A04_Scope_of_Work.pdf

SCOPE OF WORK

2022 Cima Road Joshua Tree Transplanting and Salvage

Mojave National Preserve

PART 1 – GENERAL INFORMATION

The intent of this project is for the contractor to transplant 4 large Joshua trees from the Cima Road margins to construction-free areas in anticipation for a large-scale road rehabilitation project in Mojave National Preserve. All transplanting will be done with a tree spade no less than 84 inches. Two of the transplanting sites will be just outside of the road construction area, no more than 100 feet from their original location. The other two will go to a location approximately 6 miles away where they will help restore a seed source to a badly affected area of the Dome Fire (2020).

1.1 DESCRIPTION OF WORK:

A. Four large Joshua trees have been identified as within construction clearing limit of the Cima Road Rehabilitation project scheduled to begin in early 2023. Each of these trees is too large to transplant by hand and shall be transplanted by a tree spade with a width no less than 84 inches.

The northern most tree is located near the entrance to the Mojave National Preserve along Cima Rd. It is approximately 17ft tall, 8ft wide, and consists of a single trunk. It is currently located in the center island of pull-through area where the park entrance sign is located. It will need to be relocated a spot approximately 66 ft away, so that it will be behind the new entrance sign. The next two trees to the south are close to each other. They are located on the opposite side of the road of an old corral near mile marker 7. One individual has a few small pups sprouting from the base, and so this is called the cluster tree. It is approximately 10 ft tall and about 6-7ft wide. The other individual is a single, unbranched trunk about 20 ft tall. Care must be taken to ensure it does not break in half if laid on its side. Both of these trees will be relocated to roughly the same location approximately 6 miles away, roughly 0.5 mile west of Kessler Springs Ranch. The fourth tree to the south is about located on the east of the road near a wash crossing south of mile marker

9. It is approximately 10 ft tall, about 6-7 ft wide, and consists of a single trunk. It will be relocated to the north about 100 ft. See maps and tables for new and old locations of each Joshua tree. Dirt from the new location should be used to fill the old location’s hole.

1.2 LOCATION:

A. This project is located on Cima Road approximately 80 miles south of Las Vegas, NV and 90 miles east of Barstow off the I-15 (exit 272) within Mojave National Preserve. The project begins just south of the Shell gas station and continues south along Cima Road for approximately 16.7 miles.

B. It should also be noted that this was the general area of the Dome Fire (2020) which burned over 43,000 acres in one of the largest and densest Joshua trees forests in the world. Therefore, vegetation has been burned and removed on nearly 60% of project area.

1 .4 SPECIAL CONSTRUCTION REQUIREMENTS

A. Endangered Tortoise Protection: Extreme care must also be taken to prevent any damage to desert tortoise which may exist within the project site. A tortoise monitor will be provided by the NPS during transplanting activities. All workers (transplant/salvage) will be required to attend a tortoise awareness training provided by NPS staff. Salvage workers will use the skills learned from the tortoise training and their best budget judgement to avoid impacts to desert tortoise and burrows.

B. Construction Equipment Cleaning: Prevent introduction of noxious weeds and non-native plant species into the work site. All vehicles and equipment entering the project area must be clean and free of plant materials, soil, and any seed. Equipment must be free from oil and other fluid leaks.

Particular attention must be shown to the under carriage, truck beds, trailer decks, wheel wells, mower decks (top and bottom) and any surface where soil containing exotic seeds may exist. All equipment subject to inspection by CO or delegated to NPS personnel. Follow applicable Federal land management agency requirements and state requirements. Maintain cleaning and inspection records. Equipment found operating on the project that has not been inspected or has oil leaks will be shut down and subject removal from the project area.

C. Key personnel for this project must possess the knowledge, skills and ability to work in a front and back country settings; to perform manual labor, operate applicable equipment, apply appropriate salvaging techniques, properly record GPS location information, summarize all work completed in a final report; and to prepare final products of high quality and in the formats requested by the requesting agency.

1 .5 FIELD VERIFICATION & EXAMINATION OF SITE

A. All bidders are urged to visit the job site and examine existing conditions before submitting bids.

All bidders will be held to have the same knowledge concerning the site and the on ground conditions as if they had inspected the job site.

1 .6 CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS

A. No materials will be Government furnished.

PART 2 – DELIVERABLES

The Contractor shall complete and submit the following deliverables in a timely fashion (as soon as feasible after award) to the NPS contacts listed below:

• Implementation Plan: staging areas, equipment used, labor used, etc.

• Safety Plan

PART 3 – NPS ROLES AND CONTACT INFORMATION

• Contracting Officer; final authority on contractual matters: Jim Read, Contract Specialist Mojave National Preserve. (760) 252-6112. Jim_Read@nps.gov

• Contracting Officer’s Representative; field point of contact for logistics: Drew Kaiser, Botanist, Mojave National Preserve. (760) 252-6106 and (760) 221-3590.

andrew_kaiser@nps.gov.

Map 1

Map 2

Map 3

Map 4

Table 1. Transplant Location Coordinates

Old Locations New Locations Lat Long Lat Long Entrance Sign 35.437967 -115.671377 35.437786 -115.671348 Tall Unbranched 35.363427 -115.586364 35.294169 -115.542108 Cluster 35.364459 -115.587469 35.293305 -115.543465 Wash Crossing 35.33911 -115.56114 35.3394 -115.56121

PHOTOS

IMG-01

Entrance Sign Tree

IMG-02

(No image of Cluster Tree at this time)

IMG-03

(No image of Tall Unbranched Tree at this time)

IMG-04

Wash Crossing Tree