A04_PWS___TX_Santa_Ana.doc

Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge Description of Work

This project is designed to reduce the threat from fire to the refuge and the associated structures and improvements, as well as maintain the existing trails and roads for public and Service purposes. Roads within the refuge are accessible by two-wheel drive pickup trucks and crew haul vehicles. Trails are intended for foot travel by refuge visitors. However, Contractor vehicles such as ATV’s or small tractors may be used for the trail work described below as long as the height and width of such vehicles do not exceed 8 feet tall and 5 feet wide for the trails.

Trail and road maintenance shall consist of cutting and trimming up vegetation that is overhanging the normal travel paths and vertical profile of the trails and roads. All plants along the trails shall be trimmed up to a height of 8 feet from the ground within the trail profile and out 1 foot from the trails edge. All plants along the roads shall be trimmed up to a height of 12 feet from the ground within the road profile and out 4 feet from the roads edge (wheel tracks for unsurfaced roads or paved edge for surfaced roads). Large trees that have limbs high above the travel (foot or vehicle) paths shall not be disturbed unless necessary for the safety of the workers. Some of the trails on the refuge have a lot of high, overhanging vegetation that is shading the paths as well as providing esthetic and wildlife habitat functions. Any woody vegetation cut from along the roads shall be chipped or hauled off to an appropriate area to be chipped. Chips may not exceed a thickness of one inch, a width of three inches, or a length of five inches. Outflow of chips from the chipper shall be directed away from trails and roads. The chipper shall be moved along as work progresses so as to not allow chips to accumulate in brush/tree canopies or create piles on the ground. Accumulations on the ground may not exceed a depth of three inches. Some trails may require the Contractor to discharge chips onto a small containment trailer and haul them to a storage area on the refuge due to the dense vegetation along the trail not allowing chips to fall to the ground.

Grass on trails shall be mowed to a height not exceeding four inches above soil level. Trails shall be mowed to a width of 5 feet (2 1/2 feet each side of the trails centerline). Grass within the unpaved road profiles and out 4 feet onto each shoulder from the wheel track edges shall be mowed to a height not exceeding four inches above soil level as well. The shoulders of paved roads shall be mowed 4 feet out onto each shoulder from the outside edge of the pavement, and to the same height as above.

Follow up maintenance of the grassy portions along the trails shall receive an application of prescribed chemical herbicide according to Technical Exhibit 1, Specifications for Herbicide Use. Portions of the roads have desirable, native grass species growing along them; therefore, grasses along the paved road is a no herbicide treatment zone to protect them from chemical applications.

Vegetation around Visitor Center/Headquarter structures, parking lot vegetated islands, and Refuge entrance trails (malachite) will be maintained in close coordination with Refuge Management to reduce threats form fire, yet keeping enough to attract wildlife.

Certain weather conditions may require work restrictions. Rain events of over one-inch rainfall in the Rio Grande Valley usually make refuge roads un-drivable due to the clay soils of the region. No vehicles will be allowed to operate on unpaved refuge roads or trails under these conditions. The COR/TOM will determine when such conditions exist and require these restrictions. Usually if the rain event is followed by one or more full days of dry weather the vehicle restriction can be lifted. Extreme fire danger in the project area may require work shutdowns or reduced hours of operation (i.e. no saws or machinery after 1 p.m.). The South Texas Refuge Complex Fire Mgmt. Officer (or his acting) will determine when such conditions exist and will notify the COR/TOM the day prior to the restrictions going into effect. The Contractor will be informed by the COR/TOM when these restrictions are in effect.

The Government will occasionally monitor the work as it progresses for compliance to the contract. Inspections will be made by the Government using a visual examination of the work areas for compliance with all terms and specifications within five calendar days after notice is given to the COR/TOM that the work is completed. If the work does not meet contract requirements, corrections shall be made within seven calendar days.

The Contractor shall maintain an inspection system.

SANTA ANA NWR

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

1.1 SCOPE OF WORK: The contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, training, operating supplies, and all other items and services necessary to ensure Herbicide treatment and Mechanical control of woody and non-woody plants that overhang or occupy the designated trails and roads on the Santa Ana NWR. All woody material cut within the designated roads shall be chipped by a mechanical chipper. All woody material cut within the designated trails shall be discarded off and away from the trail. After trails have been cut and cleared, specific herbicides shall be applied to grass, herbaceous plants, and woody stumps according to procedures indicated in Technical Exhibit 1, Specifications for Herbicide Use. The contractor shall perform to the standards in this contract.

1.2

PERSONNEL:

1.2.1 CONTRACT MANAGER. The contractor shall provide an onsite contract manager who shall be fully responsible for the performance of the work under the requirements and specifications of this contract. The name of this individual (and an alternate person who shall act for the contractor when the manager is absent), shall be designated in writing to the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and the Contracting Officer (CO).

1.2.2.

AUTHORITY. The contract manager or alternate shall have full authority to act for the contractor on all contract matters relating to daily operation of this contract.

1.2.3.

AVAILABILITY. The contract manager or any alternates shall be available at the work site during normal work hours to meet with Government personnel designated by the CO to discuss any progress status or current concerns.

1.2.4.

LANGUAGE. The contract manager and any alternates must be able to read, write, speak, and understand English fluently.

1.3

QUALITY CONTROL:

1.3.1 ESTABLISH & MAINTAIN. The contractor shall establish and maintain a complete Quality Control Plan (QCP), to ensure the requirements of the contract are provided as specified. One copy of the contractor’s Quality Control Plan shall be provided to the COR no later than the contract start work date, and as changes occur.

1.3.2.

CONTENT. The QCP shall include the following:

1.3.3.

INSPECTION SYSTEM. An inspection system covering all of the services specified in this (PWS). It must specify the areas to be inspected on either a scheduled or unscheduled basis (random), how often inspections will be accomplished and the title of the individual(s) who will perform the inspections.

1.3.4.

IDENTIFICATION AND PREVENTION. The methods for identifying and preventing defects in the quality of service performed before performance becomes unacceptable.

1.3.5.

RECORDS. On-site records of all inspections conducted by the contractor, and necessary corrective action taken. This documentation shall be made available to the COR & CO during the term of the purchase order.

1.3.6.

GOVERNMENT REVIEW. The Contractor QCP shall be submitted to the COR for approval. If the plan is not adequate as submitted, then the deficiencies will be identified to the contractor in writing. The contractor shall correct all identified deficiencies and submit a corrected Contractor QCP within ten days or contract start work date, whichever is sooner.

1.4

QUALITY ASSURANCE (QA):

1.4.1.

QUALITY ASSURANCE EVALUATORS. The COR or a designated inspector shall monitor contractor performance, and inspect and accept or reject the services performed, as required by the purchase order. The name and telephone number of the COR and/or inspector will be furnished to the contractor in writing by the CO.

1.4.2.

GOVERNMENT EVALUATION. The COR or designated inspector will evaluate the contractor’s performance under this contract using a visual inspection (Random or Scheduled). If the inspection reveals that any contract provision has not been met the COR will inform the contract manager (or alternate) of the discrepancies. The contract manager will then inform the COR of when the discrepancies will be corrected and available for reinspection by the Government.

1.5

HOURS OF OPERATION:

1.5.1.

NORMAL HOURS: All work on this contract shall be conducted Monday through Friday, from 0700-1700. No work is to be performed by the contractor outside of normal work hours, unless it has been requested and agreed to by the COR.

1.6.

DOCUMENTATION AND RECORDS: All documentation, records and schedules, as described in this Performance Work Statement (PWS) that are the responsibility of the contractor, are the property of the Government and shall be turned over to the Government upon completion or termination of this contract. All records are subject to the Freedom of Information Act and to the Privacy Act and any such requests for release of any records shall be handled accordingly.

DEFINITIONS

2.1

STANDARD DEFINITIONS:

2.1.1.

CONTRACTING OFFICER (CO): A Government person that has been delegated authority to enter into, administer, and terminate contracts and make determinations and findings on behalf of the Government.

2.1.2.

CONTRACTING OFFICER’S REPRESENTATIVE (COR): A Government person appointed by the Contracting Officer (CO), to help the contracting officer with contract administration. This person may also be the technical point of contact and be responsible for surveillance of contractor performance.

2.1.3.

DEFECTIVE SERVICE: A unit of service which contains one or more defects, or nonconformance with the specified requirements.

2.1.4.

QUALITY ASSURANCE (QA): Those actions taken by the Government to assure that services meet the specifications and requirements of the (PWS). Such as Random Inspection and Final Inspection methods.

2.1.5.

QUALITY CONTROL (QC): Those actions that are taken by the contractor to control the performance of the services so that they meet the requirements of the (PWS).

2.3

ACRONYMS:

CO

Contracting Officer

COR

Contracting Officer’s Representative

OSHA

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

PWS

Performance Work Statement

QA

Quality Assurance

QAE

Quality Assurance Evaluator

QC

Quality Control

QCP

Quality Control Plan

STRC South Texas Refuge Complex

GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY, MATERIALS and SERVICES 3.1.

GOVERNMENT FURNISHED MATERIALS: All materials required for performing the contract tasks shall be provided by the Contractor. No materials or operating supplies are Government furnished.

3.2.

GOVERNMENT FURNISHED SERVICES and FACILITIES:

3.2.1.

The Government will provide an agency representative to acquaint the contractor with the work area(s) to be completed.

3.2.2.

Adequate maps for orientation of contractor personnel working on this contract will be available.

3.2.3.

There are no Government-furnished facilities available under the terms and specifications of the contract.

CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS AND SERVICES

4.1.

GENERAL. Except for those items or services specifically stated to be Government furnished in the Section titled Government Furnished Property, Materials, and Services, the contractor is responsible for furnishing and providing everything required to perform the Line Item tasks and requirements in the Performance Work Statement (PWS). The contractor shall furnish and provide all labor, trained crew personnel, appropriate equipment (in good working condition), facilities, materials, trained equipment operators, supervision, training, supplies, tools, transportation and any other items and services needed to perform the specified Line Item tasks of this purchase order.

4.2.

VEGETATION CUTTING, CLEARING EQUIPMENT. No Soil disturbing equipment or tracked vehicles shall be used during the performance of this contract. These include, but are not limited to bulldozers, graders/maintainers, or disking equipment. Equipment used on refuge trails may not be wider or higher than established foot paths (generally 5 feet. wide by 8 feet. high).

DETAILED REQUIREMENTS & SPECIFICATIONS

5.1.

GENERAL: The contractor is solely responsible for familiarizing themselves with the work locations, as well as the nature and scope of the tasks.

5.1.1.

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE. In order to accomplish this work (in the approved trails and roads) contractor shall begin work after a purchase order has been issued and is given a period of 365 days to accomplish the designated work. The contractor will be required to review the work areas and develop a schedule of work to be submitted to the COR for their review and approval before any work begins on each task. The priority will be based on mutual agreement between the contractor and the COR; IE... where significant vegetation re-growth has occurred undermining the effective use of the trails and roads being of highest priority for the tasks.

5.1.2.

FREQUENCY SCHEDULE

Road and trail maintenance work shall be conducted four (4) times a year (April, June, September, and November).

5.1.3.

LENGTH OF CONTRACT- Contract is for the period of one (1) year, with up to three (3) option years (subject to the availability of funds).

5.1.4.

WEATHER CONSIDERATIONS. Certain weather conditions may require work restrictions. Rain events of over one-inch rainfall in the Rio Grande Valley usually make refuge roads undriveable due to the clay soils of the region. No vehicles will be allowed to operate on unpaved refuge roads or trails under these conditions. The COR will determine when such conditions exist and require these restrictions. Usually if the rain event is followed by one or more full days of dry weather the vehicle restriction can be lifted. Extreme fire danger in the project area may require work shutdowns or reduced hours of operation (i.e. no saws or machinery after 1 p.m.). The South Texas Refuge Complex Fire Mgmt. Officer (or his acting) will determine when such conditions exist and will notify the COR the day prior to the restrictions going into effect. The Contractor will be informed by the COR when these restrictions are in effect.

5.1.5.

CONFLICTS WITH OTHER GOVERNMENT USES. The contractor acknowledges that this project is on a National Wildlife Refuge and agrees to move their personnel, equipment and operations at their expense if the area that tasks are being performed is needed for other Government uses. In the event of interference due to such requirements, the Government shall grant additional time to complete the tasks not completed, based on a day for day basis.

5.1.6. ENDANGERED WILDLIFE. Unplanned contact with or disturbance of threatened or endangered wildlife or plant species within a work area may require suspension of work in that area. Contractor shall inform the COR immediately if such contact is suspected (the Government may provide a substitute area for the contractor to work in if one is available within the same magnitude of task).

5.2 SAFETY and HEALTH REQUIREMENTS:

5.2.1.

WORK REQUIREMENTS. The contractor shall perform work in a safe manner and is responsible to be in full compliance with all Federal (including OSHA), State and local policies, rules, regulations and requirements pertinent to the work/tasks being performed under this contract. Contractor must be licensed to handle and treat with the Herbicides it will use.

5.2.2.

EQUIPMENT CONDITION. All equipment shall be maintained in good operating condition. All safety precautions and requirements shall be implemented and complied with when using equipment. All safety devices shall be in place on-site and function properly on all equipment being used. All operations shall be conducted in compliance with all Federal, State and local occupational health and safety laws and regulations, including OSHA.

5.2.3.

GENERAL HOUSEKEEPING and SANITATION. The contractor shall be responsible for proper handling and disposal of all waste including (but not limited to) general trash/waste, human waste, hazardous materials and haz-waste (i.e. oily rags, discarded oil or fuel). All trash is to be picked up and removed daily. No government facilities (i.e. restrooms or trash receptacles) are available at the work sites.

5.2.4.

FIRE RESPONSIBILITY. Any fire starts that are caused by the contractor shall be quickly extinguished. Santa Ana Fire Dispatch shall be informed immediately by calling (956)784-7520. Each vehicle used on the contract shall have a five pound, ABC rated fire extinguisher mounted in the vehicle. Fire extinguishers shall be readily available for any fire starts. All fire extinguishers shall be inspected and certified for use (with inspection tag attached) prior to starting this contract.

SPECIFIC TASKS

SITE SPECIFIC INFORMATION/STANDARDS

6.1.

CUT WOODY PLANTS: All woody plants along the approved scheduled trails shall be cut from within the trail profile and out 2 feet from each side of the trails edge. All woody plants along the scheduled roads shall be cut from within the road profile and out 4 feet from the roads edge (wheel tracks for unsurfaced roads or paved edge for surfaced roads).

6.1.1.

QUALITY STANDARD: After cutting, all trails shall be free of overhanging woody plants within the trail profile up to a height of 10 feet from the ground and out 2 feet from the trails edge. After cutting, all roads shall be free of overhanging woody plants up to a height of 12 feet from the ground within the road profile and out 4 feet from the roads edge. Large trees that have limbs high above the travel paths (foot or vehicle) need not be disturbed unless necessary for the safety of the workers.

6.2.

CLEAR MATERIAL CUT: All cut plant materials shall be cleared from within trail and road profiles.

6.2.1.

QUALITY STANDARD: After clearing all trails and road profiles shall be free of cut plant materials. Cuttings shall be chipped and scattered in the immediate vicinity or hauled away to a designated, central site on the refuge to be chipped. Chips may not exceed a thickness of 1 inch, a width of 3 inches, or a length of 6 inches.

6.3.

CUT GRASS AND OTHER NON-WOODY PLANTS: All grass and other non-woody plants along the scheduled trails shall be cut from within the trail profile (See Description of Work for widths and lengths/distances). All grass and other non-woody plants along the scheduled roads shall be cut from within the road profile and shoulders.

6.3.1.

QUALITY STANDARD: After cutting, all grass and non-woody plants on trails shall not exceed a height of two inches above soil level within the trail profile (including 3 feet each side of the trails centerline). After cutting, all grass and non-woody plants within the unpaved road profiles and out 4 feet onto each shoulder from the wheel track edges and shall not exceed a height of two inches above soil level. The shoulders of paved roads shall be cut 4 feet out onto each shoulder from the outside edge of the pavement and to the same height as unpaved roads.

6.4.

CUT WOODY AND NON-WOODY PLANTS: All woody and herbaceous plants existing within designated trails (see Description of Work for widths and lengths/distances) shall be cut except for scattered individual reserve trees marked with flagging for retention by the COR or inspector.

6.4.1. QUALITY STANDARD: After cutting, all woody and non-woody plants (except for reserve trees) shall have been cut and woody plant stump height shall not exceed three inches, with no live limbs below the cut. Stumps are to be cut clean and flat (zero slope or angle) so as to provide for a suitable surface for hand application of herbicide. Application of this herbicide is described in Technical Exhibit 1. Grasses and other non-woody plants shall be cut to a height not exceeding four inches above soil level. Grass clippings shall be directed and discharged away from paved roads and refuge fences.

6.5.

CHIPPING OF WOODY DEBRIS: All woody material cut within the paved roads shall be chipped by a mechanical woodchipper.

6.5.1.

QUALITY STANDARD: Chips shall not exceed a thickness of one inch, a width of three inches, or a length of five inches. Outflow of chips from the chipper shall be directed away from the fuel break. Accumulations on the ground shall not exceed a depth of three inches.

6.6.

HERBICIDE APPLICATION: After cutting, all woody and non-woody plant stumps or stubble shall receive an application of prescribed chemical herbicide according to Technical Exhibit 1, Specifications for Herbicide Use.

6.6.1.

QUALITY STANDARD: All cut woody and non-woody plant surfaces shall exhibit tracer dye residue to verify herbicide application has occurred per Technical Exhibit 1. Chemical usage reports shall be provided to the COR as indicated in Technical Exhibit 1.

Technical Exhibit 1:

Specifications for Herbicide Use The Contractor shall obtain the necessary permits (providing the COTR with a copy of the commercial permit), training, and provide for worker safety as required by the State of Texas in order to apply agricultural chemicals. All chemicals shall be used according to the manufacturer’s label specifications, and according to the special instructions given below. The Government will provide pesticide use forms. These shall be completed by the Contractor for each project area and given to the COTR at the completion of each application of herbicide.

Imazapyr & Glyphosate Mixture with non-ionic surfactant: This is an aqueous solution to be mixed with water and applied as a spray for control of most annual and perennial grasses and broadleaf weeds on non-cropland areas. The application of this type of herbicide is most effective when the target plants are actively growing. The grasses and weeds targeted for control in the trails are primarily Guineagrass, Buffelgrass, and broadleaf weeds.

The herbicide shall be applied during daylight hours; when temperature is at or above 70˚F; and a maximum wind speed of 10 mph. The rate at which Imazapyr (27.6 % active ingredient) shall be applied is a 1% solution mixed with a 1% solution of glyphosate (48.7 % active ingredient) delivered at 6 to 12 gallons per acre. Tracer dye approved for use with herbicides shall be used to confirm uniform coverage of the vegetation foliage, and inspection processes. The Imazapyr/Glyphosate solution shall be applied according to the Specimen Label with particular adherence to controlling droplet size, application height, drift, and sensitive areas. Lack of seasonal rainfall and weed growth may result in delays and waiting for the appropriate timing for effective herbicide application. The Contractor shall obtain verbal approval from the COTR prior to application of this type of herbicide.