A05__Performance_Work_Statement_LARO_Forest_Thinning_Services.pdf

LARO Forest Thinning Services Lake Roosevelt NRA

Performance Work Statement (PWS)

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

Kettle River: Thin, Pile, and Cover Piles

GENERAL INFORMATION IS PRESENTED IN BLUE ITALICS WITH PARENTHESIS BORDERS, WHILE FILL-IN GUIDANCE IS PRESENTED IN BLUE ITALICS WITH BRACKET BORDERS. PLEASE DELETE ALL BLUE

ITALICS WHEN FINALIZING THE PWS.

If any paragraph is not applicable, delete the paragraph TEXT and add “Not Applicable” Do not delete the paragraph number/title.

Part 1

General Information

1. GENERAL: This is a non-personal services contract to hand sever trees, lop slash, pile slash, and cover slash piles. The project area is located along the access road to the Kettle River Campground and includes 35.5 acres of primarily ponderosa pine (pinus ponderosa) forest with patches of Douglas fir (pseudotsuga menzesii) forest.

TABLE 1

Unit/ Prescription Acres

Kettle River Thin

Thin conifers less than 8 inches DBH to 16’ spacing. Lop and pile vegetation. Cover piles. 36

Government shall not exercise any supervision or control over the contract service providers performing the services herein. Such contract service providers shall be accountable solely to the Contractor who, in turn is responsible to the Government.

1.1 Description of Services/Introduction: The contractor shall provide all personnel, equipment, supplies, facilities, transportation, tools, materials, supervision, and other items and non-personal services necessary to perform thin and pile as defined in this Performance Work Statement except for those items specified as government furnished property and services. The contractor shall perform to the standards in this contract.

1.2 Background: Lake Roosevelt NRA has overstocked forests that could sustain high intensity wildfire. Fuel reduction treatments may minimize the intensity of a wildfire on Lake Roosevelt NRA, thereby giving wildland firefighters additional opportunity to prevent wildfire from impacting adjacent private property.

1.3 Objectives:

Refer to table 1.

1.4 Scope:

• Gas powered or electric (hand held) chainsaws will be used to thin conifers less than or equal to 8 inches

DBH to 16’ spacing between boles of trees. On average approximately 60% of all understory ponderosa pine (pinus ponderosa) and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) greater than 1 foot tall and up to 8” diameter at breast height (DBH) in the Kettle River unit will be cut to meet spacing requirements. Gas powered or electric (hand held) weed wackers or trimmers with a metal blade may be utilized to thin the smaller diameter conifers.

o One tree between 1 foot tall to 8 inches diameter should be left every 16 feet.

• All of the branches on one side of each tree will be severed prior to the tree being piled. Gas powered or electric (hand held) chainsaws or gas powered or electric (hand held) weed wackers or trimmers with a metal blade may be utilized to lop the branches off of at least on side of each tree from top to bottom. No trees with branches intact all around the stem will be placed in the piles.

o Reasoning behind stipulation: In particular, if ponderosa pine are placed in a pile without the branches being cut off of one side of the tree, the piles can be very difficult to light when they are in prescription.

• All parts of trees less than 6 inches DBH will be placed into piles measuring no more than 6 feet tall by 6 feet wide.

• Each pile will be covered with paper. The paper will cover at least 80% of the pile footprint. The paper will be located in the top ¼ of the pile. Woody debris will be placed on top of the paper to keep it in place.

• When the fire danger level reaches “Very High” or “Extreme”, power saw operations and smoking will not be allowed in the unit. Follow the IFPL Industrial Fire Precaution Level as described in Exhibit 2.

• All chain saws will have industry approved and factory installed spark arrestors.

• No vehicles will be allowed off established roads. All vehicles, prior to entering Lake Roosevelt NRA, will have exteriors and under carriages spray washed thoroughly to remove any possible transfer of invasive plant or seed remains from past projects offsite.

• Any damage to fences, gates, or power lines due to thinning and piling operations will be the responsibility of the contractor to repair or replace. The contractor may be held financially responsible for any fires that occur inside the unit.

• A pre-work meeting will be conducted with the inspector and contractor. At the meeting maps will be provided that will identify boundaries lines, work sites and areas of concern. NPS will provide an inspector who will visit the site routinely to assure the standards of the contract are being met.

1.5 Period of Performance: The period of performance for Kettle River Thin shall be between August 15, 2025 through December 20, 2025.

1.6 General Information

1.6.1 Quality Control: The contractor shall develop and maintain an effective quality control program to ensure services are performed in accordance with this PWS. The contractor shall develop and implement procedures to identify, prevent, and ensure non-recurrence of defective services. The contractor’s quality control program is the means by which he assures himself that his work complies with the requirement of the contract.

1.6.2 Quality Assurance: The government shall evaluate the contractor’s performance under this contract in accordance with the Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) found at Technical Exhibit 1. The PRS lays out the Performance Objectives, and the corresponding standards, performance thresholds and method of surveillance.

1.6.3 Recognized Holidays: The Federal Government observes the following holidays. If work is to be performed on/in a government facility, please note performance cannot occur on those days. The contractor is not required to work holidays. Holidays can only be worked with prior approval.

New Year’s Day Labor Day

Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday Columbus Day

President’s Day Veteran’s Day

Memorial Day Thanksgiving Day

Juneteenth Christmas Day

Independence Day

1.6.4 Hours of Operation: Not applicable. Work is on National Recreation Area lands administered by the NPS, not in or on a federal facility

1.6.5 Place of Performance: The work to be performed under this contract will be performed at Lake Roosevelt

NRA.

1.6.6 Type of Contract: The government will award a (Type of contract to be determined by CO and the customer).

1.6.7 Security Requirements: Not applicable

1.6.7.1 PHYSICAL Security: The contractor shall be responsible for safeguarding all government equipment, information and property provided for contractor use.

1.6.7.2 Key Control. Not applicable

1.6.7.3 Lock Combinations. Not Applicable

1.6.8 Special Qualifications: Not Applicable

1.6.9 Post Award Conference/Periodic Progress Meetings: Not Applicable

1.6.10 Contracting Officer Representative (COR): The (COR) will be identified by separate letter. The COR monitors all technical aspects of the contract and assists in contract administration The COR is authorized to perform the following functions: assure that the Contractor performs the technical requirements of the contract:

perform inspections necessary in connection with contract performance: maintain written and oral communications with the Contractor concerning technical aspects of the contract: issue written interpretations of technical requirements, including Government drawings, designs, specifications: monitor Contractor's performance and notifies both the Contracting Officer and Contractor of any deficiencies; coordinate availability of government furnished property, and provide site entry of Contractor personnel. A letter of designation issued to the COR, a copy of which is sent to the Contractor, states the responsibilities and limitations of the COR, especially with regard to changes in cost or price, estimates or changes in delivery dates. The COR is not authorized to change any of the terms and conditions of the resulting order.

1.6.11 Key Personnel: Not Applicable

1.6.12 Identification of Contractor Employees: All contract personnel attending meetings, answering Government telephones, and working in other situations where their contractor status is not obvious to third parties are required to identify themselves as such to avoid creating an impression in the minds of members of the public that they are

Government officials. They must also ensure that all documents or reports produced by contractors are suitably marked as contractor products or that contractor participation is appropriately disclosed. Contractor personnel will not be required to obtain and wear badges in the performance of this service.

1.6.13 Contractor Travel : Not applicable

1.6.14 Data Rights: Not applicable

1.6.15 Organizational Conflict of Interest: Contractor and subcontractor personnel performing work under this contract may receive, have access to or participate in the development of proprietary or source selection information

(e.g., cost or pricing information, budget information or analyses, specifications or work statements, etc.) or perform evaluation services which may create a current or subsequent Organizational Conflict of Interests (OCI) as defined in FAR Subpart 9.5. The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer immediately whenever it becomes aware that such access or participation may result in any actual or potential OCI and shall promptly submit a plan to the

Contracting Officer to avoid or mitigate any such OCI. The Contractor’s mitigation plan will be determined to be acceptable solely at the discretion of the Contracting Officer and in the event the Contracting Officer unilaterally determines that any such OCI cannot be satisfactorily avoided or mitigated, the Contracting Officer may effect other remedies as he or she deems necessary, including prohibiting the Contractor from participation in subsequent contracted requirements which may be affected by the OCI.

1.7. Data Management Plan (DMP): Not applicable

2. DEFINITIONS AND ACRONYMS:

2.1. DEFINITIONS:

2.1.1. BOLE. The stem of a tree.

2.1.2 CONTRACTOR. A supplier or vendor awarded a contract to provide specific supplies or service to the government. The term used in this contract refers to the prime.

2.1.3. CONTRACTING OFFICER. A person with authority to enter into, administer, and or terminate contracts, and make related determinations and findings on behalf of the government. Note: The only individual who can legally bind the government.

2.1.4. CONTRACTING OFFICER'S REPRESENTATIVE (COR). An employee of the U.S. Government appointed by the contracting officer to administer the contract. Such appointment shall be in writing and shall state the scope of authority and limitations. This individual has authority to provide technical direction to the Contractor as long as that direction is within the scope of the contract, does not constitute a change, and has no funding implications. This individual does NOT have authority to change the terms and conditions of the contract.

2.1.5. DBH. Diameter at breast height. Diameter of a tree at 4.5 high above the uphill side of the ground adjacent to the tree.

2.1.6. DEFECTIVE SERVICE. A service output that does not meet the standard of performance associated with the Performance Work Statement.

2.1.7. DELIVERABLE. Anything that can be physically delivered, but may include non-manufactured things such as meeting minutes or reports.

2.1.8. KEY PERSONNEL. Contractor personnel that are evaluated in a source selection process and that may be required to be used in the performance of a contract by the Key Personnel listed in the PWS. When key personnel are used as an evaluation factor in best value procurement, an offer can be rejected if it does not have a firm commitment from the persons that are listed in the proposal.

2.1.9. LOP. The process of completely severing the bole of a tree into smaller pieces, or severing the branches off of the bole of a tree.

2.1.10. PHYSICAL SECURITY. Actions that prevent the loss or damage of Government property.

2.1.11. QUALITY ASSURANCE. The government procedures to verify that services being performed by the

Contractor are performed according to acceptable standards.

2.1.12. QUALITY ASSURANCE Surveillance Plan (QASP). An organized written document specifying the surveillance methodology to be used for surveillance of contractor performance.

2.1.13. QUALITY CONTROL. All necessary measures taken by the Contractor to assure that the quality of an end product or service shall meet contract requirements.

2.1.14. SUBCONTRACTOR. One that enters into a contract with a prime contractor. The Government does not have privity of contract with the subcontractor.

2.1.15. WORK DAY. The number of hours per day the Contractor provides services in accordance with the contract.

2.1.16. WORK WEEK. Monday through Friday, unless specified otherwise.

2.1.17. THIN. Completely sever from the stump conifers less than 8 inches diameter in the stand. Leave trees should be approximately 16 feet apart throughout the unit when completed.

2.2. ACRONYMS:

COR Contracting Officer Representative

COTR Contracting Officer's Technical Representative

COTS Commercial-Off-the-Shelf

CO Contracting Officer

FAR Federal Acquisition Regulation

NPS National Park Service

NRA National Recreation Area

OCI Organizational Conflict of Interest

POC Point of Contact

PRS Performance Requirements Summary

PWS Performance Work Statement

QA Quality Assurance

QAP Quality Assurance Program

QASP Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan

QC Quality Control

QCP Quality Control Program

TE Technical Exhibit

PART 3

GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY, EQUIPMENT, AND SERVICES

3. GOVERNMENT FURNISHED ITEMS AND SERVICES:

3.1. Services : The Government will provide reference maps showing boundaries lines, work sites and areas of concern

3.2 Facilities: Not applicable

3.3 Utilities: Not applicable

3.4 Equipment: Not applicable

3.5 Materials: Not applicable

PART 4

CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS AND SERVICES

4. CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

4.1 General: The Contractor shall furnish all supplies, equipment, facilities and services required to perform work.

4.2 Secret Facility Clearance: Not applicable

4.3. Materials: See 4.1

4.4. Equipment: See 4.1

PART 5

SPECIFIC TASKS

5. Specific Tasks:

Unit/ Prescription Acres

Kettle River Thin Unit

Thin conifers greater than 1 foot tall and less than or equal to 8 inches DBH to 16’ spacing. 36

Sever branches completely from one side of each tree.

Pile all fuel less than 6 inches diameter

Paper each pile

Additional Specification of Tasks

Kettle River Thin

• Favor healthy ponderosa pine (pinus ponderosa) with at least 30% crown ratio.

• Leave trees shall not be cut or damaged.

• Trees will be completely severed from the stump. The stump will be no more than 3 inches high on the upslope side of the stump.

• All thinned trees shall be severed in a manner to minimize damage to leave trees.

• No live limbs shall be left on the stumps of any severed surplus vegetation.

• Severed trees or brush lodged in or covering a leave tree shall be dislodged or removed.

• Piles o Piles shall not be placed in an avoidance area.

o Place piles as far as possible from the boles of trees.

o Piles shall be built in a conical shape without significant gaps in the center, composed of a compliment of fine fuel to initiate the burning of the pile. Each pile shall include an area of small sized slash (small branches less than ¼ to ½ inch in diameter and/or small branches with needles or leaves attached) to provide “kindling” for prompt ignition and to aid in combustion of larger slash. These fuels shall be placed in the center of the pile. On slopes over 15 percent, materials shall be piled perpendicular to the slope so the material does not roll downhill. Slash that causes large air spaces in piles shall be cut or crushed to elimate air spaces.

o Unless otherwise approved by the COR maximum handpile size shall be no larger than 6 feet in height by 6 feet in diameter or smaller than 3 feet in height and 3 ft in diameter.

o All hand piles shall be covered with a thick craft paper such that at least 80 percent of the pile’s surface area will be covered. All four corners and the middle of the craft paper shall be anchored with slash or other debris. The craft paper must be placed in the top ¼ of the pile.

o Unless otherwise approved by the COR, hand piles shall not be closer than 7 feet to reserve trees

(leave tree’s). Piles shall not be within 10 feet of a unit boundary adjacent to private property.

Slash shall not be placed on logs or stumps, in roadways, drainage or canal ditches, or within channel bottoms, streams or within no-treatment zones. Piles shall be compact and free of dirt or other non-flammable material.

• All slash shall be moved at least 10 feet back from the edge of roads and property boundaries between government and private land on a daily basis, before the crew leaves the project area. Slash shall not be left along any roadway.

• All fenced shall be kept free of cut trees concurrently with thinning. Leave all trees to which a fence is attached. Any damage to fences resulting from this project shall be fixed by the Contractor, at the

Contractor’s expense, on the same day that the damage occurred.

• The contractor shall designate one English speaking supervisor for each crew. No more than twelve persons are to be supervised by one supervisor. Supervisors shall be identified at the pre-work conference.

Any changes in supervisory designations must be submitted in writing to the COR at least 24 hours prior to the change taking effect. At the pre-work conference, the Contractor shall provide a work schedule which must be acceptable to the Government.

• During fire season (July thru October) the contractor may be required to turn off chain saws for a limited time or completely for the day. This requirement is dependent upon the fire danger level for that day.

Contractor is required to follow Washington DNR Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPL) for the county they are operating in. See Exhibit 2 IFPL brochure.

PART 6

APPLICABLE PUBLICATIONS

6. APPLICABLE PUBLICATIONS (CURRENT EDITIONS)

6.1. The Contractor must abide by all applicable regulations, publications, local policies and procedures.

PART 7

ATTACHMENT/TECHNICAL EXHIBIT LISTING

7. Attachment/Technical Exhibit List:

7.1. Attachment 1/Technical Exhibit 1 – Performance Requirements Summary

7.2. Attachment 2/ Technical Exhibit 2 – Industrial Fire Precaution Level (IFPL) Brochure

7.3. Attachment 3/ Technical Exhibit 3 – Area Maps

TECHNICAL EXHIBIT 1

Performance Requirements Summary

The contractor service requirements are summarized into performance objectives that relate directly to mission essential items. The performance threshold briefly describes the minimum acceptable levels of service required for each requirement. These thresholds are critical to mission success.

Performance Objective

(The Service required—usually a shall statement)

Performance Threshold (This is the maximum error rate. It could possibly be “Zero deviation from standard”)

Method of Surveillance

PRS # 1.

The contractor shall use gas powered

(hand held) chainsaws to cut all identified conifer trees species in a specified size range.

The contractor will cut 99% of the conifers identified in the prescription in the identified unit.

A designated project inspector will conduct site visits during the project and at the completion to ensure objectives are met.

PRS # 2

All trees cut down shall be limbed, bucked, and stacked into piles.

The contractor will pile 90% all slash greater than ½” in diameter and less than 12” diameter that has been cut. This includes branches, tops, and boles of felled trees, pruned trees, and dead and down trees and brush.

A designated project inspector will conduct site visits during the project and at the completion to ensure objectives are met.

PRS # 4

All piles shall be constructed and located per guidelines in the contract.

The contractor will follow pile construction guidelines at all times. The contractor will follow pile location and distance requirements at all times.

A designated project inspector will conduct site visits during the project and at the completion to ensure objectives are met.

The following listing provides various types of Surveillance as examples to select from and should not be included on the final document:

Random Sampling: Appropriate for frequently recurring tasks. Evaluate randomly selected samples of the lot to determine the acceptability of the entire lot.

Random Inspection Guide, Method of surveillance, Lot size, Sample size, Performance requirement, Sampling procedure, Inspection procedure

100 Percent Inspection: Appropriate for tasks that occur infrequently. Inspect and evaluate performance each time task is performed

Periodic Surveillance: Evaluation of samples selected on other than 100% or statistically random basis.

(i.e., monthly, quarterly, semi-annually etc.)

Validated Customer Complaint: Complaints must be validated.

NOTE: YOU MAY ALSO IDENTIFY ANY SURVEILLANCE METHOD USED IN THE COMMERCIAL MARKET TO

SURVEY THE REQUIRED SERVICE. (THIS WILL BE DISCOVERED WHEN MARKET RESEARCH IS CONDUCTED).

ATTACHMENT 2

Industrial Fire Precaution Brochure

ATTACHMENT 2

Industrial Fire Precaution Brochure

ATTACHMENT 3:

Unit Map

Vicinity Map

Vicinity Map II