Attach_01_MSO_PWS_2015.pdf

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Performance Work Statement (PWS)

Mexican Spotted Owl Surveys 2015

1.0 General - The primary focus of this contract is biological surveys for the federally threatened Mexican spotted owl.

The contractor shall provide all manpower, equipment, and services necessary for conducting and completing biological surveys and prepare survey reports as described below. The Performance Work Statement describes standards required of the Contractor throughout project implementation, including communication and coordination (such as conference calls and product review meetings) required by the Forest Service to facilitate project progress and completion.

2.0 Period of Performance - The biological surveys shall be conducted within the appropriate period, between May 1, 2015 and August 31, 2015. No time extensions for the field survey portion of the contract will be granted beyond August

31, 2015. A draft report shall be provided to either the COR or Inspector no later than September 15, 2015. The final report shall be provided to either the COR or Inspector no later than October 1, 2015.

3.0 Project Location and Description

3.1 The Contract Area consists of National Forest System land located along the eastern portion of the Pikes Peak

Ranger District of the Pike National Forest, west of Interstate 25, north of U.S. Highway 24, and east of State Highway

67, in El Paso County, Colorado (Figure 1). The Contract Area is bound on the west by National Forest System Road

(NFSR) 300 (i.e. Rampart Range Road) and on the east by the United States Air Force Academy, the city of Colorado

Springs, and the towns of Monument and Palmer Lake. The Contract Area contains four bid units (Figure 1; Table 1).

3.2 Survey Area #1/Bid Unit #1 (Palmer Lake)

This survey area/bid unit is located along Ice Cave Creek drainage, west of the Town of Palmer Lake and east of

NFSR 324 (Figure 2). The legal location of bid unit #1 is Township 11 South, Range 68 West, sections 1, 2, 10, and

11; and Township 11 South, Range 67 West, Section 6. The calling route is approximately 3 miles in length and consists of 8 calling stations. Four of the calling stations are accessible by NFSR 323 and 324. The remaining calling stations are not accessible by motorized vehicle or by a National Forest System Trail (NFST). Calling stations 2, 3, 4, and 5 are accessible from a non-system trail. The Town of Palmer Lake may be contacted for road access from the eastern portion of the survey area. The Forest Service will not coordinate access to this unit through non-National

Forest System lands.

3.3 Survey Area #2/Bid Unit #2 (Monument)

This survey area/bid unit is located along NFSR 322 and north of NFSR 320 (Mt. Herman Road), west of the Town of

Monument (Figure 3). The legal location of bid unit #2 is Township 11 South, Range 67 West, sections 19 and 30; and

Township 11 South, Range 68 West, sections 13, 23, and 24. The calling route is approximately 12 miles in length and consists of 9 calling stations. Two of the calling stations are located on NFST 716 on Mt. Herman. Seven of the calling stations (10 miles) are accessible by motorized vehicle on NFSR 320 and 322. The road accessing calling stations 7, 8, and 9 is very rough and narrow.

3.4 Survey Area #3/Bid Unit #3 (Academy)

This survey area/bid unit is located east of NFSR 307 and 311, west of the U.S. Air Force Academy (Figure 4). The legal location of bid unit #3 is Township 11 South, Range 67 West, section 32; and Township 12 South, Range 67

West, section s 5 and 17. The calling route is approximately 8 miles in length and consists of 7 calling stations. Six miles of this route includes access on NFSR. Three of the calling stations (i.e. 1, 2, & 3) are located on a non-system trail near Goat Camp Creek. These calling stations can be accessed from the east through the U.S. Air Force

Academy, but are not directly accessible by motorized vehicle. The Forest Service will not coordinate access to this unit through non-National Forest System lands. There are no routes that connect NFSR 307 with calling station 1.

Two calling stations are located near NFSR 311 and calling stations 4 and 5 are accessible from a non-system trail leading off of NFSR 307. NFSR 311A is not passable by vehicle.

3.5 Survey Area #4/Bid Unit #4 (Northfield)

This survey area/bid unit is located in Stanley Canyon and along West Monument Creek, west of the U.S. Air Force

Academy (Figure 5). The legal location of bid unit #4 is Township 12 South, Range 67 West, sections 20, 29, and 30.

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The calling route is approximately 13 miles in length and consists of 9 calling stations. Eight miles of this route includes access on administrative roads. Five of the calling stations are located on NFST 707 in Stanley Canyon. The eastern trailhead of this feature is located on the U.S. Air Force Academy. Three of the calling stations are located on an administrative road adjacent to West Monument Creek. One calling station is located within 0.2 miles of a communications site that is accessible by an administrative road. The Forest Service will only coordinate access to this unit from NFSR’s closed by Forest Order and administrative routes on lands owned by the City of Colorado

Springs that are administered by Colorado Springs Utilities.

4.0 Contractor Representative

The Contractor shall provide a Contract Representative responsible for the performance of the work. The name of this person and an alternate(s) who shall act for the contractor when the contractor is absent shall be designated in writing to the Contracting Officer. The Contractor Representative or alternate shall have full authority to act for the Contractor on all contract matters relating to daily operation of this contract. The Contractor Representative and alternate(s) must be able to read, write, speak, and understand the English language.

5.0 Qualifications: The following experience requirements are subject to confirmation by either the COR or Inspector.

Only sufficiently experienced and confirmed crew members and leaders shall conduct the required surveys. Attendance at a U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Forest Service, or Bureau of Land Management certification course for Mexican spotted owl inventory and/or monitoring protocol is desirable. Persons conducting owl surveys must be covered under a research and recovery permit under Section 10(a)(1)(A) of the Endangered Species Act. This permit must authorize the individual to conduct surveys for Mexican spotted owl in the State of Colorado.

5.1 Crew Member: Each crew member should have demonstrated experience following survey protocols (though not necessarily the MSO Protocol), as well as identifying spotted owl and other raptors likely to be encountered by both sight and sound. Crew members should also be experienced at identifying other taxa on the Forest Service sensitive species list.

5.2 Crew Leader: The crew leader shall have well demonstrated experience conducting spotted owl surveys using the

Mexican spotted owl Protocol or equivalent, and identifying spotted owls and other raptors likely to be encountered by both sight and sound. The crew leader should have demonstrated experience interpreting observations and developing conclusions about occupancy status of spotted owl. Crew leaders should also be experienced at identifying other taxa on the Forest Service sensitive species list.

6.0 Government Furnished Items - The Government will provide the following item(s) of Government property to the

Contractor for use in the performance of this contract. This property shall be used and maintained by the Contractor in accordance with the provisions of the “Government Property” FAR clause contained elsewhere in the contract.

A. The Forest Service will provide a compact disc (CD) or USB drive containing:

Topographical maps at a scale of 1:24,000 with each survey area/bid unit and calling stations as described on page 301 and 303 of the MSO Protocol.

GPS-compatible digital data of each survey area/bid unit and all required calling stations.

Digital spotted owl calls in an .Mp3 format.

B. Forest Service and CSU…access keys and gate information, as needed.

7.0. Contractor Furnished Items - The contractor shall furnish all items other than the government furnished property listed above required to perform this contract. Items required include, but are not limited to:

A. Game caller that can broadcast recorded spotted owl calls. The Forest Service reserves the right to test and approve (or reject) the Contractor’s selected broadcast equipment at the pre-work conference. Flagging should be a high visibility color.

B. The Contractor shall provide recreational-grade GPS equipment with a position RMS accuracy of less than 15 meters. Survey-grade equipment or higher positional accuracy is not required. GPS data shall be collected as

Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinates, Zone 13N, using the NAD83 datum.

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8.0 Technical Specifications for Survey Protocol

8.1 The Mexican spotted owl survey will be conducted in accordance with Appendix D – Mexican Spotted Owl

Survey Protocol, Final Recovery Plan for the Mexican Spotted Owl, First Revision, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2012 (i.e. MSO Protocol). The MSO Recovery Plan and survey protocol are available at:

http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/MSO_Recovery_Plan_First_Revision_Dec2012.pdf).

The Forest Service has refined this protocol and established additional requirements for this contract. Any deviation from this protocol or the additional requirements will require prior approval from the either the COR or Inspector.

Requirements are defined as follows:

8.2 The Contractor may elect to use one or two crew members at each calling station. However, if only one crew member is used, that person must be covered under a research and recovery permit under Section 10(a)(1)(A) of the

ESA, and should meet the experience requirements for a “Crew Leader” described in section V. Non-permitted personnel may conduct surveys only under the direct, on-site supervision of permitted individuals.

8.3 Bid units (i.e. survey areas) and calling stations have been established (Table 1.). Calling stations can only be moved with prior approval from either the COR or Inspector. The COR or Inspector may also move or replace calling stations as needed for safety reasons or for coverage requirements, but the total number of calling stations will not change.

8.4 The Contractor shall follow the “Calling Stations” method of the MSO Protocol, page 303. The “leapfrog” method is not permitted. The “continuous calling” method is permitted, but only in conjunction with the “calling station” method. In addition, surveyors must spend 15 minutes at each calling station and vary the sequence of visitation to calling stations during subsequent visits. The calling station order must be approved by the COR or Inspector prior to each survey.

8.5 A complete survey season requires four properly scheduled visits at each calling station per breeding season. The

Contractor shall adhere to all three of the following scheduling scenarios, collectively:

Conduct two to four surveys during 1 May - 30 June. A minimum of two surveys must be conducted by 30

June.

Complete all surveys by 31 August, with no more than one of the four required surveys conducted in each of the months of July or August.

Allow at least five full days between surveys.

8.6 Survey methods for areas defined as “remote” in the MSO Protocol are not permitted. The calling stations have been field validated and can be safely accessed, although soils may be loose and terrain may be steep or rough. A few calling stations may be located on extremely steep terrain. The Contractor shall not be required to access unsafe calling stations, nor is the use of unusual equipment (for example, climbing gear) required. If the Contractor identifies calling stations that are unsafe to access, the Contractor shall notify either the COR or Inspector of the calling stations that are not completed as part of the weekly progress update. The COR or Inspector reserves the right to establish a replacement calling station OR review the calling station locations and, if access is deemed safe, require the Contractor to complete four surveys.

8.7 If a Mexican spotted owl is detected, the Contractor shall follow the methods detailed in the MSO Protocol, pages

306-307, 4. A through 4.E. After determining an owl’s location, surveying the remaining calling stations in the “survey area/bid unit” is required if the stations are located in a different drainage or are greater than 0.5 miles from the spotted owl location. All spotted owl detections are to be reported to the COR or Inspector within 12 hours.

8.8. The Contractor shall not be required to conduct Daytime Follow-up Surveys. The COR or Inspector will be responsible for this task. However, if no owl(s) are located during daytime follow-up visits, the Contractor shall be required to return to conduct nighttime surveys. The COR or Inspector will also assess the confidence of the nighttime and daytime responses and determine if additional nighttime surveys are needed to more accurately determine the location of the responding owl(s). The Contractor shall not be required to conduct more than four complete surveys per survey area/bid unit in a breeding season.

http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/MSO_Recovery_Plan_First_Revision_Dec2012.pdf

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8.9 All observations of spotted owls or potential sign of spotted owl occupancy (pellets, white wash, molted feathers, mobbing jays, etc.), shall be recorded with GPS equipment and flagged. Flagging shall not be placed directly at nest or roost sites. For observations of flying spotted owls, the Contractor may estimate coordinates to the best of their ability.

8.10 The Contractor shall provide either the COR or Inspector with weekly updates of progress on surveys. The updates may be provided as email, telephone calls, or similar informal means. The Contractor shall provide the update to either the COR or Inspector by 5 PM on Tuesday for work conducted the prior week (Sunday to Saturday). The update shall include a list of all calling stations completed the prior week, any calling stations not completed because access is deemed unsafe, and any observations of owls or owl sign. For all observations of owl sign, a copy of relevant field notes and associated GPS coordinates shall be provided as part of the update.

8.11 Mexican spotted owl site visit forms will be provided by the Forest Service. The Contractor shall complete these forms in their entirety for each visit to a bid unit. Completed forms shall be submitted to either the COR or Inspector within 7 days of each complete visit.

8.12 The Contractor shall incorporate the results of the Mexican spotted owl surveys into the biological survey report, as described below.

8.13 The Contractor shall follow procedures outlined in the MSO Protocol, page 313, if any dead, injured, or sick

Mexican spotted owls are encountered.

9.0 Incidental Observations of Other Raptors

The Contractor shall record, by field notes and GPS coordinates, any incidental observations of other raptors (including other owl species) encountered during the spotted owl survey or at any other time the Contractor is present within the bid units. These observations shall be incorporated into the biological survey report, as described below. This requirement should not add any substantial survey time, other than time that may be needed to record observations.

10.0 Incidental Observations of Forest Service Sensitive Species

The Contractor shall record, by field notes and GPS coordinates, any incidental observations of Forest Service sensitive wildlife or plant species obtained during the spotted surveys or at any other time the Contractor is present within the bid units. These observations shall be incorporated into the biological survey report, as described below. A complete list of

Region 2 sensitive species can be found at: http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/projects/scp/sensitivespecies/index.shtml. This requirement should not add any substantial survey time, other than time that may be needed to record observations.

11.0. Reporting - After the surveys are complete, the Contractor shall prepare draft and final reports of the results of the surveys for Forest Service review.

11.1 Draft Report -

The draft report shall be written in standard scientific format, including introduction, methods, results, and discussion/conclusions. Any spotted owl detections or observations shall include a detailed description of the event, including: date, time, location, site conditions, owl behavior, vocalizations, movements, weather, and ambient noise.

The report shall include maps of the bid units, calling stations, detections, and any observations of other raptors and

Forest Service sensitive species. Text in the results and discussion sections shall clearly link detections and field observations with the maps. The draft report shall be provided to either the COR or Inspector in electronic format

(Microsoft Word for text, Adobe PDF files for maps) no later than September 15, 2015. The Forest Service will have a minimum review period of one week for the draft report.

11.2 Final Report

The Contractor shall revise the draft report into the final report in response to Forest Service comments. The final report shall be provided to either the COR or Inspector in electronic format (Microsoft Word for text, Adobe PDF files for maps) no later than October 1, 2015.

12.0 Data Transfer

In addition to the draft and final reports, the Contractor shall provide copies of all collected data to either the COR or

Inspector no later than October 1, 2015. Legible photocopies shall be provided of all field notes. Electronic files shall be provided of all photographs and GPS files. Photographs shall be provided in .jpg format, with an accompanying photo log that contains the date, location, and subject of each photograph. Suitable formats for GPS files include GPS exchange format (.gpx) with associated projection information, or projected ArcGIS shape files.

http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/projects/scp/sensitivespecies/index.shtml

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13.0 Calling Stations

Table 1. Mexican spotted owl calling stations

Bid Unit/Survey Area

Call Station Site Name

Coordinates (UTM NAD 83 Zone 13 North)

Easting Northing

#1 - Palmer Lake

1 Ice Cave Creek 505022 4330019

2 Ice Cave Creek 504775 4329912

3 Ice Cave Creek 504299 4330062

4 Ice Cave Creek 503909 4329825

5 Ice Cave Creek 503271 4329634

6 Ice Cave Creek 502282 4329692

7 Ice Cave Creek 502948 4328701

8 Ice Cave Creek 501878 4329299

#2 - Monument

1 Mt. Herman 506375 4325989

2 Mt. Herman 506426 4325327

3 Mt. Herman 505910 4324410

4 Mt. Herman 504340 4324977

5 Mt. Herman 503430 4324635

6 Balanced Rock 502784 4325765

7 Balanced Rock 503839 4326844

8 Balanced Rock 504468 4326993

9 Balanced Rock 504940 4327859

#3 - Academy

1 Goat Camp Creek 507219 4317147

2 Goat Camp Creek 507479 4317312

3 Goat Camp Creek 507816 4317357

4 Eagle View 507156 4318068

5 Eagle View 507495 4317979

6 Hay Creek 506634 4321258

7 Hell creek 506698 4321610

#4 - Northfield

1 Stanley Canyon 508118 4315378

2 Stanley Canyon 507823 4315461

3 Stanley Canyon 507638 4315615

4 Stanley Canyon 507360 4315543

5 Stanley Canyon 507203 4315711

6 Communications Site 507523 4315032

7 West Monument Creek 507940 4313462

8 West Monument Creek 507411 4313546

9 West Monument Creek 506849 4313510

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13.1 Accessibility

Access to the bid units and specific calling stations will require a combination of travel by vehicle and on foot in rough and steep terrain. A small to medium sized high clearance vehicle is recommended. Access to several calling stations will require foot travel in excess of 2,000 feet in elevation gain/loss, particularly in bid units 1, 3, and 4. The primary access to the bid units is from National Forest System Roads 300 (Rampart Range Road), 303, 307 (Schubarth Road), 311, 313, 318, 320 (Mt. Herman Road), 322, 323, and 324. Several of these roads require high clearance, 4-wheel drive vehicles.

National Forest System Trails include 707, 715, 716, and 756. Other non-system routes may be used as potential access routes. Motorized or mechanized equipment (for example, ATVs or mountain bikes) may only be used to access calling stations if allowed by Forest Service regulations. The Forest Service will facilitate access to survey area/bid unit #4 through lands closed by Forest Order, and on lands owned by the City of Colorado Springs that are administered by

Colorado Springs Utilities. The Forest Service will not coordinate access to any survey area/bid unit with access originating from the eastern portion of the Contract Area, including, but limited to, the U.S. Air Force Academy, the City of Colorado Springs, the towns of Monument and Palmer Lake, and/or any private properties. The Contractor is advised that communications by radio or cell phone may be poor to non-existent in the bid areas. The Contractor may want to consider arranging alternate means of communication and safety check-in/check-out procedures.

14.0 Inspection

The Pikes Peak Ranger District biologist and/or a qualified technician will be designated as the Inspector for this contract.

The COR and/or the Inspector will conduct on-site inspections during implementation of the Contractor’s surveys. The

COR or Inspector will also utilize a real time tracking system to monitor survey timing and calling station order. Any surveys that are performed without adherence to the following requirements, including any changes to the survey schedule that are performed without confirmation and acceptance from the COR or Inspector, may be designated as invalid.

14.1 Survey Schedule - The Contractor shall provide either the COR or Inspector with the survey schedule no less than 24 hours prior to survey and during the business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 - 16:30. The schedule must include the identified survey area, date, starting location, approximate starting time, and planned calling station order.

14.2 Changes to the Schedule - The Contractor shall report any changes directly to either the COR or Inspector prior to the survey.

14.3 Survey Validation - The Contractor shall employ an active, real time GPS tracking system (e.g. SPOT satellite device) while conducting surveys in all survey areas/bid units. Each surveyor or group of surveyors will utilize the tracking function of a device that transmits the location data of the surveyor in real time for all calling stations and routes traveled. The COR and Inspector will be provided read access to the webpage or database in which the location data can be viewed, during and after performance of the surveys. In addition, all location data must be retained by the

Contractor, and provided to the COR or Inspector upon request, through the end of the contract period.

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15.0 Performance Summary

Task/Subtask

Performance

Standard

Acceptable Quality

Level (AQL)

Monitoring

Method

Disincentives For

Not Meeting

Standards

Task 1. Mexican Spotted Owl Survey

Sub-task 1.1

Conduct surveys

All calling stations shall be completed within the appropriate and required time periods

Four surveys of each calling station shall be completed no later than

August 31, 2015

Weekly progress reports of calling stations completed.

Review of tracking location data; collection of site visit forms within 7 days of survey.

Payment will be reduced by 25% for each line item that is not fully completed per requirements by

August 31, 2015.

Task2. Reporting

Sub-task

2.1Complete draft report

Provide draft survey report to

Forest Service

Contains required sections and information

Provided by September

15, 2015

Forest Service approval of draft report.

Re-work of draft report at Contractor’s expense to be resubmitted within 7 days.

Sub-task

2.2Complete final report

Provide final survey report to

Forest Service

Responds to and incorporates all Forest

Service comments on the draft report

Provided by October 1, Forest Service approval of final report.

Payment will be reduced by 1% for each day an acceptable final report is delayed after

October 1, 2015.

17.0 Work Plan

The Contractor shall develop and submit a work plan within 3 days after award of contract. The work plan shall be a comprehensive plan for completion of all aspects of the contract. The work plan shall account for all tasks within the scope of the contract, deliverables listed, and preparation time. Provide a complete description of the equipment to be used for this contract and discuss how the available staff will be used to complete the work in the time given.

18.0 Progress Schedule

The Contractor shall prepare and submit a practical schedule showing the order in which the Contractor will perform the work and the dates on which the Contractor contemplates starting and completing each task within 3 days after award of contract.