20250708_LQP SOW Weed Control-FINAL.docx

Statement of Work Herbicide Noxious Weed Control Lac qui Parle Project.

1. General

1.1 Scope of Work

The contractor shall furnish all necessary management, supervision, inspection, personnel, materials, supplies, tools, equipment, transportation and vehicles necessary to apply chemical control to noxious weeds on lands managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers at Lac qui Parle Project as specified in strict accordance with all Terms, Conditions, General, Specific and Technical Provisions, drawings, attachments, contained herein.

1.2 Location of Work

Located near Watson, Minnesota at the Lac qui Parle Project on lands managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers.

1.3 Period of work

Contract period shall be from July 28, 2025, through 30 September 2025.

2. Herbicide Application

2.1 Description

Contractor shall apply herbicide on approximately 30 acres of turf grass located at various sites throughout Lac qui Parle. Herbicide will target common turf grass weeds including dandelion, plantain, thistle, clover and creeping jenny. Rip Rap areas will need to be treated with glyphosate-based herbicide (or aquatic friendly equivalent) for complete control of all vegetation. Please reference the attached location maps noting the approximate areas designated as rip rap and turf grass.

Desired result shall be a 90% or better kill on all targeted species with no damage to turf grass or trees. Areas to be treated are located in the rip rapped and turf areas around Marsh Lake and Highway 75 flood control structures and adjacent recreation areas.

A site visit is not mandatory, but recommended, and can be requested through the Contracting Officer.

2.2 Herbicide Application

Herbicide application shall occur in July and September. Herbicide used shall target typical broadleaf weeds found in turf grass in Minnesota including dandelion, plantain, thistle, clover and creeping jenny and shall be applied at the manufacturers recommended rate.

3. SAFETY

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this contract, the Contractor shall comply with all safety and health requirements as outlined in the Corps of Engineers Safety and Health Requirements Manual (EM 385-1-1) and OSHA Safety Standards to ensure the safe working conditions for his employees and Government workers. The entire Safety Manual is available for downloading or viewing on the Internet at: https://www.publications.usace.army.mil/Portals/76/EM%20385-1-1%20_EFFECTIVE%2015March2024.pdf

4. SPILLS AND CONTAMINATION

The contractor shall submit the response measures to be implemented should a spill or contamination occur. Should a spill of petroleum, pesticide, or other contaminant occur, the Contractor's immediate response shall be to proceed with measures to limit the further spread of contamination. Immediately following this initial response, the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer, the Government POC, and other appropriate local, state, and federal officials. This may include the National Response Center (1-800-424-8802) if a reportable quantity is released to the environment.

Subsequent to these actions, the Contractor shall take actions to clean up the spill as recommended by the Contracting Officer and at no cost to the Government. Should a personnel contamination occur, the Contractor shall take immediate actions as prescribed by the chemical manufacturer so as to protect the safety and health of the contaminated individual(s).

The Spill Control plan shall include the procedures, instructions, and reports to be used in the event of an unforeseen spill of a substance regulated by 40 CFR 68, 40 CFR 302, 40 CFR 355, and/or regulated under State or local laws and regulations. The Spill Control Plan supplements the requirements of EM 385-1-1. This plan shall include as a minimum:

1. The name of the individual who will report any spills or hazardous substance releases and who will follow up with complete documentation. This individual shall immediately notify the Contracting Officer, and the local Fire Department for flammable materials, in addition to the legally required Federal, State, and local reporting channels (including the National Response Center 1-800-424-8802) if a reportable quantity is released to the environment. The plan shall contain a list of the required reporting channels and telephone numbers.

2. The name and qualifications of the individual who will be responsible for implementing and supervising the containment and cleanup.

3. Training requirements for Contractor's personnel and methods of accomplishing the training.

4. A list of materials and equipment to be immediately available at the job site, tailored to cleanup work of the potential hazard(s) identified.

5. The names and locations of suppliers of containment materials and locations of additional fuel oil recovery, cleanup, restoration, and material-placement equipment available in case of an unforeseen spill emergency.

6. The methods and procedures to be used for expeditious contaminant cleanup.

5. Abbreviated Accident Prevention Plan:

The contractor shall submit this plan in accordance with the Corps of Engineers Safety and Health Requirements Manual (EM 385 1 1). Checklist for the requirements of this plan is available in the EM 385-1-1.

6. Activity Hazard Analysis (AHA):

The contractor shall submit this in accordance with the Corps of Engineers Safety and Health Requirements Manual (EM 385 1 1). Format for this AHA documentation is as specified in the EM 385-1-1.

75. HERBICIDE

75.1 Herbicide Plan

The Contractor shall submit a written plan that addresses the herbicides used, application rates, timing, spray methods proposed to achieve the contract goal of vegetation control. If appropriate, surfactants shall be added per label instructions to appropriate herbicide mixtures. All carriers and adjutants must be non-toxic. The herbicide plan shall detail the carriers, adjutants and surfactants to be used. Also include application rates, where mixing will occur, and plans for environmental protection if mixing is to occur on Government property. EPA product labels and safety data sheets (SDSs) for all proposed products (website links are acceptable) shall be submitted with the herbicide plan. The Contracting Officer must receive submission of this plan a minimum of five (5) working days prior to the desired application date. The request will be reviewed, considering as a minimum, relative effectiveness and toxicity. The contractor shall also submit a tentative application schedule to the Government POC five (5) working days prior to initiating any work on this contract.

All treatments must be conducted during a period when target species are susceptible to the herbicide being used. No broadcast spraying shall be performed when wind speeds exceed specifications listed on the herbicide label, or wind directions are likely to result in drift to surface water or non-project lands. To protect groundwater resources, herbicide applications will not be allowed prior to precipitation that could facilitate rapid leaching of herbicide to the water table. At a minimum, herbicide(s) cannot be applied when the forecast indicates a high probability of significant precipitation during the next 24 hours. The Contracting Officer shall have the right to make these determinations and terminate any planned herbicide applications based on available weather forecasts and current conditions. Additionally, excessively dry conditions that can negatively affect herbicide performance should also be avoided. The Contractor is to notify the Contracting Officer of any planned herbicide applications and receive prior approval before completing the planned application.

75.2 Handling and Mixing

All herbicides will be handled and stored in accordance with instructions on the EPA registration label. All herbicides shall be mixed in accordance with the label instructions so that the desired rate of application can be attained with the Contractor's application equipment. Potable water is available within a reasonable distance of the sites. However, lake water is generally available at all sites and should the Contractor decide to use lake water, proper setback distances between the Contractor’s mixing tank and the river as specified by the State of Minnesota shall be maintained. The possibility exists that turbid water will diminish the effectiveness of the chemical used and the Contractor is liable for the cost of reapplication should failure of the treatment occur.

The Contractor is required to provide a secondary containment system around their herbicide mixing area when herbicides are mixed on Government property. This containment system must be constructed of impervious materials. In addition, the Contractor will ensure that no contamination of any water source occurs and that emergency spill containment equipment is at the worksite and is capable of containing all potential herbicide spills from Contractor vehicles/equipment. Unused, mixed pesticides will be disposed of in accordance with local, state and EPA guidelines. Spray equipment cleaning will also be accomplished in accordance with these guidelines. Prior to leaving a worksite for the day, the Contractor shall remove all equipment and unused materials, any waste materials, oil, empty herbicide containers and litter resulting from contract activities on Government property.

75.3 EPA Registration Label

All work shall be performed in accordance with the instructions on the EPA registration label of the chemical herbicide used. All safety instructions featured on the label shall be strictly adhered to. Off-label applications, even if shown to be effective elsewhere, shall not be used.

75.4 Licensing

The Contractor, all their employees, and any subcontractors performing herbicide work under this contract shall possess a valid state commercial herbicide applicator's license for the appropriate state and shall comply with all Federal, State, and local laws and regulations applicable to the contract work and to the products and materials used by the Contractor in performing that work. Evidence of such licensing shall be submitted to the Government POC prior to application. Department of Labor as well as state regulations regarding employment of youth shall be observed.

75.5 Post-Application Documentation and Government Point of Contact The Contractor shall submit completed copies of the ‘Post-Application Documentation Form’ for each day’s herbicide work and for each herbicide used. A sample form is provided in Attachment B and may be reproduced. The Contractor may use his or her own form if it contains all information included on the Corps form. Scanned or digital copies of this form may be submitted electronically, or hard copies may be mailed to the address of the Contracting Officer listed below (see Section 7) within five working days of each application or at the time of invoice submission, whichever is earlier. No payment will be made for services until post-application documentation has been supplied to the Contracting Officer.

75.6 Herbicide Warranty

The Contractor shall exercise his/her professional judgment as to the application rate, time and extent of application of the herbicides. The Contractor warrants that:

Should the desired results not be achieved, the Contractor will, at no additional cost to the Government, reapply the herbicide to those areas where targeted vegetative growth continues or recurs. The determination as to the acceptable performance of the Contractor and the need to reapply the herbicides will rest solely with the Contracting Officer. A request to retreat an area may be either verbal or in writing. The desired results to be achieved are listed in each of the area descriptions in Sections 3 and 4 above. If performance is determined to be unacceptable, the Government may require a payment penalty or re-treatment of an area as described in Inspections and Acceptance below.

75.7 Site Restoration

The Contractor shall be responsible for restoring any area that does not satisfy the warranty requirements at no additional cost to the Government. Areas will be retreated within the time specified by the Contracting Officer’s notice to the Contractor. The Contractor is responsible for damages to persons or property, including unreasonable or unnecessary damages to non-target vegetation, within and outside the treatment areas resulting from the performance of the contract work. Reseeding of non-target native vegetation damaged in this way may be necessary and will be at the Contractor’s expense. Excess and waste material shall be removed and properly disposed of off-site. Areas that have been damaged by spraying operations shall be restored to original condition at the Contractor’s expense.

75.8 Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)

The Contractor shall make MSDSs for all herbicides, adjuvants and other products used at the site readily available to all affected contract employees.

86. POST-AWARD MEETING

A post-award meeting must be held within 10 days after contract award. Government inspection procedures will be reviewed at that time. The Contractor will be notified by the Contracting Officer of the meeting location.

97. GOVERNMENT POINT OF CONTACT

Benjamin Knutson

USACE

332 Minnesota Street, Suite E-1500 St Paul, MN 55101 651-290-5418 Benjamin.t.knutson@usace.army.mil

108. LIABILITY OF AND DAMAGES TO THE GOVERNMENT

108.1 Insurance

The contractor will carry liability insurance that will cover the application of herbicides as defined in this scope of work. This coverage will include as a minimum drift, run‑off, and pollution (sudden and accidental) for all contract operations. The amount of coverage this insurance will provide will not be less than $1,000,000 per incident. A Certificate of Insurance form signed by the insuring agency shall be provided to the contracting officer within 10 working days after award of the contract. The insurance shall provide coverage for the entire contract period. The insurance policy shall state that it cannot be cancelled without 30 days written notice to the Contracting Officer. Failure to secure and maintain insurance may be grounds for termination during the performance period of this contract.

10.8.2 Government Liability

The Government assumes no liability from the Contractor's performance of the contract work. The Contractor shall hold and save the Government harmless from any and all liability to others arising from the performance of the contract.

108.3 Responsibility for Damages

The Contractor is responsible for all damages to persons and property resulting from performance of the contract work.

119. INSPECTIONS AND ACCEPTANCE

Work will be inspected periodically for conformance with these specifications for timeliness, safety and results achieved. When unacceptable performance occurs, the Contracting Officer will inform the Contractor. This will normally be in writing unless circumstances necessitate verbal communication.

120. BIO-BASED

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) designates certain biobased products for federal procurement and specifies minimum biobased content levels for those products. Any designated product that is being offered or supplied under this contract shall meet USDA BioPreferred’s minimum biobased content level. Visit the BioPreferred web site for the complete list of designated products and the associated minimum biobased content level requirements.

131. PAYMENT/INVOICES

Most of the work included in this contract requires a period of at least two weeks following treatment to evaluate effectiveness. Therefore, invoices for work may not be submitted until at least 14 calendar days have elapsed since the final treatment in the invoice. Any invoices submitted earlier than the 14-day window will be returned, and the invoice date shall be updated to reflect the 14-day post-treatment period. The contractor must submit invoices to the Government point of contact (POC) to initiate payments. Partial payments are allowable for works in which a distinguishable block of area has been completed within a larger line item.

All invoices shall be sent via e-mail or mail to the designated Contracting Officer Representative. Invoices with errors or that are not acceptable per FAR Clause 52.212-4 will be returned and a new invoice with a new date must be submitted for payment. Failure to do so may cause a delay in payment to the contractor.

142. ATTACHMENTS

A. Maps of turf and rip rap areas to be treated belonging to the to the Lac qui Parle Project.

B. Post-Application Documentation Form