreages may be larger or smaller. A full list of claims can be requested from the BLM Project Manager after contract award if needed. The acreage being surveyed exceeds 2,000 acres and half of the groups are not accessible by terrestrial vehicle except in the winter, fixed wing LIDAR may be the most effective and efficient way to complete this project. However, a UAS based survey is also acceptable so long as it meets the requirements and budget of the project. Should a UAS be used to fulfill this requirement, the contractor shall abide by all language regarding covered UAS specified in DOI Operational Procedures Memorandum 11, https://www.doi.gov/media/document/opm-11

If survey is conducted with a crewed fixed wing, there are airstrips at the Village of Ruby and Galena, and a fuel truck is available in Galena. Additionally, there is a small airstrip on state land at Long Creek, maintenance status varies as miners in the area use it on an undetermined basis.

If a UAS based survey is conducted, site access is difficult. The sites are remote and mostly abandoned, and only 2 are confirmed accessible by 4-wheel drive, high clearance pick-up truck or similar highway vehicle or by OHV from Ruby, AK, are Long Creek and Greenstone Creek. The trail from Long Creek to Trail Creek has not been brushed out for many years and the condition is unknown. Miners access mines on State of Alaska managed land fairly regularly throughout the summer above the Sulatna Crossing, however, as these lands are not Federal, agreements may be needed to travel on mining access trails. The Ruby-Poorman Road is maintained by these miners and gets narrow and overgrown further south towards the Sulatna River as there are fewer active mines that way and therefore that area gets less frequent use. The Sulatna River crossing has been unusable for many years, preventing terrestrial access to Poorman Townsite, Solomon Creek, and Flat Creek in the summer months. Winter access to all sites is possible via snowmachine from Ruby, AK.

All sites are accessible by rotary-wing aircraft, though brushing of a landing zone may be required at some sites.

3.4 Equipment

The contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, and any other items necessary to perform removal services as defined in this SOW. Any permits required shall be obtained by the contractor prior to commencing field work.

The BLM shall furnish no equipment.

4.0 Deliverables

ITEM DUE DATE

Geospacial Data 60 days prior to the end of the period of performance Final Report 30 days prior to the end of the period of performance

Geospacial Data https://www.doi.gov/media/document/opm-11

All geospatial data shall be provided in the following coordinate system: NAD83 / Alaska Albers (EPSG: 3338) / NAVD88 Geoid 12B (EPSG:5703). All final deliverables should be provided as tiles with a size of 1,000 meters x 1,000 meters. Tiled deliverables shall conform to the tiling scheme, without added overlap. Tiled deliverables shall edge-match seamlessly, both horizontally and vertically. Each geospatial file should be accompanied by an FGDC-compliant metadata element.

Specifically, the following geospatial data shall be delivered to the BLM Project Manager no later than 60 days prior to the end of the period of performance to allow for comments and revisions if necessary:

• Classified point cloud o Tiled, as LAZ version 1.4.

• Bare Earth Surface (Raster DEM) o 0.5-meter resolution o Tiled, as GeoTIFF

• First Return Digital Surface Model (DSM) o 0.5-meter resolution o Tiled, as GeoTIFF

Final Report

The Final Report shall provide a detailed description of all actions taken in association with the SOW, and any concerns identified during the survey. It shall document days worked, personnel onsite, and equipment utilized.

It must include any daily forms including tailgate meetings and Health & Safety meetings; the spatial data collected. It shall also include explanations for any deviations from the projected schedule or from the initial project quote. The report should include relevant summary accuracy values. The Report shall be provided electronically to the BLM Project Manager no later than 30 days prior to the end of the period of performance.