A04_SOW_Cabin_Creek.pdf

STATEMENT OF WORK

SECTION C:

DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK

C.1 SCOPE OF WORK

The Contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and incidental services necessary to perform manual thinning and piling.

This contract is for manual cut and mechanical piling for fuels reduction, forest health, and wildlife habitat improvement on approximately 825 acres.

Project is in NE Wyoming Black hills. Cabin Creek Phase II Project area is approximately 25 miles NW of the city of Sundance, WY.

Please use this Statement of Work to assist with quotes.

The project has full public access to project area from Cabin Creek County Road. Drift fence on southern boundary of units at time of contract BLM will install temp gate for getting equipment/personnel north to units and project area.

Base all quotes on site specific conditions and prescription.

Cabin Creek Phase II Project Area: Bureau of Land Management Public domain lands located in parts of Township 53N Range 67W Sec. 11, 24, 25, 26 accessed thru public land and two-tracks access (native material) off Cabin Creek County rd. (gravel), and equipment access thru drift fence (southern boundary of southern unit) will be established by BLM thru temporary gate so contractor can access units with equipment/personnel. Equipment travel between units shall utilize existing two-tracks, and within Unit 2 equipment must stay on two-track in internal areas of project cut out (see map).

The work is located on public lands in Crook County administered by the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM), Newcastle Field Office.

Access must be when dry or frozen; The Contractor at his expense will repair ruts and road damage caused by the Contractor.

The Government assumes no obligation to plow snow or perform special maintenance to keep roads open. All garbage must be removed from the work sites. Overnight work camp is allowed on BLM managed lands, contractor must approve location with COR and abide by all fire restrictions and/or camping restrictions and follow leave no trace guidelines once camp is vacated.

Contractor is expected to utilize Avenza (or like product) to know boundaries, georeferenced maps will be provided for potential bidders and shapefile may be provided to contractor at time of award. Contractor must be aware of unit boundaries by a Avenza or onyx like app to make sure work aligns with SOW and Map.

Close all gates.

C.2 DEFINITIONS

C.2.1 General Definitions

ACCEPTABLE QUALITY LEVEL (AQL). Maximum deviation from the performance standard.

PERFORMANCE BASED ACQUISITION. A contracting method intended to ensure that required performance quality levels are achieved and that the Contractor’s total payment is related to the degree services meet contract performance standards.

PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS SUMMARY (PRS). An abridged version (summary) of the Statement of Work showing contract requirements, tasks/subtasks, standards, and acceptable quality levels. The PRS may also contain an abridged version of Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan showing the Government’s method of surveillance, incentives, and fee reductions for not meeting standards.

PERFORMANCE STANDARD. Standard of performance required by the Government.

STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW). Specific requirements the Contractor must meet in performance of the contract. The SOW contains required services (tasks/critical subtasks), performance standards, acceptable quality levels, and incentives/disincentives.

QUALITY ASSURANCE. Actions taken by the Government to assure services meet contract requirements.

QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN (QASP) OR QUALITY ASSURANCE

PLAN (QAP). A written document showing Government surveillance method and scheduling to be used to assess the Contractor’s performance against the performance standard.

QUALITY CONTROL. Those actions taken by a Contractor to control the performance of services to ensure services meet the requirements of the SOW.

C.2.2 Technical Definitions None

C.3 GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED PROPERTY

C.3.1 None

C.4 CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS

The Contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and incidental services necessary to fulfil Manual thinning and piling and in accordance with local site-specific specifications contained herein.

C.4.1 Inspection

The Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or designated Project inspector will make periodic inspections. The Contractor or their representative is encouraged to observe the inspection and will receive inspection summaries upon request. Contractor is also welcome to request inspections to gauge contract completion performance with 2 days advanced notice and at convenience of government. Prior to final inspection of project contractor shall notify COR five days prior to schedule.

Acreage is figured on horizontal plane within project area. Inspections assess overall completion to contract specifications thru random sampling and/or standard forestry cruise methods, (i.e., transect, random plots 1/10 acre) to get overall completion. Percent completion shall include acres manually thinned and piled to full completion of prescription, the following items shall be pass/fail throughout project area, excessive road/resource damage, cleanliness, and fulfilment of overall statement of work conditions.

C.4.2 Basis of Payment

After final inspection of project area, the Contracting Officer or designated representative will assess if completion of contract is 95 percent or greater. 95 percent or better shall be considered full completion and full awarded amount.

C.5 TASKS/CRITICAL SUBSTASKS AND STANDARDS

C.5.1 Manual Thinning and Piling

825-acre treatment

Standard/AQL:

Performance Period September 13, 2023, to May 31, 2024.

Description The project’s goal is to thin and pile to improve forest health, reduce fuels, and improve wildlife habitat improvement.

Boundaries are virtual so contractor is expected to utilize Avenza or Georeferenced mapping programs. To utilize georeferenced PDF maps and/or shape files of which government will provide for the bidding and completing of project at request.

It is expected of contractor to be utilizing Avenza, or other reliable GPS georeferenced maps programs to bid, and complete project to specifications and PDF maps given by government.

If contractor needs any lines flagged, please notify NFO staff as far ahead as possible so fieldwork can be scheduled.

Detailed Unit Information

Unit# Treatment Acres 1 Manually cut and Pile 492 2 Manually cut and Pile 333

Total 825

Prescription Manual thin and Pile Cut and pile all Junipers <18” Diameter breast height (DBH)

Cut and pile all Ponderosa pine (PP) < 8” DBH within 18’ of a >8” PP tree.

Where no >8” leave PP space <8” DBH to 15’ X 15’

Contractor can manually pile or mechanically pile material.

All material severed is expected to be piled, along with all standing dead within thinning prescription, and sound down logs. No grey or rotting logs to be piled. No snags with bird cavities to be felled.

Only Ponderosa Pine and Juniper are to be cut under this project, no

C.6 SPECIFICATIONS

• All equipment shall be washed and cleaned prior to entry to project area, and free of all debris and possible seed sources. Start date shall be scheduled with COR so equipment inspection by BLM representative can be done onsite (or Newcastle field office which ever is more convenient to contractor) prior to work commencing.

• Work will be completed between August 20th, 2023, and May 31st, 2024.

• Work is to be completed using Manual severing(thin/cut) and piling material.

• ATV’s and UTV’s, may be utilized to facilitate crew and equipment transport, and to support medical incidents.

hardwoods or shrubs will be cut.

Leave tree selection.

When selecting leave trees for 15’ x 15’ spacing, select the largest, healthiest, best crowns, the trees will have the following characteristics:

• No apparent damage to the main bole.

• Not chlorotic (crown fading).

• Demonstrates good vigor and is disease/bug free, and of good form.

• Has at least 40% percent Live crown ratio.

All standing dead (with bark on, and without bird cavities) shall also be cut and piled.

Stump heights shall be cut flat (no punji sticks) and no more than 4” height on uphill side.

Piling spec’s

• Pile all cut material and dead down (sound logs) and standing dead with bark on and no bird cavities.

• Piled material must be cut to 6-foot lengths or less and De-limbed as needed to build compact piles. No voids should be present in piles.

• Piles should be constructed 30’ of outside dripline (crown extent/edge) of leave trees. Contractor should utilize openings.

• Pile size minimum 25’x25’-8’, in open areas where unable to meet min.

pile specs contractor with agreement with COR or BLM representative shall concentrate all slash to one pile.

• No max. length for piles, contractor may windrow in open areas keeping min W x H mentioned above.

• Contractor can utilize machine or manual to construct piles/windrows.

• Piles will be located 100’ or more from the property lines/boundary edges.

• Piles should be compact with few holes.

• No ends should stick out abruptly from the pile.

• Piles will be dirt free.

• Roads shall always remain open for vehicle traffic.

• The contractor shall be responsible for signing work area prior to entering work zone.

Fire Protection For heavy equipment and/or logging forest activities. Chipping, Mastication machinery and/or Manual contractors conducting work with chainsaws and manual piling/lop and scatter, only need to adhere to year-round equipment and Extreme/Red flag shutdown.

1. The following equipment will be provided and maintained by the Purchaser/Contractor on the contract area year-round:

a. Firefighting tools maintained in serviceable condition shall be kept at each active landing and at such other places as the Contracting Officer shall designate whenever people are working on the contract areas. All firefighting tools shall be kept in a closed box marked “FOR FIRE USE ONLY”. There shall not be less than four tools in each box or less than one tool for each person working on the contract area. Three-fourths of all fire tools shall be shovels or other scraping tools.

b. Each unit of mobile or stationary equipment, including trucks of 23,000 GVW or greater, engaged in commercial activities operating on the contract area or over roads leading to the contract area must be equipped with one operable fire extinguisher or a dry chemical type of not less than 2- 1/2 pounds (1.125 kilogram) capacity with 4 BC or higher rating.

c. Power saw operators shall maintain in their immediate possession a fully charged operable fire extinguisher and a serviceable round pointed #0 shovel or larger. The extinguisher shall be a liquid chemical type of at least 8 ounces (224 grams) capacity or a dry chemical type of at least 1 pound (0.454-kilogram capacity). Fueling of a saw shall be done in an area which has been cleared of all flammable organic material. Saws shall be moved at least 10 feet from the place of fueling before engine is started.

d. Power saws must be equipped with a muffler and screen type spark arrestor in accordance with the standards set forth in the U.S. Forest Service Spark Arrestor Guide. Power saws used in commercial activities and purchased after December 31, 1980, must also be equipped with a muffler system conforming to the Society of Automotive Engineers Standard J-335b, as set forth in the U.S. Forest Service Spark Arrestor Guide.

e. Exhaust driven turbochargers qualify as efficient spark arresters provided all exhaust gases pass through the turbine impeller. The turbine impeller must always be turning and there may be no exhaust bypass. A straight-mechanical-driven supercharger does not qualify. (1) All internal combustion engines operated on forested lands must be equipped with an approved and effective spark arresting device. (2) Motorbikes, trail cycles, scooters, and other mobile vehicles of this type and all stationary internal combustion engine-driven equipment used on the contract area or over roads leading to the contract area, must be equipped with spark arresting devices listed as approved in the U.S. Forest Service Spark Arrestor Guide.

Spark arresting devices must be plainly marked with the manufacturer's name and model number and must be properly installed and maintained in accordance with the guide. Heavy trucks may have a vertical stack exhaust system and muffler, provided the exhaust stack extends above the cab of the vehicle.

2. Fire watch

a. From June 1st to October 15th a one-hour fire watch is required to be on duty for 1 hour after the last shutdown of power-driven equipment for the day, or during times when NFDR as displayed by Casper Interagency dispatch by zone in which work is conducted is moderate or above.

b. Fire watch must be physically capable and experienced in operating any firefighting tools, or equipment on-site.

c. Furnished with adequate transportation and communications to report a fire.

d. Must be able to visually inspect area work was done during the day.

3. The Contractor shall attempt, to the best of its ability and training, to extinguish all fires started by Purchaser, its agents, or employees.

4. The Purchaser shall promptly report any fires to Casper Interagency Dispatch 1-

800-295-9952 or call 911.

5. The Purchaser is responsible for complying with all State, Local, county, and/or

Federal fire restrictions, or emergency closures given by authorized officer in the interest of public safety.

6. The Authorized officer and his/her contract administrators or designated BLM employee shall regularly inspect all precautionary fire equipment and required fire protection practices contained within this fire protection section. Failure of purchaser to follow guidelines and procedures contained within will result in an immediate stop work order until Fire protection guidelines and/or required equipment/actions are established onsite and in good working order. The government shall not be held responsible for any delays in contract performance period resulting from stop work orders from non-compliance with fire protection clauses.

Purchaser shall look up fire danger rating on Casper Interagency dispatch webpage daily. The following are guidelines purchaser must follow given danger rating.

https://gacc.nifc.gov/rmcc/dispatch_centers/r2cpc/

Low (L) - Green Year-round fire precaution equipment required.

Moderate (M) - Blue Fire watch required as well as year-round fire precaution equipment mentioned above.

High (H) - Yellow Fire watch required as well as year-round fire precaution equipment mentioned above.

https://gacc.nifc.gov/rmcc/dispatch_centers/r2cpc/

Very High (VH) - Orange Fire watch required as well as year-round fire precaution equipment mentioned above and- (Only for loggers and heavy equipment, Manual contractors and/or chippers are not required to have below standards)

In addition, a pump truck/trailer must be on site and within 5 minutes roundtrip of active felling and/or skidding operations, or road building activities. Operator is expected to move pump/truck trailer within 5 min personnel roundtrip of active operations daily.

Pump truck/trailer min. requirements.

1. 500-gallon min. Capacity

2. Minimum of 500 feet of 1” and/or 1 ½” inch cotton or synthetic jacket hose. (Required in definition of pump truck)

2. One variable stream nozzle with shut-off

3. Twenty feet of suction hose and a strainer suitable for pump to use to draft.

4. Fuel tank and hose line, if required for pump, with enough fuel to operate the pump for a period of four hours.

5. One grease gun, filled with grease, if the pump requires periodic lubrication.

6. Six extra hose washers for each hose/nozzle size.

7. One or more spanner wrenches of sizes suitable to fit the hose.

8. One reducer, matching the thread type of the hose type referenced in #1, if both hose sizes are used

9. If the pump is operated by an engine other than the truck engine, it must be equipped so that it can be started with a starter rope and the following additional accessories are required:

a. Two quarts of crankcase oil, if required for pump engine.

b. Two starter ropes if pump is pulling start.

c. Sufficient extra spark plugs to replace all spark plugs in the pump engine.

d. One spark plug wrench unless crescent is suitable.

e. One slip joint pliers, 6 inches

f. One screwdriver, 4 inch

g. One crescent wrench, 10 inch.

In combination with above Tractor, skidder, feller-buncher, forwarder or shovel logging operations where tractors, skidders, or other equipment with a blade capable of constructing Fireline are immediately available to quickly reach and effectively attack a fire start.

Extreme (E) - Red All operations will cease.

Red flag Contractor must monitor National weather service fire weather forecasts. In the event a red flag is issued for the zone in which operations are conducted the following restrictions are added to the above requirements. During a red flag no power saws shall be operated such as Feller bunchers, Processors, chainsaws, masticators, mowers, or grinders.

Logs maybe skidded and loaded on trucks and shipped, if fire precaution equipment required by above danger ratings is met.

C.6 SPECIFICATIONS