A04_SOW.pdf

2023 3 Bars- Vinini Corridor Cut & Pile Project

Statement of Work

1. Introduction

1.1. Purpose

The Bureau of Land Management, Battle Mountain District Office, is seeking contractor services to conduct tree thinning and removal treatments on approximately 728 acres of single-leaf pinyon pine (Pinus monophyla) and utah juniper (Juniperus osteosperma) trees which have established within sagebrush ecological sites. The project areas are found within the Vinini Corridor Unit of the 3 Bars Project Area. The service requested is the manual severing of whole trees and piling of cut material within the project area.

Trees within the treatment units will be removed in accordance with the project specifications found in Section 4. The purpose of the project is to improve the overall health of sagebrush steppe ecological sites, reduce fuel loading, and improve wildlife habitat and other watershed values.

1.2. Location & Access to Work Site

The work under this contract will be located within Eureka County in Nevada.

The treatment units are located within the following legal land descriptions (Mount

Diablo Meridian), as shown on the attached maps:

• Summit Unit:

o Cut & Pile: T. 23 N, R. 51 E, Sections 20, 21, 27, 28, 33, 34

To access the Summit Unit, take Highway 278 North from Eureka, Nevada approximately 28 miles, turn left (116.1668908° W 39.8626908° N, WGS 84), heading west for .13 miles, taking the road heading northwest for 2.5 miles to reach the Vinini

Corridor area.

There may be two-track roads which require a high clearance four-wheel drive vehicle as well as larger dirt county roads accessible by a low clearance two-wheel drive vehicle within and adjacent to the project area. Four-wheel drive vehicles are recommended on all non-paved roads due to the potential for unexpected inclement weather conditions as well as general road conditions.

There are no seasonal weather restrictions unless heavy rains occur or during periods of snow melt which may result in an intermittent work schedule due to muddy conditions.

Work shall not occur if project implementation is creating excessive rutting (defined as ruts deeper than 2 inches in the regular road surface). Roads will be considered impassable when wet and access into the project area may be closed by the government during this time. Road maintenance may be permitted on existing roads with prior government approval; describe any planned maintenance or improvement work in your technical proposal.

1.3. Project Area Description

Vegetation in these areas is typical of the Great Basin and consists of a mixture of pinyon pine, juniper, sagebrush, bitterbrush, and grasses. The area primarily has slopes between 11-50% though isolated steeper slopes may exist in some areas. Current tree densities within the units vary from 0% cover to over 60% cover.

It is the responsibility of contractor to consider tree densities and terrain while developing and proposing a performance timeline for this project.

1.4. Boundaries of Project Area

The project boundaries are not marked on the ground. Maps and GIS shapefiles of the project boundaries will be provided for upload into a GPS unit provided by the selected contractor. The selected contractor will be responsible for navigating with a GPS unit to stay within the project boundaries. The Government will not flag the unit boundaries and will only be on site for periodic work inspection.

Minor boundary adjustments to treatment units, up to 10% of the total project area, may occur for administrative purposes during project implementation that would potentially change the size or shape of treatment units. These adjustments

WILL NOT change the total project size or the award amount.

1.5. Unique Features

Avoidance areas and other special features, if known and present, may be identified on maps or flagged within the treatment areas. There will be potential operating restrictions or areas subject to closure from April 15 to July 31st due to the migratory bird season.

These timing restrictions shall be built into the proposal. No extensions will be granted due to these timing restrictions. The potential restrictions or closures would be pending the result of migratory bird surveys. Work shall not occur if project implementation is creating excessive ground disturbance. Work may resume only when weather conditions improve or work processes are altered to accommodate inclement working conditions, extensions may be granted based on weather or access related issues.

2. Contractor Furnished Property and Services

2.1. Contractor Responsibilities

Contractor will be responsible for all labor, supplies, equipment, and maintenance needs for duration of project. The contractor is required to provide a GPS unit capable of uploading and viewing a shapefile of the project boundary and any avoidance areas.

Shapefiles and/or maps will be provided by the government in one or more of the following formats: .gpx, .kml, .kmz, or a .zip file containing the .shp, .shx, .dbf, and .prj files.

2.2. Contractor Equipment

2.2.1. The contractor equipment (chainsaws & tools) shall:

2.2.1.1. Be of adequate size and power to alter the vegetation in accordance with the specified level of work, prescription, or as otherwise specified below in

Section 4 Project Specifications.

2.2.1.2. Be of durable design and construction to withstand the stresses of tree falling and bucking operations in pinyon-juniper woodlands.

2.2.1.3. Be free of fluid leaks and have spark arrestors in good operating condition.

2.2.1.4. Meet or exceed current OSHA logging specifications for safety.

2.2.1.5. Meet or exceed the requirements listed in Section 2.4 Fire Prevention/

Suppression.

2.2.1.6. The contractor’s GPS (as required) shall be capable of uploading project boundaries in at least one of the formats listed above, be capable of operating in

WGS-84 or NAD-83 datums and provide a position accuracy on the unit of ±

20Ft.

2.2.1.7. Personal protective equipment, PPE, will meet or exceed current OSHA

Logging standards.

2.2.2. The piles within the unit will be:

2.2.2.1. Pile limbs and tree boles in open areas away from leave trees, no closer than 20ft from other piles and 25ft from leave trees. If on slopes greater than 30% increase pile distance to 35ft from leave trees.

2.2.2.2. Piles will not exceed 10 feet in diameter and 6 feet in height. Piles should be lopped down to obtain a tight pile and WILL NOT be covered.

2.2.2.3. Avoid if possible constructing piles mid slope on any type of topography and on greater than 30% slope if possible.

2.2.2.4. Piles shall not be placed within 3 feet of stumps.

2.2.2.5. Piles shall not be placed within 10 feet of animal burrows.

2.2.2.6. Construction of piles will consist of tipi style, with boles consisting of the interior portion of the pile as well as remaining vegetation and the outer portion or walls consisting of the limbs.

2.2.2.7. Pile construction will not occur in areas of known archeological sites, or sensitive plant populations.

2.2.2.8. Slash will not be piled within 30 feet of power or telephone lines, utility poles, or springs and seeps.

2.2.2.9. Piles shall not be placed within 20 feet of the project boundary.

2.2.2.10. If inspection indicates the quality of work either pile construction or number of trees thinned is not up to standard, then the unit will be reworked.

2.3. Work Camp

Camping will be allowed during project implementation only at sites approved by BLM in advance. All fire regulations and permits shall be followed. All garbage and refuse shall be removed from the campsite by the contractor within five (5) days of camp abandonment.

Final payment will be reserved subject to inspection of these sites by BLM and approval of site cleanup.

2.4. Fire Prevention/Suppression

The contractor shall:

• Equip all diesel and/or gasoline operated engines with spark arresters.

• Equip at least one individual per group with one shovel and one fire extinguisher, containing not less than 8 ounces of extinguisher fluid, or a dry chemical powder-type of not less than 1-pound capacity. The extinguisher must be immediately accessible to the saw operator at all times.

• Remove all concentrations of wood dust and debris from equipment (chainsaws) daily.

3. Government Furnished Property and Services

Government shall provide at minimum one paper map depicting the project area, any avoidance areas, and other known special features. A GIS shapefile will be provided of the project boundaries and any avoidance areas to be uploaded to a GPS unit.

4. Project Specifications

4.1. Summary Table of Units and Treatment Methods

Treatment Unit Treatment

Method

Treatment

Specifications

Total Acres

Summit Cut & Pile Cut and pile, leaving tree islands within the treatment area as specified in Section

4.2.4.

4.2. Treatment Method: Cut and Pile- 728 acres (Summit)

Total tree cutting and piling of pinyon and juniper trees will be conducted with the following specifications:

4.2.1. Boles shall be cut as close to the ground as possible with a target stump height of less than 8 inches;

4.2.2. Boles are to be cut in 5-foot lengths if the length of the trees meets or exceeds 10 feet in height from end to end;

4.2.3. Limbs (slash) from thinned trees shall be cut and piled in openings not immediately adjacent to live tree boles or important cultural, or wildlife locations;

4.2.4. All other tree species as well as designated clumps of trees (islands) or leave trees are not to be cut, disturbed, or have a pile placed immediately adjacent to. Preference for leave trees is ranked from highest (most desirable to leave) to lowest (less desirable to leave) in the following order:

4.2.4.1. Marked pinyon or juniper

4.2.4.2. Marked tree clumps (islands)

4.2.4.3. Trees with nests

4.2.4.4. The following table represents the percentage of desired residual trees per acre by size class:

<3in.

DBH/DRC

3-10in.

DBH/DRC

10-20in.

DBH/DRC

>20in.

DBH/DRC

PJ trees per acre 5% 20% 35% 40%

4.2.5. The by-product of cut and pile operations will be piles that are roughly 10 feet in diameter and 6 feet in height consisting of limbs and boles that were cut down. At least 90%, if not all cut material, will be placed within these piles;

4.2.6. Piles shall be not placed on or within 3 feet of stumps;

4.2.7. Piles shall be located at least 10 feet from standing trees;

4.3. Specifications Common to Method:

4.3.1. All stumps shall be cut so they are no greater than 8 inches in height on the uphill side or above mineral soil. If obstacles are encountered, such as rocks, the chainsaw bar may be raised to clear the obstacle

4.3.2. Work shall not occur if project area access is creating excessive rutting during spring thaw or after precipitation events when the ground is saturated. Work may resume only when the area has sufficiently dried out.

4.3.3. Any roads or other areas that are disturbed with greater than 4 inches of soil surface impacted due to vehicles maneuvering in the project area will be reclaimed as a part of the site cleanup requirements at the contractor’s expense.

4.4. Schedule

All work performed on the project shall follow the schedule included with the technical proposal. The schedule must be mutually agreed upon by the contractor and the

Government during the initial awarding of the contract. If the contractor needs to deviate from the schedule or encounters difficulties during the implementation of the project, they shall immediately notify the Contracting Officer’s Representative or Project

Inspector to discuss and approve any changes to the original performance schedule.

4.5. Measurement of Payment

Work will be measured and paid for by the number of acres that are completed to specifications. The total will be rounded up to the nearest whole acre. Area measurements required under this Contract will be measured on a horizontal plane. Invoicing may occur no more often than monthly.

4.6. Period of Performance

September 1, 2023 to March 1, 2024

4.7. Start Date

Work shall start September 1st or as negotiated by the Contracting Officer’s

Representative.

4.8. End Date

Work shall be completed by March 1st

4.9. Level of Difficulty

Tree densities and overland travel are two factors that may limit production. The

Contractor will be responsible for mitigating these factors to meet project completion benchmarks and the performance schedule.