A13_SSNotice_Attachment1_DraftSOW_1.docx

SS NOTICE ATTACHMENT 1 – DRAFT SOW

DRAFT STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW)

INVASIVE ANNUAL GRASS HERBICIDE TREATMENTS (ESR AND FUELS)

02/13/2023

1.0 SCOPE

1.1 INTRODUCTION: The Department of the Interior (DOI), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), National Operations Center is seeking vegetation treatment services on seven selected sites administered by the Vale District BLM. The work consists of applying herbicides on four areas burned by wildfires on public lands within the Malheur Field Office during Fiscal Year (FY) 22, and one burned in Fiscal Year (FY) 20. One area requires herbicide application following juniper cutting, piling, and burning as part of fuels reduction treatments and one roadside treatment to reduce invasive annual vegetation along wildland urban interface (WUI) roads, as detailed below in location and description paragraph

1.2 APPLICABLE DIRECTIVES: The contractor must hold current Oregon Commercial Applicator Licenses (and federal, if required) for the application of pesticides in the weed control category appropriate for the application and application equipment type proposed. It shall be the responsibility of the contractor to assure all applicator, equipment, and company licenses required for treatments in the State of Oregon (and federal, if required) are current at the time of RFQ response. To be considered for this contract, proof of all licensing shall be provided as part of RFQ response.

1.3 LOCATION AND DESCRIPTION: Location and vicinity maps showing the seven project areas are combined and provided as an attachment to this SOW. The file includes location and vicinity maps for the following seven locations: , , . Actual acres shall be computed from Global Positioning System (GPS) information. The Contractor shall not treat areas outside of the identified work areas identified in this SOW and SOW Attachments

Project Area (1) Willowcreek requires es application for the control of invasive annual grasses (IAG) on public lands within the Willowcreek ESR area in Malheur Field Office following wildfire. The total treatment area for this project consists of approximately 15,321 acres with a water usage requirement of 10 gal per acre and Plateau requirement at 8 oz per acre. Blocks A, B and C within Project Area 1 each consist of 500-acre equal to approximately 1,500 total acres of rush skeletonweed treatment requirements within the Willowcreek ESR area.

Project Area (2) Sheephead requires application for the control of invasive annual grasses on public lands within the Sheephead ESR area in Malheur Field Office following wildfire. The total treatment area for this project consists of approximately 2,328 total acres. Because treatments could not be conducted over black, thatch is likely to be heavier 1 year post in this fire, therefore, Plateau is required at 7 oz per acre.

Project Area (3) Hat Top requires application for the control of invasive annual grasses on public lands within the Hat Top ESR area in Malheur Field Office following wildfire. The total treatment area consists of approximately 1,895 acres. Because treatments could not be conducted over black, thatch is likely to be heavier 1 year post in this fire, therefore, Plateau is required at 7 oz per acre.

Project Area (4) Vines Hill requires application for the control of invasive annual grasses on public lands within the Vines Hill ESR area in Malheur Field Office following wildfire. The total treatment area consists of approximately 2,359 acres. Because treatments could not be conducted over black and IAG’s thatch is likely to be heavy 1 year post in this fire, water usage is required at 10 gallons per acre and Plateau at 8 oz per acre.

Project Area (5) Northwest Malheur Fuels requires application for control of invasive annual grasses on public lands within the NW Malheur Fuels Treatment area in Malheur Field Office following juniper removal. The total treatment area consists of approximately 1,963 acres. Because the treatment area is in native rangeland with light infestations of cheatgrass and moderate to low thatch, the required water usage is 5 gallons per acre and Plateau at 6 oz per acre.

Project Area (6) Vale WUI Road requires treatment for control of invasive annual grasses and broadleaf species on lands within the Vale Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) road system in the Malheur Field Office. Treatment area consists of approximately 100’ alongside or 50’ each side of sections of the WUI road system, the line, area, or zone where structures and other human development meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels. The total treatment area consists of approximately 898 acres. Treatments will be over large stature invasive broadleaf species and cheatgrass, therefore the required water usage is 10 gallons per acre with a requirement for the Plateau at 8 oz and requires the addition of Chlorsulfuron for residual control of broadleaf species.

Project Area (7) North Gregory Creek requires treatment for control of invasive annual grasses on public lands within the North Gregory Creek pasture within the footprint of the 2020 Indian Creek Wildfire in Malheur Field Office. The total treatment area consists of approximately 2,133 acres.

2.0 ACRONYMS AND GLOSSARY

Adjuvant – An inert material added to a pesticide formulation or tank mix to increase the effectiveness of the active ingredient.

AQD – Acquisition Services Division

Base (reference, control) Station – A GPS receiver set up at a known location; that is, a point whose Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinates and elevation are known

BLM – Bureau of Land Management

Chemical (herbicide) treatments – Application by Commercial Pesticide Operator/Applicator, licensed by Department of Agriculture (with Agriculture Herbicide Category), of BLM-requested herbicides to herbaceous or woody plants, as designated by the BLM, using industrial standard application equipment.

COR – Contracting Officer’s Representative

DOI – Department of the Interior

Drift – The movement of airborne particles by air motion or wind away from the intended target area.

ESR – Emergency Stabilization and Rehabilitation

GPS – Global Positioning System

IAG - Invasive Annual Grass- Non-native aggressive grass with potential to cause significant economic losses.

Noxious Weeds – Plants found on the State of Oregon Noxious weed list at https://www.oregon.gov/oda/programs/weeds/pages/aboutweeds.aspx, which may change annually.

PAR – Pesticide Application Record – A legally required record of herbicide application that is filled out within 24 hours of treatment. It includes what herbicide and how much was used, what weeds were sprayed, dates and times of application, names of applicators, etc. (See SOW Attachment A - Sample Pesticide Application Record).

PI – Project Inspector on behalf of the BLM / Department of Interior

PUP - Pesticide Use Proposal –A BLM document that summarizes the intentions of the herbicide application including targeted species, allowable herbicide rates, sensitive resources, and mitigation measures for proposed projects.

SOP – Standard Operating Procedures - See SOW Attachment B - BLM Standard Operating Procedures and Mitigation Measures for Applying Herbicides

UTM - Universal Transverse Mercator - A mapping coordinate grid system based upon one of many different mapping projections. Note: The BLM in Eastern Oregon uses the projected coordinate system UTM, Datum NAD 1983 (Conus), Zone 10 or 11. The data is displayed in meters easting and northing.

WUI – Wildland-Urban Interface – The line, area, or zone where structures and other human development meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels.

3.0 OW ATTACHMENTS

SOW Attachment A Sample Pesticide Application Record

SOW Attachment B BLM Standard Operating Procedures and Mitigation Measures for Applying Herbicides

4.0 SOW Attachment C Combined Location and Vicinity Maps for all required treatment locations listed in projects (1) through (7)TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

4.1 The Contractor shall comply with all applicable Federal, State and Local regulations, as well as the BLM PUP(s).

4.2 The Contractor shall provide all resources, personnel, equipment, supplies, and materials necessary for chemical handling, to include the chemicals, the surfactants and the waterneeded to provide the services at the locations specified herein using the required BLM specified herbicides at the required rate stated in this SOW with the appropriate application equipment and delivery methods in accordance with the appropriate directive, regulation and policy.

4.3 All herbicide treatments shall be conducted following herbicide label directions, the SOW, and SOW Attachment B, BLM Standard Operating Procedures and Mitigation Measures for Applying Herbicides, Approved BLM Pesticide Use Proposal (PUP), and all other policies and guidelines pertaining to their use. The Government will provide the PUP to the contractor within one week of application at a pre-work meeting to be coordinated with the Project Inspector (PI) and or COR. All herbicides and adjuvants used at the time of application must be listed on the approved project PUPs.

4.4 The contractor shall coordinate a pre-work conference meeting within 2 business days of award. The contractor shall present a copy of its proposed performance plan for Government acceptance. The contractor’s plan shall include how the work will be accomplished, including but not limited to, pattern testing. The Government will determine at that time if the contractor may proceed with work based on the proposed plan. If the performance plan is not accepted at the meeting, the contractor shall provide its revisions for Government acceptance within 3 business days of the pre-work conference meeting. This cycle shall continue until the contractor’s plan is determined acceptable by the Government.

4.5 The contractor shall control the spray pattern and safely and evenly apply over uneven, broken, steep and rocky terrain, maintaining consistent application of herbicide. Spray strips shall be distributed in such a manner as to secure a high uniformity of herbicide distribution to cover all acres with designated rate.

4.6 The Government may require, at any time, that the contractor perform a demonstration that the application equipment is calibrated and will evenly distribute the designated spray at rates specified in the PUP(s). Checks may be achieved through a pattern test or use of water sensitive cards at the project site. However, project-wide, due to its mode of action on IAGs, results from imazapic herbicide treatments will not become obvious until the growing season following treatment, generally late April – early June. Where skips or obvious insufficient applications resulting in sublethal target species death, i.e., striping, are documented to be >1% of the project area as determined from GPS tracking data or during on the ground inspections by the COR/PI, retreatment of the insufficiently treated area will be required at no extra cost (for labor, equipment, or herbicides) to the Government.

4.7 Daily PARs and a Final PAR, referenced in Section 9.0 Deliverables, shall be accompanied by detailed maps (both paper and electronic) showing track lines, including daily printouts and files from the previous day. Electronic files of treatments shall be compatible with ArcGIS. A required template for the PAR will be provided by the BLM upon award.

4.7.1 The contractor shall provide the data in a standard format (NAD83 for zone 10 or 11 North in UTM or latitudes/longitudes in decimal degrees). At a minimum, the data shall contain applicator's name and address, State of Oregon applicator’s license number, date of application, beginning and ending times of application, weather conditions (temperature, climatic conditions, wind speed and direction, and relative humidity), product used, and any adjuvants added, application rate, application type, and number of acres treated.

4.8 Shapefiles of treatments shall be compatible with ArcGIS. The contractor shall be able to receive the BLM provided digital data (ArcGIS shapefiles) and use it accordingly to provide accurate track logs of work completed. Any refuse, debris or garbage generated by the Contractor or crew members shall be cleaned up and removed from the project site by the Contractor and disposed of legally offsite before final payment is made.

4.9 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: The timing of work shall take into consideration the potential target species, elevation, seasonal climate, aspect, and habitat of the project area. For this requirement. The estimated start date is on or around September 01, 2023, The estimated completion date shall be on or before October 30, 2023.

ACCESS TO PROJECT AREA: Access to (1) Willowcreek project area is from US Highway 26 approximately 5 miles northwest of Vale OR on seasonally maintained gravel and /or dirt roads or I-84 approximately 13 miles NNW of Ontario OR. Access to (2) Sheephead project area is from US Hwy 95 approximately 20 miles S of the ION Junction (2 miles W of Marsing, ID) on seasonally maintained gravel and/or dirt roads. Access to (3) Hat Top project area is S from US Highway 20 at Harper Junction, OR or S from Juntura, OR on seasonally maintained gravel/or dirt roads. Access to (4) Vines Hill project area is S from US Highway 20 approximately 13 miles W of Vale, OR on non-maintained dirt roads. Access to (5) Northwest Malheur project area is NW from US Highway 20 at Harper Junction, OR on paved road to Westfall, OR then onto seasonably maintained gravel and dirt roads. Access to approximately 38 miles of (6) Vale WUI Roads is the same as for (1) Willowcreek project area. An additional 9 miles could be from the same access or off I84 at Moores Hollow Exit approximately 13 miles NW of Ontario, OR. The remaining 27 miles of roads are accessible from paved Lytle Boulevard SSE of Vale, OR. Access to (7) North Gregory Creek project area is NW from US Highway 20 at Harper Junction, OR on paved road to Westfall, OR then onto seasonably maintained gravel and dirt roads.

4.10 UNIQUE FEATURES OF PROJECT AREA: (1) The Willowcreek project area is over broken, uneven terrain into and out of valleys with deep, steep-sided gullies. Soils across much of the area are loose volcanic ash and fine loamy soils that are deep in nature, including slopes ranging from 15 to 70 percent, making traversing across those areas difficult and treacherous. The Tub Mountain area, on the southwest section of the project, has steep, rocky slopes on the west side with rock features across the top and steep, loamy soil slopes on the east side. (2) The Sheephead project area is over broken, uneven terrain with elevational changes between 4,000’ to 5,000’. The entire fire area has large rocks scattered across it. While all sides are steep, the west side includes extremely steep slopes with rockslides. (3) The Hat Top project area has very poor road access and is surrounded by deep canyons with rock faces as well as having rocky canyons on the interior of site. (4) The Vines Hill project area consists of rolling hills and loamy soils on approximately 30% of the west side with the remainder having loamy but rock-strewn soils, canyons with steep side slopes surrounded by very rocky hills and broken terrain. The north end borders private agricultural lands that might be in production at the time of treatment. (5) The NW Malheur Fuels project area consists of 2 pastures. The largest pasture has a long, steep side slope that falls into a main canyon which is dissected by several steep side canyons. The smaller pasture has small canyons that break all directions with shallow to sharp steepness. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) For best coverage of all surfaces, all projects will require the ability to contour due to canyons and mountains with varying degrees of steepness and elevational changes. Most fire project areas (2, 3, 4) have islands of unburned brush/shrubs. NW Malheur is unburned except for juniper pile areas therefore, heavy shrub/brush pockets are common throughout both pastures. (6) The Vale WUI project area consists of roads north and south of Vale OR in areas which have been susceptible to wildfires in past years. The road alignment ranges from relatively straight to curved including a few sharp curves. Topography across the road system varies from relatively flat to moderately steep with some undulation on portions. Some roadsides will be designated as 50 foot treatment on both sides of the road and others will be designated as 100 foot treatment on one side. (7) The North Gregory Creek project area is within one pasture that consists of small canyons that break all directions with shallow to sharp canyons.

4.11 For this contract, roughly ½ of the projects will have access reasonably close that are passable by trucks needed for mixing and loading herbicide for large scale application projects (less than 3 miles). Other areas will require longer travel/ferry from mix/load operations. Maps with potential routes will be available to the contractor for travel at the task order level. Some of the roads are improved graveled roads; however, many of the roads will be improved dirt roads or two-track range roads. BLM will likely only have one staff member available to oversee and monitor the compliance of the spraying projects as well as mix/load operations. The contractor shall make every effort to stage as close to the project area as possible while complying with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations and appropriate land use permitting procedures applicable to their operations.

5.0 CONTRACTOR FURNISHED ITEMS

5.1 GENERAL: The contractor shall provide all labor, transportation, tools, and equipment necessary to perform the requirements of this contract. This includes the transportation of water to the project site for application. The contractor should be aware water sources may be long distances away from treatment or loading sites. The contractor shall be responsible for obtaining reliable water sources for the project. The contractor shall furnish the necessary qualified mechanics for maintenance of equipment and shall furnish all materials (fuel, etc.) and service required for operations of equipment and vehicles.

APPLICATION EQUIPMENT: Industry standard application equipment shall be used. The equipment shall be equipped with nozzles that produce a coarse spray to minimize drift and achieve uniform coverage. Equipment designed to minimize drift and/or a drift control agent may be added at the recommended label rate but must be approved by the COR prior to use. The contractor shall use high flow rate nozzles to apply the highest practical spray volume and the lower spray pressures recommended for the nozzle. When higher flow rates are needed, the contractor shall use higher flow rate nozzles instead of increasing pressure. The contractor shall use the minimum number of nozzles that provide uniform coverage. The contractor shall use a nozzle type that is designed for the intended application. The contractor shall minimize drift as practicably as possible. The contractor shall not use nozzles producing a mist droplet spray.

5.1.1 The contractor shall ensure all equipment utilized for the project is maintained in optimal condition at all times to ensure there are no delays in completing the project requirements.

5.1.2 The applicator shall have the ability to uniformly deliver the designated gallons per acre (as stated in the task order) with a Boom/Nozzle configuration (including controlled pressure and nozzle orientation) that will provide a controlled droplet application.

5.2 The Contractor shall provide a communication system so that contractor personnel engaged in the project at different locations can communicate at all times with each other and so that BLM Project Inspectors are provided at all times with an effective, reliable two-way communication in real time so that PIs may communicate with the contractor at any time to discuss performance matters. [If contractor chooses to use BLM-compatible radios, by DOI policy, BLM radios must be P25-compliant VHF-FM. Transceiver must provide selection of narrowband analog (12.5kHz) or narrowband digital (12.5kHz) operation on a minimum of 100 channels.]

5.3 MIXING/LOADING FACILITIES- The contractor must comply with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations and appropriate land use permitting procedures applicable to their operations.

5.4 HERBICIDE AND ADJUVANTS: For this requirement, the contractor shall utilize Plateau Herbicide™, Grounded™, and Quest™ for invasive annual grasses treatments over the entire (1) Willowcreek 15,321 acres; entire (2) Sheephead 2,328 acres; entire (3) Hat Top 1,895 acres; entire (4) Vines Hill 2,359 acres; and entire (5) NW Malheur 1,963 acres. Additionally, the contractor shall utilize Milestone™ and DyneAmic™ for three 500-acre blocks within (1) Willowcreek project area. For roadside treatments along Vale WUI Roads (6) the contractor shall utilize as a tank mix Plateau™, Alligare Chlorsulfuron™, Grounded™, and Quest™. Products other than those specified will not be acceptable for this requirement, except if Plateau is not available in sufficient quantities. Panoramic 2SL™ is an appropriate substitution if Plateau is in short supply. Dry formulations of imazapic will not be considered.

6.0 GOVERNMENT FURNISHED ITEMS

6.1 At the time of award, the Government will furnish detailed GPS coordinate data of the unit boundaries, in the form of shapefiles created in ArcGIS, as well as the BLM approved PUP(s).

7.0 SECURITY AND SAFETY

7.1 Any hazards that would pose a danger to contractor’s personnel or operating equipment shall be identified and mitigated by the contractor prior to commencing operations.

7.2 EQUIPMENT: The contractor may leave their equipment at the work site. However, the contractor shall be responsible for the equipment if it is lost, stolen, vandalized or damaged. The contractor is advised that vandalism of equipment may be anticipated in all areas of operation. Therefore, it is suggested that a watchman service for equipment security be provided during all periods of no activity on the project, to include overnight, regardless of location.

7.3 SAFETY: The contractor shall immediately notify the COR of any spills, leaks, or accidents, as quickly as possible, no later than within 24 hours of occurrence.

7.4 AIRSPACE COORDINATION: Within the project area there are military training routes (MTRs). It is the contractor’s responsibility to contact Flight Service Station(s) (FSS) to coordinate their activities if their application equipment is aerial in nature. From OPM-35 - [In areas of military airspace it is acceptable to describe coordination agreements with military airspace scheduling or range control authorities and that it is the contractors’ responsibility to coordinate their activities with the scheduling office or Range Control. Close coordination is necessary to ensure compliance with applicable airspace coordination agreements that states have with military authorities.]

8.0 CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS

8.1 The offeror’s key personnel shall include a minimum of one (1) experienced and licensed herbicide applicator and minimum of two (2) qualified mixing and loading staff, as well as, but not limited to mechanics, truck drivers, pesticide mixers and loaders. All key personnel shall be able to successfully perform the requirements of this SOW.

8.2 The contractor and each applicator shall be licensed in the application and handling of herbicides in Oregon and shall have a Commercial Pesticide Applicators License which allows application on public rangelands (Agriculture Herbicide Category). If the status of any of these licenses change at any time due to suspensions, expirations, or any other reason, the contractor shall contact the PI and or Contracting Officer immediately.

8.3 A foreman shall be present on site, either as an applicator or other contractor personnel during all applications. The foreman shall effectively and efficiently address on-the-ground issues and accurately communicate project progress by providing accurate track logs with the PI or COR.

8.4 As well as the commercial applicator’s license, the contractor’s applicator(s) shall have current Oregon Department of Agriculture, and Federal, if required, issued applicator(s) license(s) appropriate for each type of application equipment they utilize. It shall be the responsibility of the contractor to assure all applicator and company licenses required for treatments in the State of Oregon are current at the time of RFQ response. Proof of licensing shall be provided with RFQ response. See https://www.oregon.gov/oda/programs/Pesticides/Licensing

8.5 The Contractor, applicator, and ground crew shall know the requirements of the contract including technical requirements and application locations.

8.6 The Contractor shall be able to perform a minimum production rate of 1,500 acres sprayed per day (10 gallons/acre application).

8.7 The Contractor shall maintain an adequate work force to ensure timely completion of the work.

9.0 DELIVERABLES

other accompanying information.

100%

[END OF STATEMENT OF WORK]

2023 IAG HERBICIDE TREATMENTS SOW

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