A04_SOW.pdf

PINE NUT LAND HEALTH PROJECT

SUNRISE 2 and MINERAL

STATEMENT OF WORK

5/17/2022

PURPOSE

The purpose of this contract is to secure the service of thinning of brush and pinyon and juniper trees through mechanical mastication on up to 903 acres to maintain and restore ecologically diverse, properly functioning and resilient plant community and reduce fire intensity potential.

LOCATION

The project is located approximately 12-15 miles northeast of Minden/Gardnerville, Douglas County, Nevada (vicinity map). The project is entirely on land managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

PROJECT AREA DESCRIPTION

Vegetation in the project area is typical of the western Great Basin and consists of a diverse mix of grasses, sagebrush, bitterbrush, rabbitbrush, Mormon tea and pinyon and juniper trees.

The project area consists of two treatment units, Sunrise 2 and Mineral (project maps).

Elevation ranges between 5,400 and 7,200 feet, aspect for the project site varies and slope ranges between 0 and 30 percent. Percent cover of material to be treated is estimated to be less than 40 percent. The number of trees per acre and tree density varies throughout the unit from widely scattered to dense. Trees to be treated are generally small to medium size for the species. The project area contains some rock, typical of the western Great Basin.

Sunrise Road, a moderate use dirt road, and two power transmission lines run through the unit.

The area receives moderate to high public use and aesthetics following treatment are extremely important.

ACCESS

The nearest full support communities to the project are Carson City and Minden, NV. Average travel time from both communities to the project site is approximately 1 hour. Access to the project site is on paved roads and a maintained (graded) dirt road. Access within the project area can be limited during the winter months due to muddy and/or snow covered roads.

Although the project can be reached by two-wheel drive vehicles, four-wheel drive high clearance vehicles will improve access options. The Government does not assume obligation to plow snow or conduct special maintenance to keep roads open and maintained.

BOUNDARIES

The Government will load the treatment unit boundaries into devices with GPS capability (e.g.

Garmin GPS, Trimble GPS, iPad and/or iPhone with the Avenza PDF Maps app) provided by the

Contractor. Nine small avoidance areas have been identified within the larger mastication area boundary and will be provided to the contractor post award. Machinery will not enter these areas, and they are therefore excluded from mastication. Any flagging hung by the Contractor will be pulled and properly disposed of before the project will be considered complete.

SCHEDULE/PROGRESS OF WORK

Prior to start of and during the period of the contract, the Government may specify priority areas to be treated. The Contractor will maintain progress at a rate that will assure completion within the contract time. At the pre-work conference, the Contractor will provide a work schedule which must be acceptable to the Government. The Government requests that the Mineral unit be prioritized due to its higher elevation and earlier probability of receiving precipitation that would prevent treatment.

MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT

Machine will:

1. Be either rubber tired or rubber tracked.

2. Be a minimum of 120 horsepower.

3. Be equipped with a horizontal shaft mastication head capable of meeting the treatment specifications below.

4. Be free of fluid leaks.

SUN RISE 2 TREATMENT SPECIFICATIONS (515 Acres) General - The Contractor is expected to thin brush and trees through mechanical mastication in a manner that maintains and restores a diverse, functioning and resilient plant community and reduces fire intensity potential.

Stump height will not exceed 6 inches.

Material from treated brush will lay no higher then 6 inches, material from masticated trees will lay no higher then 12 inches.

Small untreated islands, where large rocks or slope prevents treatment, are acceptable.

Mastication heads will be directed away from roads as much as possible to minimize the potential of impacting the public with debris and placing debris on roads.

Brush Brush will be treated on 75 feet along both sides of the primary road (Sunrise Pass RD) and on the small portion of Brunswick Canyon RD in the project (project maps). In the first 15 feet directly adjacent to either side of the road 100% of the brush will be treated, in the next 50 feet brush will be thinned by treating approximately 60% of the brush in a mosaic pattern and in the final 10 feet brush will be thinned by treating approximately 30% of the brush in a mosaic pattern. Where brush is thinned the retained brush will vary from a single shrub to a small patch of approximately 2-10 shrubs. The outside edge of the brush treatment should be uneven versus a straight linear edge.

Trees - 100% of the trees, live and dead, will be treated except those meeting the following criteria:

Larger trees ( 16 inches in diameter one foot above the ground) will not be treated.

Trees with old growth characteristics will not be treated, old growth trees typically have round or flat crowns, plate like bark, and large gnarled limbs.

Trees with obvious signs of wildlife use such as nest cavities or large stick nests will not be treated.

Within the outside 100 feet of the project approximately 20% of the trees will be left untreated. Untreated trees within outside edge to vary in size, spacing and pattern so as to look as natural as possible. Trees that meet the above specifications, larger and with obvious signs of wildlife use, can be included in the 20% of trees retained.

MINERAL TREATMENT SPECIFICATIONS (388 Acres) General - The Contractor is expected to thin brush and trees through mechanical mastication in a manner that maintains and restores a diverse, functioning and resilient plant community and reduces fire intensity potential. The treatment until boundary encompasses 457 acres, approximately 69 of which were treated in 2021. These 69 acres are excluded from the contract and will be identified upon contract award. Accurate mapping of the completed acreage has been prevented by lack of access due to snowfall and mud from spring runoff.

Stump height will not exceed 6 inches.

Material from cut brush and trees will be treated so that it lays no higher than 24 inches above the ground.

Small untreated islands, where large rocks or slope prevents treatment, are acceptable.

Mastication heads will be directed away from roads as much as possible to minimize the potential of impacting the public with debris and placing debris on roads.

Brush Brush will be treated on approximately 75 feet on either side of the primary road that runs through the unit from the NW to the SE. In the first 30 feet directly adjacent to either side of the road 100% of the brush will be treated, in the next 45 feet brush will be thinned by treating approximately 60% of the brush in a mosaic pattern. Where brush is thinned the retained brush will vary from a single shrub to a small patch of approximately 2-10 shrubs. The outside edge of the brush treatment should be uneven versus a straight linear edge.

Trees - 100% of the trees, live and dead, will be treated except those meeting the following criteria:

treated.

Trees with obvious signs of wildlife use such as nest cavities or large stick nests will not be treated.

Within the outside 100 feet of the project approximately 20% of the trees will be left untreated. Untreated trees within outside edge to vary in size, spacing and pattern so as to look as natural as possible. Trees that meet the above specifications, larger and with obvious signs of wildlife use, can be included in the 20% of trees retained.

CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS

The contractor will provide and maintain a minimum of two warning signs that state something along primary travel routes on either side of current operations.

The Contractor will provide all tools, materials, equipment and labor necessary to complete the work as specified in the contract.

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES

Soil Stability/Water Quality Protection - Contractor will cease operation when soil moisture levels result in significant soil compaction and/or rutting. Contractor's activities shall be executed in a manner which avoids large drainages. Any rutting of the soil will be returned to the natural contour as part of the work process.

Weed Control - Contractor shall insure all equipment moved onto public land is free of soil, seeds, and vegetative matter or other debris that could contain or hold seeds. Contractor shall employ whatever cleaning methods are necessary to insure compliance and shall notify the Government prior to moving each piece of equipment onto public land. Notification will

Cultural Resource Protection - Locations of known historic or prehistoric sites, buildings, objects, and properties related to American history, architecture, archaeology, and culture, such as settler or Indian artifacts that need to be avoided by the Contractor will be identified on the ground by the Government. Discovery of suc operations shall be promptly reported to the other party and operations will be suspended at that location until the significance or potential significance of the resource is determined.

Fire Prevention/Suppression - The Contractor shall (1) equip all diesel and/or gasoline operated engines with spark arresters, (2) equip all machines powered by an internal combustion engine with at least one 10 lb. ABC rated fire extinguisher (minimum) or equivalent, (3) remove all concentrations of wood dust and debris from the equipment daily, (4) have one 10 lb. ABC rated fire extinguisher, one shovel, and five gallons water readily available adjacent to grinding/welding operations.

The Contractor shall, independently and in cooperation with the Government, take all reasonable action to prevent and suppress fires on the project. Independent initial action shall be prompt and shall include the use of all personnel and equipment available in the project area.

The Government may require emergency measures, including the necessary shutting down of equipment or portions of operations during periods of high fire danger.

The Contractor shall report all fires on or in the vicinity of the project to the Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center (775) 883-5995. When reporting a fire, provide the following information: name, call back telephone number, project name, location, and fire description.

Other Resource Protection Measures - Other resource protection measures may be imposed, as needed, by the COR based on project location, resources sensitivity and site conditions.