50-00000-24-00020_Attachment B- Statement of Work Post-Fire Seeding Mulching for Hillslope Stabilization.pdf.PDF

I. DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK

Emergency Watershed Protection Post-Fire Seeding and Mulching for Hillslope Stabilization

A. Scope of Contract

Drought in the southwest has led to abnormally dry conditions for much of southwestern United States, and in particular New Mexico. Fire conditions have been extreme due to prolonged wind events and dry/drier conditions throughout the spring. Wildfires drive the condition of plant communities and soil properties post-burn, which, in turn, alters the ability of soils to absorb water and the capacity of watersheds to process post-fire precipitation events. This is particularly apparent in Southwest ecosystems where wildfire is commonly followed by a monsoon season characterized by intense summer thunderstorms. Powerful precipitation events after wildfire triggers runoff, flooding, erosion, and debris flows. Like fire, these secondary events threaten human life, property, and natural and cultural resources on all lands. They negatively impact water quantity and quality, reservoirs and infrastructure, threaten wildlife, decrease ecosystem function, dangerous conditions such as flooding and debris flows for downstream communities, and destruction of natural and cultural values.

To implement an emergency seeding application to restore soil productivity in critical High and Moderate Soil Burn Severity areas of several large fires in New Mexico and allow for vegetation recovery to provide coverage to newly denuded burn areas on lands. The majority of work is expected to be completed aerially due to the elevation and roadless terrain of the project areas. This emergency action must be accomplished so that vegetation can begin to grow before the end of monsoon season occurs and winter moisture begins in late November or early December. Areas will be treated with a designated seed mixture. Application will be done aerially to slopes between 0 to 70%. Seeding with sterile seed will provide a temporary first year vegetation coverage and allow the natives to facilitate quick vegetative recovery of the treatment areas.

To implement an emergency aerial mulch treatment with agricultural straw, wood strand/mulch, or hydro-mulch to restore soil cover in critical High and Moderate Soil Burn Severity of several large fire areas and reduce increase in flood flows, and sediment delivery on Private lands. Applications will be done aerially to slopes 0 to 70%. Design of an emergency aerial mulch treatment seeks to achieve the dual functions of intercepting rainfall drops and increasing on-slope storage of water and sediment. Increasing soil cover decreases the rate of raindrop induced mobilization of sediment. Increasing the surface roughness through higher soil contact and material piece count should decrease water velocity and increase depression storage. Additionally, mulching will also help to protect the newly applied seed and retain moisture on the burned slopes to facilitate quick vegetative recovery of the treatment areas.

a) The intent of this document and any resultant contract(s) is to obtain the services described herein. All services procured shall be accomplished in a safe, effective, environmentally aware manner and in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

b) The Contractor shall keep and maintain programs necessary to assure safety of ground and flight operations. The development and maintenance of these programs are a material part of the performance of the contract. When, in the sole judgment of the Contracting Officer, the safety programs do not adequately promote the safety of operations, the Government may terminate the contract for default.

Examples of such programs include but are not limited to: 1) Personnel Activities, 2) Maintenance, 3) Safety and 4) Compliance with Regulations.

c) Contract personnel shall conduct themselves in a professional and cooperative manner in fulfilling this Contract.

B. Equipment Requirements

a) The contractor shall comply with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations and directives pertaining to safety, maintenance, and performance of all aircraft and ground based equipment proposed for use under this contract. Additionally, aircraft and ground based equipment shall be maintained in accordance with all manufacturer’s guidelines and bulletins.

b) Condition of Equipment

(1) Contractor-furnished aircraft and equipment shall be operable, free of damage, and in good repair. Equipment shall be free of weed seed, dirt, and plant parts. Aircraft and other equipment systems and components shall be free of leaks except within limitations specified by the manufacturer.

C. Contractor’s Environmental Responsibilities

a) The Contractor is responsible to ensure that all maintenance, fueling, and flight activities do not cause environmental damage to property or facilities.

b) The Contractor shall be responsible for compliance with applicable Federal, State and local regulations with regards to the reporting of response actions required for spills of fuel, and oil on airport ramps, staging areas, parking areas, landing areas, etc., when caused by Contractor aircraft or personnel. When cleaning paved areas, the contractor shall utilize cleaning agents that are biodegradable and non-toxic.

Contaminated soils shall be removed to appropriate containers and disposed of as hazardous waste.

c) The Government may, at its option, provide a designated area to be utilized by the Contractor for storage of equipment used in support of contract performance. Oil, solvents, parts, engines, etc. shall be stored and utilized in a manner consistent with acceptable safety, health and environmental concerns.

d) The Contractor shall ensure that they are in compliance with 40 CFR Part 112: Oil Pollution Prevention;

Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure Plan Requirements (SPCC).

e) An SPCC plan is required for each mobile fueler used on this contract regardless of bulk storage container (tank) size.

D. Location and Description

The work may occur on Private lands administered within the burn perimeter and, in some instances, lands bordering or other than Private lands such as New Mexico State lands, and Federal land where there is authority for NRCS to do so. The elevation range above mean sea level for the treatment area ranges from approximately 1000’ to 13,000’.

Please see attached maps (North Seed & Mulching Area, Central Seed & Mulch Areas, and South Seed & Mulch Areas) for the fire boundary that is within the scope of this contract. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) shapefiles of project specific areas will be provided electronically at time of award for an individual task order. See maps for the generalized location of individual treatment areas. Total treatment area is estimated to be approximately 34,000 acres. Spatially explicit treatment polygons will be provided for each task order, dependent on landowner participation and whether an acceptable proportion of a hillslope can be treated to achieve resource objectives.

Work under this contract may include applications of mulch (agricultural straw, wood (straw/mulch), or hydromulch) and/or seed on land areas that vary from tens to thousands of acres in size depending on project needs. It may also include purchase, production, and delivery of mulch and seed material that are to be used for emergency response, rehabilitation and restoration projects.

Most work will occur during the months of April-October.

All work shall be done in compliance with contract terms, specifications, and provisions that are established in this contract and at the time of work order.

The contractor shall provide all equipment, supplies, transportation, labor, and supervision necessary to complete the project, except for that which the contract clearly states is to be furnished by the Government.

1) Mulching Projects: The contractor is responsible for furnishing suitable material (agricultural straw, wood strand/mulch, or hydromulch as defined by individual project objectives), locating staging/service/landing areas, applying the material, performing quality control inspections, and providing necessary documentation and reports. Contractor shall provide all labor, equipment, supervision, transportation, operating supplies, clean-up, rehabilitation, application, storage of mulch at staging area and protection of mulch for each project, and incidentals to complete all facets of the contract. Special precautions shall be made to minimize establishment and the spread of mulch materials, including noxious weeds and invasive species, from staging areas. Mulch (agricultural straw, wood strand/mulch, or hydromulch) shall be applied to the ground to replace ground cover, to maintain soil moisture, and accelerate recovery of native vegetation.

2) Seeding Projects: The contractor is responsible for furnishing suitable material (seed mix as defined by individual project objectives), locating staging/service/landing areas, applying the seed, performing quality control inspections, and providing necessary documentation and reports. Contractor shall provide all labor, equipment, supervision, transportation, operating supplies, clean-up, rehabilitation, application, storage of seed at staging area and protection of seed for each project, and incidentals to complete all facets of the contract. Seed shall be applied to the ground to establish temporary ground cover, to maintain soil moisture, and accelerate recovery of native vegetation.

E. Site Visit

No site visit is planned for the base contract. Site visits may or may not be planned for individual task order requirements.

F. Technical Specifications

Agricultural (wheat, barley, oat, or rice) straw shall be applied and spread in a uniform cover in the designated areas. Seeding shall be applied to specified amounts in designated areas.

(A) Agricultural Straw –

1.1 Supply of Certified Weed Free Wheat, Barley, Oat or Rice Straw Mulch Treatment

1) Contractor-Furnished Mulch: Utilize straw mulch and methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in producing the mulch, distribution during application and erosion control capabilities. Utilize biodegradable straw mulch materials that are favorable to residual vegetative growth, native species, seed germination and plant recovery. Suitable straw includes certified wheat, barley, oat, or rice straw. There may be instances when individual task orders may restrict the straw species to be used for mulching. All straw must be certified to be weed free as per specifications mentioned below for the State in which it will be applied to the ground. Straw shaft length shall be a minimum of 2 inches and not exceed 12 inches.

a) Certification of Mulch - Straw must conform to the applicable State Department of Agriculture and certified by North American Invasive Species Management Association (NAISMA). All agricultural straw provided shall have been grown during the current or 1-year previous growing season. Any exceptions to the 1-year limitation of straw age must be approved by the Government prior to task order bid and will be included as an option for all contractors.

b) Mulch Testing - All mulch shall be free of all prohibited and restricted noxious weed species. Testing for prohibited and noxious weed species may be completed by the Natural Resources Conservation Service prior to shipping and applying mulch material on Private Lands. The testing is optional and at the discretion of the NRCS. The NRCS will be responsible for the costs of collecting samples and lab testing the mulch for noxious and prohibited species if the quality assurance testing is performed. The NRCS testing needs and requirements will depend on project type, location of project and source of materials. Noxious weed species to be tested for can be obtained from the “State Noxious – Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act”. Also refer to the “North American Weed Free Forage Program” for the noxious weed and undesirable plant species list (http://www.naisma.org/weed-free-forage ). Specific sources will be rejected when tested samples produce a positive response to noxious weed species. The NRCS may also test and reject for invasive plant species such as, but not limited to, cheatgrass, Japanese brome, Russian thistle, yellow bluestem (Bothriochloa ischaemum), Caucasian bluestem (Bothriochloa bladhii), red brome that are not on a state noxious or prohibited list. The list includes weedy species prohibited for introduction or spread as identified in NRCS Field Office Technical Guide (FOTG), NEPA decisions, or weed management plans of the Private landowner or District/County Weed Manager in which mulch application will occur. The NRCS may specify limits of invasive species seeds or plant material within the mulch. The limits will be provided to the contractor within a task order prior to contractor acceptance of the terms of the individual project. If a suitable source of mulch material cannot be found to meet the time frames and limitations of costs, the NRCS may alter the mulch requirements for invasive plant species or cancel the order.

c) Mulch Acceptance – For certified straw, individual bales on each truckload must be appropriately marked by colored twine, galvanized wire, or certification tags (labels) to signify certification. Requisite originals or copies of the transit or inspection certificate must be presented to the COR or Project Manager for each truckload. Additional documentation will consist of Certificate of Quarantine Compliance (or Phytosanitary Certificate). To accept uncertified straw, results of any lab testing conducted to determine whether straw mulch is weed free must be reported by the Contractor for each 30-bale stack or lot (or smaller stacks or lots when fewer than 30 bales are present). The Natural Resources Conservation Service reserves the right to reject mulch that: 1.) does not meet contractual mulch quality, 2.) is not certified or tested to be free of noxious or prohibited weeds in any appreciable amounts, and 3.) contains seed or plant parts from weed species specifically prohibited.

2) Optional: Natural Resources Conservation Service procedure for acceptance of non-certified straw mulch material:

a) In situations where a sufficient supply of certified straw is unavailable for mulch, uncertified straw may be used after thorough inspection and testing for noxious and other types of weeds. Testing of uncertified straw is particularly necessary due to the possible presence of jointed goatgrass, brome grasses, Russian thistle, and/or other weeds commonly found in grain-producing fields. Inspection and testing should be arranged by the Contractor and/or Natural Resources Conservation Service prior to loading and shipment. Should testing of uncertified straw be required when a sufficient supply of certified straw is unavailable, the testing of the straw shall generally be the responsibility of the http://www.naisma.org/weed-free-forage

Contractor unless the Natural Resources Conservation Service, at its discretion, assumes this responsibility.

b) Uncertified straw used for project mulching must be analyzed by a seed lab that follows standards of the

Association of Official Seed Analysts (AOSA). The seed lab must be capable of testing bulky samples such as straw mulch. This should be determined beforehand since not all seed labs may be capable of processing and testing bulky samples. The Contractor or CO must consult the seed lab on appropriate procedures necessary for testing of samples and the time required for analysis. Ten bales (typically large round or rectangular, approx. 4-6 ft. width) out of every 30 bales in a stack or lot must be randomly selected for sampling prior to loading and shipping. For stacks or lots with fewer than 30 bales, the sampling percentage should still be 33% of the total number of bales. A coring instrument or hay knife should be used to obtain subsurface samples of equal size by coring or thrusting into the bale. The Contractor must use an independent third-party contractor who is responsible for pulling straw samples from bales and then sending the samples to the seed lab in accordance with standard chain-of-custody procedures. Individual samples obtained from bales in the 30-bale lot (or smaller lots) should be (1) thoroughly mixed in a 5-gal. bucket into a composite sample, (2) divided down to an amount (usually 2 lb.) required by the seed lab, and (3) put into a securely sealed container (paper bag, cloth bag, etc.) for shipment to the seed lab.

c) Uncertified straw samples sent to a seed lab must be tested for presence of weeds according to (1) noxious weed lists of the States of origin and destination and (2) noxious weed listings for all 50 States found in USDA’s State Noxious – Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act. The Contractor must inform the seed lab of all States whose noxious weed lists should be considered during the analyses. The straw should also be tested for cheatgrass, Japanese brome, Russian thistle, yellow bluestem, Caucasian bluestem and/or any other common weed species that is not on a particular noxious weed list but may be prohibited by the NRCS.

d) Prior to final purchase of uncertified straw, the purchase must be approved by the Natural Resources

Conservation Service. No agricultural straw mulch material will be accepted until test results have been accounted for by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. All mulch from any 30-bale lot (or smaller lot if less than 30 bales) at the point source for the straw will be rejected if the respective sample tests positive for noxious or forest-prohibited weed species. In addition, Natural Resources Conservation Service personnel may conduct an inspection of each incoming truckload for presence of weeds in bales and reject any truckload with these weeds present. The Natural Resources Conservation Service reserves the right to conduct testing of straw mulch for seed from noxious, prohibited, restricted, or forest-prohibited weeds prior to application

1.2 Agricultural Straw Mulch Application

1) Utilize straw mulch and methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in both distribution during application and erosion control capabilities. Utilize biodegradable straw mulch materials that are favorable to residual vegetative growth, native species, seed germination and plant recovery.

Suitable straw includes certified wheat, barley, oat, or rice straw. There may be instances when individual task orders may restrict the straw species to be used for mulching.

2) The agricultural straw mulch shall be applied to the soil cover rate indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit in the individual task order. This will vary from 40-90% soil surface cover in a unit. This coverage rate is to be applied over 100% of the unit unless indicated otherwise in the individual task order.

The coverage percentage will only include the amount of product that meets material specifications.

3) The agricultural straw mulch shall be applied at a depth indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit in the individual task order. This will vary from 0.5- to 1.25 inch depth for no more than an average depth of 0.75-to 1-inch at the soil cover rate indicated for the unit.

4) The agricultural straw mulch shall be processed to a length indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit in the individual task order. Straw shaft length shall be processed in a manner such that it is a minimum of 2 inches and not exceed 12 inches.

5) Some treatment units may include exclusion areas which consist of active waterbodies, rock, unburned vegetation, green regrowth, needle cast, water tanks, cell phone or radio towers, high voltage power lines, and all other types of improvements and these areas shall not receive treatment. Unless indicated differently in an individual task order, when exclusion acres are encountered the contract will be adjusted by moving to alternative treatment areas designated by the Contracting Officer. The coverage rate percentage may also be adjusted in units with exclusion areas, and/or the contractor will not be paid for exclusion acres.

6) The contractor shall perform on the ground inspections to determine if the rate of application meets contract requirements. The contractor shall provide their inspection data to the Contracting Officer indicating the unit is ready for inspection by the Government. The contractor is responsible for quality control of their application. The Government may perform, but is not required to perform, quality assurance inspections to ensure that project specifications are met. There may be instances where the contractor or the Government may not perform inspections due to safety risks (weather, remoteness, soil conditions, significant falling snag risk, etc.) When these risks are encountered, they should be discussed with the CO.

7) The Contractor shall be responsible for any unused straw mulch material once contract specifications have been attained. In order to utilize any unused straw/mulch material, the NRCS has the discretion to allow the contractor to apply the unused straw/mulch materials to treatment units that have met contract specifications thereby increasing percent ground cover and or average depth above minimum requirements. The NRCS may also allow the contractor to apply any unused straw/mulch materials to adjacent burned areas. The NRCS is under no obligation to pay the contractor for any application or removal of unused straw/mulch material after contract specifications have been met. The contractor is under no obligation to apply or use any unused straw/mulch material beyond contract specifications but is responsible for removal of unused straw/mulch materials

8) Special ground support, equipment and documentation needs:

a. Staging area tasks include delivery, unloading, neatly stacking, producing the mulch, and loading straw in nets for aerial distribution or into ground-based equipment for ground distribution. Staging areas shall be kept clean of garbage and debris. Upon completion of the project staging areas shall be cleaned up, restored, and prepared for rehabilitation and or re-seeding. Staging areas on lands that are not administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service on private lands may have other requirements.

b. Contractor is responsible for the cleaning of all vehicles and equipment to ensure that they are free of soil, seeds, vegetative matter, or other debris that could contain or hold noxious or other weed seed and reproductive plant parts prior to entering private lands, or State, and Federal Lands.

Contractor must provide written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site.

c. In addition to daily operational reports and a final report, required documents for a contract must include:

i. Written documentation of the total amount (in pounds) of straw delivered.

ii. Unaltered Copies of Certification of Weed Free Straw and where it originated.

iii. Quarantine Compliance or Phytosanitary Certificate.

iv. Written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site

d. At the end of each operational period, or prior to the morning briefing all documentation shall be submitted to the COR or representative for review. No work shall commence that day without documentation submitted.

9) Utilize methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in both distribution during application and erosion control capabilities.

1.3 Agricultural Straw Acceptance: Unless indicated in individual task orders acceptance or rejection of units will be accomplished as indicated in this section.

1) Contractor personnel are responsible for inspection and quality control. Individual task orders will indicate how acceptance will be determined for projects. Contractor shall provide enough information so the CO could attempt to duplicate the contractor’s inspection results. This information could include GPS points and/or azimuths.

2) The contractor’s inspection information provided will be reviewed by the CO or their representative and discussed with the contractor. Percent mulch cover for a unit will be the percentage of ground coverage that meets mulch material specifications. Too fine or too large of material will not count towards the required ground cover percentage. Non-burned areas, needle cast, rock, abundant revegetation will count as exclusion points and there will either be a reduction in treatment acres, an increased target cover percentage for treatable acres, and/or movement of treatment acres outside of the unit.

3) As part of the government’s quality assurance program the CO may elect to try to duplicate the contractor’s sampling results, use similar sampling methodology but potentially sample in different locations, or not inspect a unit. The government will not perform their quality assurance inspections or approve a unit for payment until the contractor’s quality control inspection results are submitted to the CO.

(B) Wood Strand/Mulch

1.1 Supply of Wood Strand/Wood Mulch

1) Wood Strand Material: Erosion control wood strand is produced under several trademark names such as but not limited to WoodStraw® and Blue-Straw™ and is defined as an all wood, long strand material comprised of loose, wood pieces. The length of wood strand shall be 2-8 inches. The diameter shall be 1 inch or less.

No more than 2% by volume of the wood strand shall be less than 2 inches and/or greater than 1 inch in diameter. Material outside these specifications shall not count towards the required coverage percentage requirement. All wood strand must be free of any additives to preserve the product. All wood strand must be free of noxious weeds as identified and required for the area in which to be treated.

2) Contractor-Furnished Mulch: Erosion control wood mulch is an all wood, long strand material comprised of loose, wood pieces. The length of wood mulch shall be 1-12 inches. Material outside these specifications shall not count towards the required coverage percentage requirement. All wood mulch must be free of any additives to preserve the product. All wood mulch must be free of noxious weeds as identified and required for the area in which to be treated. Additional, and possibly more stringent, wood mulch specifications may be required at time of task order. The type and size requirements will depend on application rates, slope of treatment sites, and availability of suitable material for wood mulch.

a) Mulch Testing – All mulch shall be free of all prohibited and restricted noxious weed species. Testing for prohibited and noxious weed species may be completed by the Natural Resources Conservation Service prior to shipping and applying mulch material on Private Lands. The testing is optional and at the discretion of the NRCS. The NRCS will be responsible for the costs of collecting samples and lab testing the mulch for noxious and prohibited species if the quality assurance testing is performed. The NRCS testing needs and requirements will depend on project type, location of project and source of material. Noxious weed species to be tested for can be obtained from the “State Noxious – Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act”. Also refer to the “North American Weed Free Forage Program” for the noxious weed and undesirable plant species list (http://www.naisma.org/weed-free-forage ). Specific sources will be rejected when tested samples produce a positive response to noxious weed species. The NRCS may also test and reject for invasive plant species such as, but not limited to, cheatgrass, Japanese brome, Russian thistle, yellow bluestem (Bothriochloa ischaemum), Caucasian bluestem (Bothriochloa bladhii), red brome that are not on a state noxious or prohibited list. . The NRCS may specify limits of invasive species seeds or plant material within the source. The limits will be provided to the contractor within a task order prior to contractor acceptance of the terms of the individual project. If a suitable source of mulch material cannot be found to meet the time frames and limitations of costs, the NRCS may alter the mulch requirements for invasive plant species or cancel the order.

b) Mulch Acceptance – The Natural Resources Conservation Service reserves the right to reject mulch that: 1.) does not meet contractual mulch quality, 2.) is not certified or tested to be free of any additives to preserve the product, and 3.) contains seed or plant parts from weed species specifically prohibited.

1.2 Wood Strand/Mulch Application

1) Utilize wood strand/mulch and methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in producing the mulch, distribution during application and erosion control capabilities. Utilize biodegradable wood strand/mulch materials that are favorable to residual vegetative growth, native species, seed germination and plant recovery. Where applicable, the Government will identify locations of possible wood material (standing or harvested decked trees) to be used to produce wood mulch in the individual task order.

2) The wood strand/mulch shall be applied to the soil cover rate indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit as indicated in the individual task order. This will vary from 20-80% soil surface cover in a unit. This coverage rate is to be applied over 100% of the unit unless indicated otherwise in the individual task order. The coverage percentage will only include the amount of product that meets material specifications.

3) The wood strand/mulch shall be applied at a depth indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit in the individual task order. This will vary from 0.25- to 1.25-inch depth for no more than an average depth of 0.5-0.75-inch at the soil cover rate indicated for the unit.

4) The wood strand/mulch shall be processed to a length indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit in the individual task order. Straw shaft length shall be processed in a manner such that it is a minimum of 1 inches and not exceed 12 inches.

5) Some treatment units may include exclusion areas which consist of active waterbodies, homes and structures, rock, unburned vegetation, green regrowth, needle cast, water tanks, cell phone or radio towers, high voltage power lines, and all other types of improvements and these areas shall not receive treatment.

Unless indicated differently in an individual task order, when exclusion acres are encountered the contract http://www.naisma.org/weed-free-forage will be adjusted by moving to alternative treatment areas designated by the Contracting Officer. The coverage rate percentage may also be adjusted in units with exclusion areas, and/or the contractor will not be paid for exclusion acres.

6) The contractor shall perform on the ground inspections to determine if the rate of application meets contract requirements. The contractor shall provide their inspection data to the Contracting Officer indicating the unit is ready for inspection by the Government. The contractor is responsible for quality control of their application. The Government may perform, but is not required to perform, quality assurance inspections to ensure that project specifications are met. There may be instances where the contractor or the Government may not perform inspections due to safety risks (weather, remoteness, soil conditions, significant falling

7) The Contractor shall be responsible for any unused wood strand/mulch material once contract specifications have been attained. In order to utilize any unused wood strand/mulch material, the NRCS has the discretion to allow the contractor to apply the unused strand/mulch materials to treatment units that have met contract specifications thereby increasing percent ground cover above minimum requirements. The NRCS may also allow the contractor to apply any unused strand/mulch materials to adjacent burned areas. The NRCS is under no obligation to pay the contractor for any application or removal of unused strand/mulch material after contract specifications have been met. The contractor is under no obligation to apply or use any unused strand/mulch material beyond contract specifications but is responsible for removal of unused strand/mulch materials.

8) Special ground support, equipment and documentation needs:

a. Staging area tasks include delivery, unloading, neatly stacking, producing of the mulch, and loading mulch in nets for aerial distribution or into ground-based equipment for ground distribution. Staging areas shall be kept clean of garbage and debris. Upon completion of the project staging areas shall be cleaned up, restored, and prepared for rehabilitation and or re-seeding. Staging areas on lands that are not administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service on Private Lands may have other requirements.

b. Contractor is responsible for the cleaning of all vehicles and equipment to ensure that they are free seed and reproductive plant parts prior to entering Private lands or other Federal, State, County or Municipal lands. Contractor must provide written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site.

c. In addition to daily operational reports and a final report, required documents for a contract must

i. Written documentation of the total amount (in pounds) of mulch delivered.

ii. Written documentation that the mulch is free of any additives to preserve the product.

iii. Written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to

d. At the end of each operational period, or prior to the morning briefing all documentation shall be

5) Utilize methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in the production of wood strand/mulch, distribution during application and erosion control capabilities.

1.4 Wood Strand/Mulch Acceptance: Unless indicated in individual task orders acceptance or rejection of units will be accomplished as indicated in this section.

1) Contractor personnel are responsible for inspection and quality control. Individual task orders will indicate how acceptance will be determined for projects. Contractor shall provide enough information so the CO could attempt to duplicate the contractor’s inspection results. This information could include GPS points and/or azimuths.

2) The contractor’s inspection information provided will be reviewed by the CO or their representative and discussed with the contractor. Percent mulch cover for a unit will be the percentage of ground coverage that meets mulch material specifications. Too fine or too large of material will not count towards the required ground cover percentage. Non-burned areas, needle cast, rock, abundant revegetation will count as exclusion points and there will either be a reduction in treatment acres, an increased target cover percentage for treatable acres, and/or movement of treatment acres outside of the unit.

3) As part of the government’s quality assurance program the CO may elect to try to duplicate the contractor’s sampling results, use similar sampling methodology but potentially sample in different locations, or not inspect a unit. The government will not perform their quality assurance inspections or approve a unit for

C) Hydromulch

1.1 Supply of Hydromulch

1) Contractor-Furnished Hydromulch: A hillslope erosion control technique that consists of but not limited to seed, tackifying agent(s), wood fiber and or paper mulch and water to create a slurry mixture. The Contractor shall supply a hydromulch mix to meet project specifications in individual task orders.

Hydromulch mixes may vary by project and shall be indicated in the individual task orders. All hydromulch must be free of trash and noxious weeds as identified and required for the area in which to be treated. All products associated with the hydromulch mix shall be furnished by the Contractor unless otherwise indicated by the individual task order and shall meet the following requirements as a minimum. Other requirements may apply depending on project needs.

a) Mulch Acceptance – The Natural Resources Conservation Service reserves the right to reject mulch that: 1.) does not meet contractual mulch quality, and 2.) contains trash and or seed or plant parts from weed species specifically prohibited.

1.2 Hydromulch Application

1) Utilize hydromulch and methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in production of the mulch, distribution during application and erosion control capabilities. Utilize hydromulch mix materials that are favorable to residual vegetative growth, native species, seed germination and plant recovery. Where applicable, the Government will identify locations of water sources available for use to produce the hydromulch mixture in the individual task order. Hydromulch mix weights may vary from 5,000 to 7,000 lbs. per acre and may contain seed.

2) The hydromulch shall be applied to the soil cover rate indicated in the specifications for each treatment unit as indicated in the individual task order. This will vary from 70-90% soil surface cover in a unit. This coverage rate is to be applied over 100% of the unit unless indicated otherwise in the individual task order.

The coverage percentage will only include the amount of product that meets material specifications.

3) Some treatment units may include exclusion areas which consist of active waterbodies, rock, unburned vegetation, green regrowth, needle cast, water tanks, cell phone or radio towers, high voltage power lines, and all other types of improvements and these areas shall not receive treatment. Unless indicated differently in an individual task order, when exclusion acres are encountered the contract will be adjusted by moving to alternative treatment areas designated by the Contracting Officer. The coverage rate percentage may also be adjusted in units with exclusion areas, and/or the contractor will not be paid for exclusion acres.

4) The contractor shall perform on the ground inspections to determine if the rate of application meets contract requirements. The contractor shall provide their inspection data to the Contracting Officer indicating the unit is ready for inspection by the Government. The contractor is responsible for quality control of their application. The Government may perform, but is not required to perform, quality assurance inspections to ensure that project specifications are met. There may be instances where the contractor or the Government may not perform inspections due to safety risks (weather, remoteness, soil conditions, significant falling

5) The Contractor shall be responsible for any unused hydromulch material or mix once contract specifications have been attained. In order to utilize any unused hydromulch material, the NRCS has the discretion to allow the contractor to apply the unused hydromulch mix to treatment units that have met contract specifications thereby increasing percent ground cover above minimum requirements. The NRCS may also allow the contractor to apply any unused hydromulch mix to adjacent burned areas. The NRCS is under no obligation to pay the contractor for any application or removal of unused hydromulch mix after contract specifications have been met. The contractor is under no obligation to apply or use any unused hydromulch mix beyond contract specifications but is responsible for removal of unused hydromulch material or mix.

6) Special ground support, equipment and documentation needs:

a. Staging area tasks include delivery, unloading, neatly stacking of materials, mixing of the hydromulch, and “hot loading” of aircraft for aerial distribution or into ground-based equipment for ground distribution. Staging areas shall be kept clean of garbage and debris. Upon completion of the project staging areas shall be cleaned up, restored, and prepared for rehabilitation and or re-seeding. Staging areas on lands other than Private, for this project by Natural Resources Conservation Service, may have other requirements.

b. Contractor is responsible for the cleaning of all vehicles and equipment to ensure that they are free seed and reproductive plant parts prior to entering Private Lands. Contractor must provide written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site.

c. In addition to daily operational reports and a final report, required documents for a contract must

i. Written documentation of the total amount (in pounds) of hydromulch material delivered.

ii. Written documentation that the products used in the hydromulch mix are free of any trash or noxious weeds.

iii. Written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site.

iv. Seeding documentation requirements may be applicable, if seed is included in the hydromulch mix.

d. At the end of each operational period, or prior to the morning briefing all documentation shall be

5) Utilize methods of application which have previously demonstrated effectiveness in both distribution in the production of the hydromulch, during application, and erosion control capabilities.

1.3 Hydromulch Acceptance: Unless indicated in individual task orders acceptance or rejection of units will be accomplished as indicated in this section.

1) Contractor personnel are responsible for inspection and quality control. Individual task orders will indicate how acceptance will be determined for projects. Contractor shall provide enough information so the CO could attempt to duplicate the contractor’s inspection results. This information could include GPS points.

2) The contractor’s inspection information provided will be reviewed by the CO or their representative and discussed with the contractor. Percent mulch cover for a unit will be the percentage of ground coverage that meets mulch material specifications. Non-burned areas, needle cast, rock, abundant revegetation will count as exclusion points and there will either be a reduction in treatment acres, an increased target cover percentage for treatable acres, and/or movement of treatment acres outside of the unit.

3) As part of the government’s quality assurance program the CO may elect to try to duplicate the contractor’s sampling results, use similar sampling methodology but potentially sample in different locations, or not inspect a unit. The government will not perform their quality assurance inspections or approve a unit for

D) Seeding

1.1 Supply of Certified Seed.

1) Contractor-Furnished Seed: The Contractor shall supply seed to meet project specifications in individual task orders. Seed mixes may vary by project and shall be indicated in the individual task orders. As a general understanding of seed availability and cost, the following table provides basic information for seed mix and rates;

15% Cool season Perennial grass 10% Warm Season Perennial grass 75% Cool season Annual grass

Perennials %Mix Minimum Needed Blue Grama (Warm Season) 10% 2 lbs./ac Western Wheat (Cool Season) 15% 8 lbs./ac Mountain Brome(Cool Season) 15% 9 lbs./ac

Annual (Cool Season) %Mix Minimum Needed Winter Wheat2 75% 24 lbs./ac Barley 75% 125 lbs./ac Rye 75% 8 lbs./ac Triticale 75% 8lbs./ac.

Cereal Rye1 75% 180 lbs./ac

Cereal Rye1 is the preferred annual grass species, however if cost and availability are not feasible, the next preferred annual grass species is Winter Wheat2 for root and frost tolerance.

Seed mix weights may vary from 18 lbs. per acre to 190+ lbs. per acre depending on available and cost-effective mix and application rate. All seed furnished by the Contractor shall meet the following requirements as a minimum. Other requirements may apply depending on project needs.

a. Supplied seed must be in compliance with seed laws for the State of origin of the seed and the State where the seed will be applied. The certification process of the State serving as the seed source must be met unless the seed is tested according to the certification process of the State where the wholesaler is located. Seed must be tested and certified to be free of noxious weed seed according to

(1) the noxious weed lists of the States of origin and destination and (2) noxious weed listings for all 50 States found in USDA’s State Noxious–Weed Seed Requirements Recognized in the Administration of the Federal Seed Act. Seed must also be free from prohibited and restricted weed species as determined by seed laws of the States of origin and destination unless the CO specifically authorizes seed lots with restricted seed to meet or exceed minimum standards for those States. This information will be a part of the task order. In addition, seed lots should not contain seed from cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), Japanese brome (Bromus japonicus), Russian thistle (any Salsola species) or any other weeds specifically prohibited by a Natural Resources Conservation Service unless authorized by the CO. The Natural Resources Conservation Service is especially concerned about cheatgrass, Japanese brome, Russian thistle, or other weed species such as yellow bluestem or Caucasian bluestem that are adapted to arid conditions but are not addressed in State noxious weed laws but have the potential to be injurious when seeded on Private lands. The NRCS may specify limits of invasive species seeds or plant material within supplied seed. The limits will be provided to the contractor within a task order prior to contractor acceptance of the terms of the individual project. If suitable sources of seed cannot be found to meet the time frames and limitations of costs, the NRCS may alter the requirements for invasive plant species or cancel the order. The combined total weight of seed from all other weed species (apart from noxious, prohibited, restricted, and forest-prohibited species) should not exceed 0.5% in a seed lot. Also, the seed lot should contain no more than 2% by weight (total) of non-weedy types of seed which includes seed from agronomic crops and native, non-weedy plant species other than those specified in the contracted seed mix.

Seed test certification sheets shall be provided as part of the certification process. The CO may reject seed lots that exceed the requirements listed above.

b. Seed sampling - Representative seed samples of individual seed lots used for seed testing should be pulled after the seed is received for a seeding project. If Natural Resources Conservation Service personnel are unavailable to pull samples, Contractors must use an independent third-party contractor who is responsible for pulling seed samples from seed lots and then sending the samples to the seed lab in accordance with standard chain-of-custody procedures.

c. Seed testing – At its discretion and own expense, the Natural Resources Conservation Service may test seed lots before using the seed in project seeding. Seed used for project seeding may be analyzed by an independent third-party seed lab that follows standards of the Association of Official Seed Analysts (AOSA). Pre-mix sampling and testing by a Contractor may specifically be authorized by the CO/COR in the event the mix does not pass visual inspections.

d. Seed Cleaning – All seed should be cleaned such that trash, stems or debris longer than ¾ inch no longer remain. Seed will also be visually inspected on a random basis for impurities (unnatural and man-made foreign materials).

e. Seed Storage – Contracted seed must be stored securely after samples are pulled.

f. Seed Acceptance – At its discretion and own expense, the Natural Resources Conservation Service may test seed lots before using the seed in project seeding. The Natural Resources Conservation Service reserves the right to reject seed mixes by lot number that: 1.) do not meet contractual requirements for seed mix percentages, PLS, or Source Identified Seed, 2.) are not free of noxious or prohibited weed seed in any appreciable amounts, 3.) have restricted weed seed content greater than allowed by State standards, 4.) contain any seed from annual bromegrasses (cheatgrass, Japanese brome, etc.), yellow bluestem, Caucasian bluestem, Russian thistle, or any forest-prohibited weed species unless specifically authorized by the COR, 5.) exceed contents stated above for other types of weed seed or crop seed, and 6.) Are improperly cleaned.

2) Special ground support, equipment and documentation needs:

a. Staging area tasks include delivery, unloading, neatly stacking, and loading seed for aerial distribution or into ground-based equipment for ground distribution. Staging areas shall be kept clean of garbage and debris. Upon completion of the project staging areas shall be cleaned up, restored, and prepared for rehabilitation and or re-seeding. Staging areas on lands that are not administered by the Natural Resources Conservation Service through EWP may have other requirements.

b. Contractor is responsible for the cleaning of all vehicles and equipment to ensure that they are free seed and reproductive plant parts prior to entering private lands, Forest Service lands or other Federal and State lands. Contractor must provide written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment prior to moving onto job site.

c. In addition to daily operational reports and a final report, required documents for a contract must

i. Written documentation of the total amount (in pounds) of seed delivered.

ii. Seed tags or transportation paperwork from each lot of seed delivered (including any yellow

Source Identified Seed tags) that must be attached to a separate sheet.

iii. Applicable Seed lab test results.

iv. Written certification of compliance with terms for cleaning vehicles and equipment…