PHASE_6_US_84_Corridor_Unit_2_SOW_Specifications.docx

PHASE 6 – UNIT 2

PART I – THE SCHEDULE

SECTION B – SERVICES AND PRICES

TREE THINNING

B-1.

The contractor shall furnish all equipment, labor, supplies, supervision, transportation, and incidentals to perform pre-commercial tree thinning and work in accordance with the specifications contained herein. There is no Government-furnished property or materials for this project.

B-2. Schedule of Items Bid Item 1 – US 84 Corridor Thinning

Hand Tree Thinning Lop & Scatter Slash Unit 2

Acres

B-3.

The contractor shall provide a contract representative for the duration of contract 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 the daily operation of this contract. The contractor representative and alternate(s) must be able to read, write, speak and understand English.

B-4. Contract Time Requirement by Contract Item/Sub-item

The Contractor shall maintain progress at a rate which will assure completion of work within the calendar time specified above. The Government will issue a Notice to Proceed as soon as weather and ground conditions are favorable for work. The count of contract time will start on the date the contractor signs the Notice to Proceed. A pre-work conference will be held as close to the starting date of contract time as possible.

If fire danger becomes extreme, the thinning may be stopped until conditions become less severe. No days will be charged against contract time during this time period. Contract time will be suspended if winter weather conditions preclude access to the project area.

B-5. Measurement The acreages were measured on a horizontal plane within the established boundaries.

The Contractor may at any time after award, but before final invoice is submitted, request re-measurement of any treatment area. The request will be made in writing. Re-measurement must be made within the established boundaries of the treatment area. If re-measurement indicates a variance of 5 percent or less from the acreages stated in the contract, the Contractor shall pay for the actual cost of re-measurement and no adjustment shall be made in the acreage. If re-measurement indicates a variance greater than 5 percent from the acreages stated in the contract, payment will be based on the re-measured acreage and the government will pay for the re-measurement.

After inspection of completed acreage, the Contracting Officer will calculate the pay rate. The pay rate will be calculated by multiplying the inspection percentage times the contract unit price per acre. When the percent of satisfactory thinning is 90 percent or greater, payment will be made at the contract unit price. Pullback and lopping and scattering of slash will be considered incidental to thinning and no separate payment will be made.

The area will be thinned in an orderly manner to facilitate inspection and calculation of partial payments. The contractor may choose his starting point against the boundary and may proceed in the direction of his choice. However, the contractor will not be permitted to move to a new starting point and leave un-thinned areas between completed areas. The order in which units are thinned will be determined by the Contracting Officer or his/her representatives.

B-6. Cut Trees The average number of cut trees during the thinning process is estimated to range from 200 – 800 trees per acre in Unit 2. The primary tree species to be cut are ponderosa pine, piñon pine, Rocky Mountain juniper and white fir.

PART I – THE SCHEDULE

SECTION C – DESCRIPTION OF WORK/WORK STATEMENT

C-1. Scope of Contract This contract requires tree thinning, pullback and lopping and scattering of slash in addition to related work in compliance with its terms, specifications, and provisions. This includes furnishing labor, equipment, supervision, transportation, operating supplies, safety equipment, and incidentals. There is no Government-furnished property or materials for this project.

C-2. Location/Description

Bid Item Location The project area is located in Section 1 Township 26 North, Range 4 East; and Sections 35 and 36 of Township 27 North, Range 4 East. The unit can be accessed by traveling 45-50 miles north of the city of Española, New Mexico on US Highway 84 until reaching the junction of US Highway 84 and Forest Road 125. Travel approximately one mile east on FR 125 to reach the western unit boundary. See Figures 1 and 2 attached in this document for further details.

C-3. List of Specifications

3.1 Performance Standards for Unit 2

The contractor shall select the trees to leave. Leave trees shall generally be those of the tallest height, largest crown, and straightest stems that are free of damage due to insects, disease, physical, or mechanical causes. If no healthy undamaged tree exists at the required spacing interval, trees with minor damage may be left. If no healthy tree with minor damage exists, all trees shall be cut. Thin trees 2 feet in height to 12.0 inches DBH from below to an average spacing of 30 – 40 ft. Vary spacing to leave the best trees in a clumpy appearance. Residual spacing is measured off all live trees; snags shall not be used for spacing. No aspen or snags shall be cut.

3.2 Leave Tree Priorities

The contractor shall select leave trees in the following order:

1. Leave all aspen trees.

2. Leave trees in the following order of preference: ponderosa pine, piñon pine, Rocky Mountain juniper.

3. Leave trees will be the healthiest trees with the fullest crown. A healthy tree is one with 40% or more live crown ratio; conical shape; little or no sign of insect, disease or mechanical damage; evidence of recent height growth; and no dead tops.

3.3 Cut Tree Priorities

1. Cut all white fir less than 12.0 inches DBH

2. Cut all trees with dwarf mistletoe 2 feet in height to 6.0 inches DBH.

3. Cut all trees with a dwarf mistletoe rating of 3 – 6 from 6.0 inches DBH to 14.0 inches DBH regardless of spacing. (Refer to the Hawksworth dwarf mistletoe rating system, Exhibit 3.)

4. Cut all piñon pine and Rocky Mountain juniper up to 14.0 inches DRC from the base of ponderosa pine trees greater than 12.0 DBH following spacing requirements from 3.3 (5).

5. Thin the remainder of the unit from below in trees 2 feet in height to 12.0 inches DBH to a residual spacing of 35 ft. x 35 ft. with a 7% variance (30 – 40 feet).

6. Avoid evenly spacing trees by retaining clumps of trees (1 – 9 trees per clump) of ponderosa pine where naturally present and randomly across the unit. Clumps of smaller diameter trees (8 – 12 inch DBH) should be at least 35 feet away from larger individual ponderosa pine trees and clumps. In clumps of older ponderosa pine trees, remove smaller young trees up to 12.0 inches DBH from within the clumps. Older ponderosa pine trees usually have the following characteristics: tree boles with deep furrows, orange-yellow bark and flattened tops.

7. Regardless of spacing, apply a radial thin (35 feet around the outermost drip line) around leave clumps and older healthy individual ponderosa pine trees generally over 18 inches DBH with the above mentioned characteristics from 3.3 (6).

3.4 Stump Heights – Removal of Live Limbs

Stump heights shall not exceed 6 inches on the high side of the stump or 4 inches above natural obstacles such as rocks. All felled trees shall be completely severed from the stump. All live limbs below the stump height shall be cut/severed, except when prevented by natural obstacles. Along roads, the high side of the stump shall face toward the road as often as possible.

3.5 Bucking

Boles of all felled trees greater than 6 inches DBH shall be limbed and bucked to less than 8.0 feet in length.

3.6 Lopping and Scattering

All slash created as part of the thinning process will be lopped to a maximum depth of 24 inches from ground level. If slash depth cannot be met by lopping alone, then rearranging and scattering of slash concentrations to achieve the desired slash depth of 24 inches from ground level will be required.

3.7 Slash Pull Back

All slash created by the thinning process and materials will be pulled back a minimum of 10 feet from existing fencelines. Slash shall be pulled back so as not to lay on existing forest roads. Slash shall be pulled back a minimum of 15 feet from individual larger trees and the outermost tree in tree groups.

3.8 Hang-up Trees

No cut trees shall be left hanging on leave trees or fencelines. All hung up trees shall be brought to the ground.

3.9 Direction Felling

Trees to be cut along fencelines will be felled so as not to land on existing fencelines. The Contractor will be required to remove any trees that land on fencelines. Secondly, directional felling will be required along existing roads. Trees shall be felled away from roads whenever safely possible.

3.10 Pruning

When mistletoe infections are within 4 feet of the ground, the infected branches on the tree may be pruned off instead of felling the entire tree.

3.11 Cultural Sites

No trees shall be cut within areas delineated with white or pink flagging or paint. Do not drive or park in areas delineated with white or pink flagging. No ground disturbing activities are allowed within areas delineated with white or pink flagging or paint.

C-4. Standard Definitions Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) - The maximum allowable deviation from perfect performance that may occur before the Government will invoke payment deduction. An AQL does not allow a contractor knowingly to offer defective service, but limits reduced payment to circumstances in which defective performance results in a measurable reduction in the value of services rendered.

Defective Service - A unit of service which contains one or more defects or nonconformance with specified requirements.

Performance Requirements Summary (PRS) - Identifies the key service outputs of the contract that will be evaluated by the Government to assure contract performance standards are met by the contractor.

Quality Assurance- Those actions taken by the Government to assure services meet the requirements of the technical specification.

Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) - A Government person appointed by the contracting officer to help the contracting officer with contract administration and surveillance.

Government Inspector - A Government person responsible for surveillance of contractor performance.

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) - An organized written document used for quality assurance surveillance. The document contains specific methods the Government will use to perform surveillance of the contractor.

Quality Control - Those actions taken by a contractor to control the performance of services so that they meet the requirements of the PWS.

Random Sampling - A sampling method in which each service output in a unit has an equal chance of being selected.

C-5. Technical Definitions The following definitions are provided to aid in understanding:

Average Spacing - The average of the distances between all leave trees necessary to provide the desired number of leave trees per acre.

Bole - Tree trunk or main stem of a tree.

Bucking – Cutting the bole to specified lengths.

Buffer - A wide strip of uncut trees separating or bordering sensitive areas such as streams or riparian zones.

Co-dominant - Trees that are not as tall as dominants, with crowns receiving overhead light. They may be confined laterally by dominants and usually make up the main canopy with the dominants.

Conifer - A cone-bearing tree with needles.

Crook - A defect in trees, consisting of an abrupt curvature or bend.

Crown - That portion of a tree which has green needles or leaves.

Cut tree - Trees designated to be cut down.

D.B.H. (Diameter at Breast Height) - Diameter of the trunk measured at a point 4-1/2 feet above the ground level on the uphill side of a tree.

DRC (Diameter at root collar) – Diameter of the trunk of a tree measured at ground level.

Damage - Includes any defect or deformity of a tree resulting from agents such as wind, snow, animals, insects, disease, and equipment, and evidenced by such things as dead or broken tops or trunks, crooks, and deep scars.

Dominant - Trees that are somewhat above the general level of the canopy and are exposed to full sunlight from above and to a certain extent laterally.

Excess Trees - Uncut trees that do not meet specifications and should have been cut.

Excessive Damage - Contractor-caused damage to leave trees in excess of contract specifications. Excessive damage will include damage to the bole of the tree where the wood is exposed, broken out tops, root damage as evidenced by lean or splitting of the bole, and any tree pushed out of the soil.

Existing slash - Debris created prior to work under this contract (both natural and as a result of previous operations).

Girdling - A cut through the bark and cambium tissue completely encircling the tree trunk for the purpose of killing the tree.

Hang-up Tree - Any tree with one end suspended more than 3 feet off the ground.

Intermediate - Trees that are definitely subordinate in position receiving direct sunlight only through holes in the canopy. All trees of this class are subject to strong lateral competition.

Leave Trees - Any tree that is selected or required to be left standing as provided in the specifications.

Live-Crown Ratio – Percent of live crown in relation to the total height of the tree.

Live Limb - A woody stem that exceeds 2 inches in length with green needles or leaves growing from the tree bole.

Lopping - Cutting limbs and boles of trees to reduce depth of slash created by felled trees.

Minor Damage - Crooks in the trunk which are offset less than 3 inches from the long axis and within 13 feet of the ground, no forks, broken top, or bark damage extending more than one-fourth of the circumference of the tree.

Missing Leave Trees - Those trees cut that should have been left.

Piling – Gathering and stacking of thinning slash into piles constructed and located as indicated by technical specification.

Pull-back - Pulling thinning slash, by hand methods, back into thinned unit to clear roadway, drainage ditches, culverts, stream channels, trails, etc.

Riparian - Vegetation bordering watercourses, lakes, bogs, and seeps.

Roads - The area between the outside edges of the fill slope and back slope.

Sanitation - The felling, pruning, or girdling of disease infected or disease susceptible trees to protect residual trees from infection.

Scattering – Moving and rearranging of slash concentrations to achieve slash depth required in the contract.

Shrub - A woody plant with no main stem which does not usually grow higher than seven feet (i.e., brush).

Slash - Limbs and trunks of downed trees and brush.

Spacing - The horizontal distance from the trunk of one leave tree to the trunk of the next nearest leave tree.

Sweep - Gentle curve anywhere in the bole of the tree.

Thinning - The removal of excess trees in order to accelerate growth on selected residual trees by reducing competition for soil moisture, nutrients, and sunlight.

Thinning slash - Debris created from work under this contract, including all cut trees and shrubs (tops, trunks, branches).

C-6. Inspections The Contracting Officer, the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and/or the Contracting Officer’s Representative’s Inspector (CORI) shall make periodic inspections. The Contractor or his representative is encouraged to observe the inspection and will receive inspection summaries upon request.

C-6.1 Inspection Plot Size and Sample Procedure Plot size specified for this contract will be 1/20th acre (26.3 foot radius) or 1/10th acre (37.25 foot radius) circular fixed plots. A series of plots distributed over the entire unit sufficient to yield at least a 1-percent sample of each unit shall be taken. Plot centers will be marked with a global positioning system (GPS).

C-6.2 Inspection Quality Evaluation Each plot will be examined to record findings on the items listed below:

1. Number of trees that should have been left.

2. Number of trees that were left.

3. Number of acceptable/satisfactory trees left.

4. Non-stockable areas.

5. Number of trees above maximum DBH cut limit.

6. Number of improper/unsatisfactory leave tree selection.

7. Number of excess trees.

Upon inspection of all plots for a unit, the quality of thinning shall be calculated as follows:

1.0 – [ # of improper leave tree selection + # excess trees] X 100 = %Quality Thinning Satisfactory Trees Left + Nonstockable Areas USDA Forest Service form R2-FS-2400-4 (Thinning Inspection Plot Form) will be utilized for inspections.

C-6.3 Rework and Re-inspection after Rework When inspection results are below 90 percent and excess trees constitute any part of the deficiency, payment will not be made until the excess tree deficiency has been corrected. Inspections after rework will be made in the same manner as the first inspection but on different plot lines. The Contractor shall pay for inspections necessitated by the rework.

The COR or CORI may require the Contractor to rework any area that has not been thinned to specifications (for example, mistletoe infected trees that should have been cut), even though the overall inspection for the unit may exceed 90 percent.

C-6.4 Re-inspection of Thinning Upon Contractor Request If the original inspection results are unacceptable to the Contractor a second inspection will be done. However, the inspection pattern will be shifted. If the inspection procedure shows less than 5 percent variance from the first inspection, the Contractor shall pay the cost of the second inspection, and the result of the first inspection will be used in determining payment rate. Requests for re-inspection must be in writing.

PART III – LIST OF DOCUMENTS, EXHIBITS AND OTHER ATTACHMENTS

SECTION J – LIST OF EXHIBITS/ATTACHMENTS

Exhibit 1 – Vicinity Map Exhibit 2 – Project Area Map Exhibit 3 – Mistletoe Rating Diagram Exhibit 4 – Fire Plan Exhibit 5 – Evaluation Criteria

Exhibit 1 – Vicinity Map

Exhibit 2 – Project Area Map

Exhibit 3 – Hawksworth Dwarf Mistletoe Rating Diagram image1.emf image2.emf image3.png