A04_Statement_of_Work.docx

Statement of Work Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge Lynx Analysis Unit (LAU) Habitat Suitability Assessment BLM Kemmerer Field Office

PROJECT SUMMARY

The Canada lynx is a Threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 2000 (65 FR 16051; UFWS 2000). Following the listing, the federal action agencies were tasked with identifying lynx habitats at broad scales using forest cover types (Interagency Lynx Biology Team 2013), and ground-truthing those indicated cover types that were originally derived from satellite-based imagery (BLM 2005). The broad-scale delineations provide the basis for beginning to determine acreages of habitat that are maintained or managed currently in “suitable” and “unsuitable” conditions for lynx occupancy and use.

General mapping of landcover is complete, however, very limited data have been collected that would allow for an immediate evaluation of habitat suitability for Canada lynx throughout the stand-alone Commissary Ridge or Dempsey Ridge Lynx Analysis Units (LAUs). The required work described below will include; verifying existing forest cover type information, documenting horizontal habitat structure, estimating relative abundance of prey species (including, but not limited to snowshoe hare density estimates), and assessing availability of denning habitat. Of the 40,000 total acres contained within the LAU boundaries, approximately 19,000 acres of forested habitats will be sampled. Lynx habitat metrics and prey density estimates in these LAUs will be used to complete an assessment of habitat suitability in the Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge LAUs (Map 1).

CONTRACTOR SHALL COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING

1. Establish individually identifiable sampling locations

1. Ground-truth existing forest cover type overstory maps for Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge LAUs

1. Collect horizontal cover (HC) data and document vegetation species contributing to HC once during the performance period

1. Conduct snowshoe hare pellet counts and record observations of alternate prey including forest grouse and squirrels over 2 field seasons

1. Categorize quality of denning habitat “adequate”, “marginal”, or “inadequate”

1. Calculate the percentage of “suitable” versus percentage “unsuitable” habitat for each LAU

TASKS

The contractor shall follow the requirements, methods, and protocols below for evaluating habitat suitability for Canada lynx

1. Establish stratified random sampling locations following the protocol outlined below

· Sampling locations will be generated by using ArcToolbox in ArcMap 10.X at an overall sampling intensity of 1 location per 20 acres throughout the Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge LAUs

· Sampling locations will be constrained within two existing forested habitat data layers provided by the BLM, and stratified by forest cover type as indicated in the provided data layer where appropriate

· Sampling intensity will be weighted among strata to ensure ≥ 5 sampling locations in each stratum and ensure ≥ 30 sampling locations for each stand type that comprises more than 10% of the total LAU area

2. Ground-truth existing forest cover type overstory maps at established sampling locations for Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge LAUs

· Compare dominant or co-dominant forest overstory species to those provided in the cover type data layer provided by BLM.

· Calculate percentage of points where cover types assigned in data layer differ from field observations

3. Document vegetation structure (Horizontal Cover; HC)

· Conduct all horizontal cover sampling during the growing season to ensure accurate identification of understory species

· Estimate visual obstruction of cover board (HC) from random sampling locations in the 4 cardinal directions following Bertram and Claar (2009)

· Document dominant or co-dominant vegetation species and/or vegetation community, and approximate percentage of dead and down timber, contributing to horizontal cover

· Record photos from random sampling locations of cover board as viewed by the observer estimating obstruction

4. Document presence/absence and/or density of snowshoe hare and record observations of alternate prey

· At each randomly located sampling location, establish permanent sampling plots for counting snowshoe hare pellets following Berg and Gese (2010) during initial sampling for HC

· Count pellets prior to, and ≥ 9 mo after, clearing plots of all old pellets accumulated from previous years

· Record opportunistic observations of red squirrels and forest grouse within 100 m of random sampling locations

5. Categorize quality of denning habitat

· Establish definitions of “adequate,” “marginal,” or “inadequate” based on landcover characteristics and visual assessment of key denning habitat components described in the Lynx Conservation Assessment and Strategy (LCAS; Interagency Lynx Biology Team 2013) for review and approval by the BLM prior to conducting sampling

· Assign categorical rating of “adequate,” “marginal,” or “inadequate” to each random sampling location at the time of estimating horizontal cover

6. Provide estimates of the percentage of “suitable” versus percentage “unsuitable” habitat

· Calculate percentage of random sampling location where HC meets thresholds for habitat suitability as described in Bertram and Claar (2009)

· Using the above data for structural stage and HC, and the proportion of sampling locations deemed “adequate” or “marginal” for denning habitat versus “inadequate,” determine the percentage of random sampling locations that meet definitions of “suitable” versus “unsuitable” for Canada lynx using guidance in the LCAS, Bertram and Claar (2009), and the lynx decision tool for the Southwest Wyoming Mule Deer Habitat Project (Berg and Jamison 2019)

BLM FURNISHED SERVICES AND MATERIALS

1. The BLM will provide the forest habitat and stand types data layers generated at the Kemmerer Field Office, the satellite-derived habitat layer for Kemmerer Field Office LAUs, data layer for Dempsey Ridge and Commissary Ridge LAU boundaries, and any other documents or data referenced herein upon request.

2. The BLM shall, if needed by the Contractor, secure the Contractor’s equipment due to the Contractor absence at no charge. The Government accepts no liability for anything in storage– the contractor accepts all risk.

3. The BLM shall assign a Contracting Officer Representative (COR) for the contract.

4. Existing Documents, including previous plans (RMP); all data layers and other documents referenced herein as needed

5. The BLM will provide up to ten copies of paper maps, up to 34x44 inches in size, of Commissary Ridge and Dempsey Ridge LAUs showing surface management/ownership and potential existing motorized routes if requested

6. BLM staff (Program Specialist on the IDT) will be made available to provide resource information

7. The BLM will provide for timely review, comment, and turnaround on all administrative draft Contractor deliverables.

CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITIES, FURNISHED SERVICES AND MATERIALS

1. Calibration for all field methods requiring ocular estimation or defining subjective categorization (e.g., denning habitat)

2. Contractor will be responsible for obtaining access permission through private lands wherever applicable

3. All deliverables in compliance with GIS Contract Guidelines for GIS Data and Services: Spatial Data Projection, Scale, Precision and Tabular Data Format Standards. Programs and processes must also be compatible with ESRI Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software (v10.4 or 10.5)

4. All Contractor-supplied geospatial deliverables shall comply with applicable national and federal geographic information standards, particularly those determined by the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) as supporting the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI).

5. Metadata received from the Contractor must be capable of being imported and processed by ArcGIS (v10.4 or 10.5). Acceptable metadata formats include FGDC Classic & FGDC ESRI.

6. Contractor in facilitation with the BLM will rectify data deficiencies to the extent that it does not require additional field work or significant additional office work or research that is not defined in this SOW.

7. In the event new BLM Guidance or Court decisions after award result in a required change, the BLM may require a change to the contract to comply with these new requirements. This change would be done via a bilateral modification to the contract.

8. End-users shall have access to a description of the accessibility and compatibility features of products in alternate formats or alternate methods upon request, at no additional charge.

9. Support services for products shall accommodate the communication needs of end-users with disabilities.

10. The tests the BLM national communications officials use to ensure ADA compliance and acceptance of PDF files (with the exception of field data forms) are those built into Adobe Acrobat Pro. They can be found in the document's menu bar: Advanced/Accessibility/ Quick Check and Full Check.

11. All deliverables shall reside in the public domain and be in full compliance with the BLM security requirements. All materials, digital files, manuals, guidance, and working documents provided or created under this task must be returned to the BLM upon the completion of this task.

12. All materials, digital files, paper copies, guidance, and working documents provided or created under this task are the property of the BLM and will not be released or used by the contractor for any other purpose.

DELIVERABLES

Contractor will provide COR with:

0. Annual progress reports detailing field sampling progress and preliminary summary of results

0. All raw field data forms in a single *.pdf document; deliver raw data in *.txt or *.xlsx format; deliver all data with associated spatial location in *.shp or *.gdb format

0. Photographs of sampling locations in geotagged *.jpg format and indexed to sample location identifiers

0. Tables summarizing data for estimates of HC, snowshoe hare presence and/or density, and relative abundance of alternate prey indices for each cover type, percentages of “suitable” and “unsuitable” lynx habitat across each of the LAUs, and percentage of sampling locations in each category of denning habitat

0. Summary statistics in spatial database for visualization of HC, snowshoe hare abundance, and alternate prey at each sampling location

0. Final report in *.pdf format with estimates of HC, snowshoe hare presence and/or density, and relative abundance of alternate prey indices for each cover type, percentages of “suitable” and “unsuitable” lynx habitat across each of the LAUs, and percentage of sampling locations in each category of denning habitat

I. PERFORMANCE PERIOD

Selected contractor must:

1. Start Project Work Before the end of FY21

2. Complete work requiring BLM approval prior to May 1, 2022

3. Complete ≥ 25% of field sampling work during the FY22 field season (June 1 through August 31), and complete remainder of field sampling during the FY23 field season (June 1 and August 31).

4. Submit annual reports by December 31st in 2022 and 2023.

5. Complete and submit all deliverables by June 30, 2024, including the associated reports and delivery of all data products.

II. ACCEPTANCE OF WORK

COR will provide written notification to the CO that the final deliverables have been received and are accepted by the government.

III. PAYMENT SCHEDULE

The Contractor shall be paid a fixed price for the services performed and will receive incremental payments. To avoid payment delays, please confer with the COR before submitting all invoices. Changes to this schedule must be agreed upon by the CO.

IV. TIME SCHEDULES

Contractor shall submit invoices quarterly beginning June 30, 2022.

V. STIPULATIONS AND RESTRICTIONS REGARDING CONDUCT OF FIELD SAMPLING

1. Operation of motorized vehicles is restricted to well-established routes with obvious multi-year history of significant vehicle traffic

2. If contractor chooses to camp on public lands during the course of completing field work, crews must camp in locations that have obvious and recent history of use for such purposes as evidenced by well-used vehicle routes, fire rings/pits, etc.

3. No camping is allowed within the project area (i.e., LAUs) or in big game parturition areas

4. Contractor shall be liable for suppression costs for wildfire resulting from any of the Contractors’ activity

TECHNICAL PROPOSAL CONTENTS

Experience of Key Personnel: Contractor shall submit a one-page resume of all key personnel proposed for this contract. Key personnel shall include project principal investigator or project manager, data collector, in field personnel, and data finisher.

Past Performance: Contractor shall submit a list of clients for past and present similar projects covering the past ten (10) years but no more than 5 in total. Provide: contact name, address, phone number, fax number, e-mail address. The Government will survey these clients to obtain past performance information (quality, timeliness, cost control, business relationships) related to Contractor’s current and past work.

Methodology: Contractor shall submit their methodology to achieve the work as set forth in this SOW.

Price

Technical factors, when combined, are considered:

☒ Significantly more important than price ☐ Approximately equal to price ☐ Significantly less important than price

Privacy Act and Data This requirement does not include any classified material or information technology. Contractors shall not be accessing a government/BLM facility. In the event that a contractor would be required to access a government/BLM facility (e.g. to conduct a records search), the Purchase Order must include specific instructions and necessary security requirements.

Contractors shall be responsible for protecting all information used, gathered, or developed as a result of work under this Purchase Order and as detailed in the resulting Statement of Work. The contractor shall protect all Sensitive but Unclassified (SBU) government data. All compiled or derived information, work papers, drafts, and final documents developed or accessed, or any product/system developed are the property of the United States Government. Information acquired or generated by the Purchase Order is subject to the Privacy Act. All site-specific records, photographs, and maps generated in the course of the agreements, including original field maps and notes, will be considered BLM property and will be turned over to the Order COR upon completion of the project. The contractor’s Contract Manager will be responsible for ensuring that all excess site-specific documents, maps, site forms, etc., (i.e., those not submitted as deliverables, internal review drafts, etc.) are properly disposed of upon completion of the project.

Confidentiality To protect site information of Purchase Order from unauthorized disclosure, all site location and content information must be kept in strictest confidence. The contractor shall make the information available only to the Order COR and PI and must take whatever internal measures are necessary to ensure that confidential material is protected. All contractor employees working under Purchase Order, in addition to any other personnel at the Government’s request, will be required to sign formal non-disclosure and/or conflict of interest agreements to guarantee the protection and integrity of Government and/or Contractor information and documents. This non-disclosure form is included below. The Contractor shall not release, communicate or otherwise disseminate information to any other parties without the written consent of the CO, COR, Project Inspector, and POC.

Non-Disclosure Agreement BLM Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure Agreement The contractor shall provide signed confidentiality agreements from all participants in the award prior to initiation of the award. These signed agreements shall be provided no later than the close of the solicitation.

Confidentiality Agreement - I agree to keep confidential any protected information that I may develop or otherwise acquire as part of my work with the Bureau of Land Management. I understand that with regard to protected information, I am an agent of the Bureau of Land Management and must not share or release that information through any means, except as specifically authorized by the Bureau of Land Management. Lastly, I understand that protected information must not be disclosed through any means including websites, maps, scientific articles, presentations, and speeches.

Title Organization Signature

Geospatial Data

All geospatial data collected for or produced by federal agencies are required to meet all relevant standards established by the Federal Geospatial Data Committee (FGDC) as authorized by the Geospatial Data Act of 2018 (43 U.S.C. § 2809). All deliverables that include geospatial data products must include appropriate metadata conforming to FGDC standards. FGDC standards can be found on https://www.fgdc.gov/standards.

References Berg, N.D., and E.M. Gese. 2010. Relationship between fecal pellet counts and snowshoe hare density in western Wyoming. Journal of Wildlife Management 74:1745-1751.

Bureau of Land Management (BLM). 2005. Final Statewide Programmatic Biological Assessment: Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis). US Department of Interior, Bureau of Land Management. Wyoming State Office. Cheyenne, Wyoming.

BLM. 2010. Record of Decision and Approved Kemmerer Resource Management Plan. May 2010. Kemmerer Field Office, Kemmerer, WY.

Bertram, T., and J. Claar. 2009. Horizontal cover – Interim guidance for assessing multi-storied stands within lynx habitat. US Forest Service, Region 1. Missoula, MT. 15 pp.

Interagency Lynx Biology Team. 2013. Canada lynx conservation assessment and strategy. 3rd Edition. USDA Forest Service, USDI Fish and Wildlife Service, USDI Bureau of Land Management, and USDI National Park Service. Forest Service Publication R1-13-19, Missoula, MT. 128 pp.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 2000. Endangered and threatened animals and plants; determination of threatened status for the contiguous U.S. distinct population segment of the Canada lynx and related rule. Federal Register March 24, 2000. Vol. 65, No. 58, pages 16051-16086.

Map 1. Dempsey Ridge and Commissary Ridge LAUs.

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