A16-3-0034_Single_Source_Justification_R8_AMNWR_plant_inventories_Signed_1.pdf

FWS Form 3-0034 (Rev. 10/2020) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

1. Description of Need

3. Other Capable Sources

2. Market Research Conducted

Pursuant to FAR subpart 13.106-1(b)(1)(i) and (ii), for purchases not exceeding the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT), Contracting Officers may solicit from only one source if the circumstances deem only one source is reasonably available (e.g., urgency, exclusive licensing agreements, brand name, or industrial mobilization).

Instructions: The information in the text boxes are provided as sample language or to indicate a needed fill-in. Sample language should be removed from the final document. All text boxes require information and shall not be left blank.

SINGLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION

(UNDER SAT)

JOINT ADMINISTRATIVE OPERATIONS

Acquisitions Operations

4. Barriers to Competition

5. Contractor's Qualifications

6. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost

7. Recommendation and Certification by Program Office

Based on the above justification, I recommend this acquisition to be conducted using sole source acquisition procedures. I hereby certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Program / Project Officer

8. Contracting Officer Certification and Approval: Under SAT

Based on the above justification, I hereby certify and approve the use of sole source acquisition procedures under FAR Part 13 for this purchase.

Contracting Officer

Ash Meadows NWR Natural Resource Management Plan, which guides recovery actions on the Refuge, provides these species are to be monitored on a regular basis and threats to their recovery managed adaptively. This includes control actions for competing non-native plants. To achieve monitoring of nonnative and rare endemic plants, the Refuge has relied on assistance from partners possessing the specialized experience with Ash Meadows rare plants and habitats and the specific technical required for these efforts.

Text5: Pyramid Botanical Consultants (PBC) has been completing rare plant monitoring at Ash Meadows NWR for years, gaining invaluable expertise in the unique and extreme environmental conditions and identification of rare and cryptic species. PBC leveraged their expertise to collaborate with USFWS scientists to finalize a formal long-term monitoring protocol for rare plants at Ash Meadows NWR, the specific protocol that will guide monitoring plot sampling in the current contract. This work is a continuation of prior work complete on the refuge and is it important that data collected is directly comparable to data collected in prior years.

Furthermore, PBC is currently finishing a broad inventory of invasive and rare plants within the Upper Carson Slough Management Unit at Ash Meadows NWR. As an early deliverable of their prior contract, they developed a protocol for inventory of invasive and rare plants at Ash Meadows NWR that will guide the other major component of this contract.

In summary, there isn't another contractor, or agency scientist for that matter, with the extensive experience and expertise in inventory and monitoring of invasive and rare plants at Ash Meadows NWR required to independently survey broad areas for unique and cryptic species, following detailed and oftentimes complicated protocols, under extreme weather conditions. Developing this type of expertise would take years and funding beyond what is available.