Appendix-A.pdf

Appendix A

APPENDIX A

WORK ACTIVITY ITEMS

Item 1. Removal of Sawlogs from Public Land

1. Unless otherwise agreed, within all units shown on the Contract Area Map, the contractor shall cut and remove all trees designated with GREEN paint above and below stump height.

2. All material meeting the minimum specifications for sawtimber Utilization

Standards found in Division A of Appendix B shall be removed.

3. Whole tree yarding is specified for trees ≤ 22 inched DBH, unless otherwise agreed. Trees that cannot be felled with feller/buncher safely shall be hand felled and bucked into 2 or more pieces with the butt portion being no longer than 33 feet.

Item 2. Biomass Thin and Stack at Landing.

Included Units

Estimated Quantity (Acres)

31 42.9 Total 42.9

In the units listed in the table above, the Contractor shall fell and skid to the landing all trees between 3” DSH and 9.9” DBH that do not meet the leave tree criteria described below.

Selection of Leave Trees.

Pre-commercial leave trees shall be selected from all available trees between 3” DSH and 9.9” DBH. The selected leave trees shall be generally those of the tallest height, largest crown, and straightest stems, which are free of damage due to insects, disease, physical or mechanical causes. The Contractor shall select leave trees in the following priorities.

a. Hardwood trees, including oaks and sugar pine free of white pine blister rust, shall not be cut or damaged in logging and thinning operations (unless marked with blue or green paint).

b. Select trees free of disease with the best crown class as follows:

(1) Crown class of leave trees must be either a vigorous dominant or co-dominant.

(2) 30 percent or more of the total height of leave trees must be live crown.

(3) Conifer trees that are infected with dwarf mistletoe shall not be left unless the infection sites are within the lower one-half of the crown, the infections are not in the bole or less than 6 inches from the bole in the lower one half of the crown.

(4) Trees with crown damage may be left providing there are no signs of rot and the tree has established a new leader (top) with a minimum of two years growth visible.

(5) Fir trees with any amount of bark missing below 6 feet above the ground shall be cut.

(6) Areas composed entirely of stagnated trees will be thinned to leave the undamaged trees with the fullest crowns.

(7) If no healthy undamaged tree exists at the required spacing interval, leave a tree with minor damage. If no such tree exists, all trees shall be cut.

(8) If possible pre-commercial trees should be left in a mix approximating 80% pine 20% other trees.

c. Select trees based on the following species priority:

(1) Sugar/Western White pine (free of disease)

(2) Ponderosa/Jeffrey pine

(3) Sugar/Western White pine with blister rust

(4) Lodgepole pine

(5) White/Red fir

(6) Incense cedar

d. Select trees that meet the following spacing guidelines.

Spacing Guidelines

a. Space trees at 18’ by 18’ spacing using equilateral triangles, including leave trees above 10 inches DBH with the following exceptions:

(1) Dead trees are not to be included in the spacing guide.

(2) Buffer strips of trees and/or brush will be left next to meadows to provide wildlife screening. Only diseased or mistletoe infected trees will be removed from these buffers. If removing the diseased trees will destroy the screening, then they will be left. Screening areas will be determined before work begins in each unit by a Forest Service Representative. The Forest Service representative will indicate which units need this treatment.

b. Spacing may be varied up to 25 percent to select the most desirable tree. However, spacing control, using original guides, shall be maintained whenever possible. The average spacing shall not be materially increased or decreased and may vary no more than + or – 10 percent of the average spacing identified above.

Felling, Skidding, Stacking and Slash Treatment

The felling, skidding to the landing, stacking at the landing, and slash treatment of pre-commercial trees shall follow the specifications in provisions K-G.4.1#, K-G.4.2# and K- G.7# in Appendix B, except there is no minimum stump height for pre-commercial trees.

Item 3. Road Maintenance.

Road maintenance will follow the specifications found in Appendix C as described in the Road Maintenance T-Specification section for the roads listed in the table below.

Applicable road maintenance specifications required for Pre, During, and Post Haul Maintenance for roads used in this project can be found in the table found on page 22 of the Road Maintenance Plan in Appendix C. The table on page 22 displays the type of road maintenance required for each road.

Number Name

Quantity

Unit of Measure

09S002 Bow Tie 0.46 Miles 09S009 Rock Creek Road 6.08 Miles 09S009 Rock Creek Road 1.96 Miles 09S009 Rock Creek Road 4.86 Miles 09S009B Burn 1.2 Miles 09S009C Upper Burn 0.6 Miles 09S009H All Rock 0.8 Miles 09S009N Dome 0.32 Miles 09S009NA Dome A Spur 0.14 Miles 09S009T5.93 Rock Creek T5 0.18 Miles 09S010 Foster Ridge 4.5 Miles 09S062 Dinkey Lakes 1.52 Miles 09S062A Lire 0.25 Miles 09S069 South Fork

Tamarack 1.87 Miles

09S090 Cutts 0.7 Miles 09S090A Cutts A Spur 0.5 Miles 09S090B Cutts B Spur 0.11 Miles 09S401 Big Saddle 0.32 Miles 09S401A Willow 0.44 Miles 09S402 Salmo 1.3 Miles 10S013M Big Fir M Spur 0.86 Miles 10S013MA Big Fir MA 0.31 Miles

10S013MT1.0

Big Fir M T1 0.04 Miles

10S031 Exchequer Mdw 0.9 Miles

10S031CT0.0

Exchequer Mdw T1 0.04 Miles

10S031D Exchequer Mdw D Spur 0.2 Miles

10S036 Arkansas 3.22 Miles 10S036A Asper 0.3 Miles 10S036B Chequer 0.66 Miles 10S036D Reese 1.1 Miles 10S036DA Reese A Spur 0.2 Miles 10S036DB Reese B Spur 0.2 Miles 10S036DC Reese C Spur 0.2 Miles 10S036DE Reese E Spur 0.4 Miles 10S036J Arkansas J Spur 0.2 Miles 10S036T0.11 Arkansas T3 0.1 Miles 10S036T2.98 Arkansas T9 0.07 Miles 10S036T3.17 Arkansas T10 0.09 Miles 10S036ZA Camp Fresno ZA

Spur 0.13 Miles

10S036ZB Camp Fresno ZB Spur 0.06 Miles

10S036ZBB Camp Fresno ZBB Spur 0.05 Miles

10S036ZC Camp Fresno ZC Spur 0.11 Miles

10S036ZCA Camp Fresno ZCA Spur 0.08 Miles

10S406 American 0.6 Miles 10S406T0.36 American T1 0.19 Miles 10S453 Dinkey Fisher 0.41 Miles 11S040 McKinley Grove Rd 0.98 Miles

SUM 39.81

Item 4. Road Reconstruction.

Road Reconstruction work will follow the plans and specifications found in Appendix D - Specifications for Construction of Roads and Bridges for the roads listed in the table below. Work must follow the designed road plans as displayed. Deviation from plans shall only be allowed with agreement from Forest Service Road Inspector.

Number Name

Quantity Unit of Measure

09S009 Rock Creek Road 12.65 Miles 09S009C Upper Burn 0.75 Miles 09S010 Foster Ridge 4.33 Miles 09S062 Dinkey Lakes 1.58 Miles

09S090 Cutts 0.37 Miles 09S090A Cutts A Spur 0.44 Miles 10S013M Big Fir M Spur 0.88 Miles 10S013MA Big Fir MA 0.21 Miles 10S406 American 0.24 Miles

SUM 21.45

Optional Item 5. Biomass Thin and Stack at Landing.

Included Units

Estimated Quantity (Acres)

4 11.5 14 15.4 16 42.0 17 8.5 18 24.9 20 28.1

20A 7.4 21 33.2 22 10.0 23 8.4 24 3.8 25 106.4 26 23.3 27 20.5 29 18.1 30 43.4 33 101.2 39 7.7 42 48.9 57 12.0 58 9.6 70 21.6 71 6.0 72 73.3 79 41.1

100 29.6 101 11.4 103 24.6 129 46.7

Total 838.6

In the units listed in the table above, the Contractor shall fell, skid to the landing, and stack at the landing trees less than 10 inches DBH, and perform the associated slash treatment according to the specifications described in Item 4.

Optional Item 6. Biomass Thin and Stack at Landing.

Included Units

Estimated Quantity (Acres)

3 50.5 7 11.5 8 48.7

11 45.9 12 20.2 13 10.2 28 30.4 55 10.9 76 22.4 77 109.2 78 24.7 81 3.8 82 8.9 83 32.4 84 13.6 85 39.1

86A 9.5 98 25.0

Total 516.9

In the units listed in the table above, the Contractor shall fell, skid to the landing, and stack at the landing trees less than 10 inches DBH, and perform the associated slash treatment according to the specifications described in Item 4.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

DETAILED REQUIREMENTS

The successful offeror's technical proposal will be incorporated as part of the resultant contract. It shall describe how the work shall be accomplished to comply with the Work Standards and Resource Protection Standards.

A proposed treatment plan and schedule shall be prepared by the Contractor and be reviewed and approved by the Contracting Officer before starting work. The proposed treatment plan should describe, in adequate detail, how the Contractor intends to complete the work and meet the specifications in this contract. The proposal should include (at the minimum) equipment, manpower, schedule, proposed haul routes and resource protection plans.

GENERAL WORK STANDARDS (All Items)

A. Accessibility: All items are accessible by county or Forest Service roads. It shall be the responsibility of the Contractor to determine the most suitable route to the project area. The Government will not provide special maintenance or snow plowing to open roads or keep roads open.

B. Permits: The Contractor shall be responsible for obtaining all permits necessary for the transportation of equipment on Federal, state, county, and private roads.

C. Boundaries: Flagging and/or orange paint along the perimeter designates project boundaries. All work to be performed will occur within the units, the actual areas needing treatment will vary. A map is attached, showing the location of the unit boundaries. Positions of the features shown on the maps are approximate.

D. Examination of Project Work Area: The bidder is strongly encouraged to inspect the project work area. The Government has provided estimates of treatment area acreages. It will be assumed that the bidder has satisfied her/himself as to the nature of the work to be performed and the character of all conditions to be encountered. The attached maps are intended to show only the general size and location of the project units.

E. Restrictions on Work. The Contracting Officer may specify the priority of work by item or sub-item (unit) within an item, without additional cost. Work may be performed at any time during the period of the contract. Restrictions are as follows:

1. In accordance with the fire plan.

2. When the Contracting Officer has determined that adverse weather will impact access, haul, or skidding and forwarding or that continued vehicular travel would cause unacceptable road, landing, or forwarder trail damage. Forest roads, landings, or skidder and forwarder trails shall not be used for access, haul, or skidding and forwarding if such use will result in the travel way being rutted to a depth of greater than or equal to two inches over more than 10% of the length of the road or landing (measured on a mile by mile basis). If damage to roads, landings, or skidder and forwarder trails occurs, it shall be mitigated.

3. Within the general work area, the Contracting Officer may exclude from payment non-work areas such as: rocky areas, wildlife areas, wet areas, streamside buffers, and other special areas. The acres actually treated within the unit boundaries will be measured after work is complete to determine acres for payment. Payment will not be made for non-work areas greater than one half acre in size.

4. Location of areas needing special measures for protection of cultural sites, plants or animals and areas requiring avoidance from noxious weed infested sites are shown on individual unit maps, described in contract provisions and/or identified on the ground. Pacific Fisher retention sites are designated on the ground with red and white striped and lime green flagging. Cultural resources are designated on the Contract Area Map as CA-1 and designated on the ground with blue and black striped and white flagging.

5. Limited Operating Periods (LOP) apply to units in this project for California Spotted Owls, Great Gray Owls, Northern Goshawks, Pacific Fisher, Pine Martin, Sierra Nevada Yellow-legged Frogs, Yosemite Toads, Deer, Bark Beetles, and the Dinkey Fisherman Picnic Site. All LOP’s apply to felling and skidding, but do not apply to hauling operations. The LOP for Yosemite Toad also applies to road maintenance and reconstruction, but the other LOPs do not apply to road maintenance or reconstruction. Surveys will be conducted for the presence of nesting owls and goshawks. If surveys confirm no nesting individuals, the limited operating period shall be lifted for the current field season. The Yosemite Toad LOP may be shortened or lengthened depending on the timing of breeding and migration. Areas where LOPs are in effect are displayed on the Contract Area Map, except for the Bark Beetle LOP, which applies to the entire contract area. Limited Operating Periods are as follows:

California Spotted Owl: March 1 – August 15 Great Gray Owl: March 1 – August 15 Northern Goshawk: February 15 – September 15 Pacific Fisher: March 1 – June 30 Pine Marten: May 1 – July 31 SN Yellow-legged Frog: October 15 – June 15 Yosemite Toad: October 1 – July 31 Deer above 5000 feet: May 15 – June 15 and October 1 – November 30 Bark Beetles: December 1 – June 30 Dinkey Fisherman PS: Memorial Day – Labor Day

6. If protection measures prove inadequate, if other such areas are discovered, or if new species are listed or found during the term of the contract, the Forest Service may either cancel or unilaterally modify this contract to provide additional protection regardless of when such facts become known. Discovery of such areas or species by either party shall be promptly reported to the other party.

F. Non-Work and Resource Protection.

1. Non-work areas will be identified by any of the following: 1) maps or 2) flagged with specified color. These are areas of noxious weeds, streamside protection zones, meadows, and cultural resource sites.

2. Equipment shall not operate on areas steeper than 35%.

3. Leave trees and seedlings shall be avoided. The Contractor shall work in such a manner that will not damage (surface or sub-surface) the bark, bole, or roots of these live trees. When avoidable damage occurs, the Contractor shall be liable for actual damages.

4. Leave all snags over 16 inches in diameter and over 20 feet in height. These snags shall not be pushed over, damaged, disturbed. Piles and stacks shall be placed at least 30 feet from the snag, if possible. Snags that are a safety hazard to operations may be felled.

5. Equipment operations will be restricted to periods when surface soils in the operating area are drier than the "plastic limit", to a depth of 30 cm (12 inches).

A test to determine the plastic limit can be measured by rolling soil with your hand on a flat surface that produces a wire of soil 1/8 inch in diameter.

Equipment shall be operated only when soil moisture conditions prevents unacceptable compaction or soil displacement. Typically, soil moisture conditions are a concern from November to April.

6. Tracked equipment shall not be walked between units on paved or chip-sealed roads. The walking of equipment between units shall be at the direction of the Contracting Officer, to avoid the possibility of Control Area or resource damage.

Heavy equipment may not work or leave the boundaries of the work areas without written permission from the Contracting Officer.

7. Exit and entry of units shall be confined to within unit boundaries unless otherwise stated by the Contracting Officer. Entry and exit points to the unit shall be chosen to reduce resource damage and soil erosion.

8. Control of Dust near Sensitive Areas. The Contracting Officer may require the Contractor to cease operations when the wind speed is such that dust from operations will blow into sensitive areas. Sensitive areas are those occupied by the public including developed campgrounds and residences. Periods of shut down will not count against the Contractor's time.

9. The Contractor shall remove all trash from the work site.

10. The Contractor shall be responsible for determining the location of buried utilities and preventing damage to them. Contractor will be provided map showing utilities as necessary or as available.

11. Areas with an excessive amount of rock or rock outcrop areas on the soil shall be avoided. These areas will be designated by the Contracting Officer.

12. See the Dust Abatement Plan in Appendix C for water drafting specifications.

13. Off-road equipment shall be power-washed before being brought into the Contract Area to reduce the risk of spreading weed propagules or seeds in the Contract Area.

14. Refueling of chainsaws may not occur in stream course buffer strips listed on the Contract Area Map. For meadows or stream courses with a buffer strip width of 100 feet, refueling of chainsaws may occur between 100 feet and 300 feet of the meadow or stream only if an absorbent spill pad is used. For stream courses with a buffer strip width of 75 feet, refueling of chainsaws may occur between 75 feet and 150 feet of the stream only if an absorbent spill pad is used. For stream courses with a buffer strip width of 25 feet, refueling of chainsaws may occur between 25 feet and 150 feet of the stream only if an absorbent spill pad is used.

15. Fuels and other toxic materials shall not be stored within 300 feet of meadows, within 300 feet of streams that have a 100 foot buffer strip, within 150 feet of other streams, or within the area displayed on the Contract Area Map as the Cow Creek CAR.

16. Heavy machinery may not be stored within 300 feet from a meadow or stream course listed on the Contract Area Map with a buffer strip width of 100 feet, or within 150 feet of other streams, for any meadows or streams in occupied habitat of SN Yellow-legged Frog, Yosemite Toad, or Lahontan Cutthroat Trout, as displayed on the Contract Area Map.

17. End-lining shall not occur in meadows. End-lining shall not occur within 100 feet of Yosemite Toad Breeding Meadows or meadows located in SN Yellow-legged Frog occupied habitat, as displayed on the Contract Area Map. End-lining may occur up to 50 feet outside of the boundary of meadows not located in Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, or Lahontan Cutthroat Trout occupied habitat. End-lining shall not occur in or across riparian vegetation of streams with a 75 foot or 100 foot buffer strip. End-lining may occur up to 50 feet from streams not located in Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, or Lahontan Cutthroat Trout occupied habitat.

18. Hazard trees within 100 feet of meadows in occupied habitat of Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, and Lahontan Cutthroat Trout, shall not be removed unless they can be felled directly onto a road, or the portion of the tree up to 50 feet from the meadow boundary can be bucked and lifted out without any soil disturbance. Hazard trees within 25 feet of meadows not in occupied habitat of Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, and Lahontan Cutthroat Trout, shall not be removed unless they can be felled directly onto a road, or the portion of the tree up to 25 feet from the meadow boundary can be bucked and lifted out without any soil disturbance. Hazard trees within the buffer strips of streams located in occupied habitat of Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, and Lahontan Cutthroat Trout, shall not be removed unless they can be felled directly onto a road. Hazard trees more than 25 feet from a stream bank not located in occupied habitat of Yosemite Toad, SN Yellow-legged Frog, and Lahontan Cutthroat Trout, may be end-lined. Within 50 feet of a stream, soil disturbance shall be rehabilitated to reduce channelization of overland waters and to minimize sediment entering into streams.

19. Within the area designated on the Contract Area Map as Yosemite Toad Occupied Habitat, landings shall not be located within 300 feet of meadows or streams with a buffer strip of 100 feet, and not within 150 feet of other streams.

Landings, vehicle storage areas, and turn-around locations shall not be located in open and dry lupine areas. All operations shall cease for 24 hours after rainfall of more than 0.1 inch, to allow for dispersal across terrestrial habitats.

Mechanical operations shall cease before sunset and not continue until after sunrise, except for log truck loading and dust abatement. To minimize conflict with adult Yosemite Toad in the area, dust abatement along FS Road 09S010 between the West Fork of Cow Creek and Foster Ridge, and the first mile of FS Road 09S402 shall be timed to occur as late in the morning as possible.

20. Equipment may operate within the 100 foot buffer of meadows designated on the Contract Area Map as Restoration Meadows, subject to the following restrictions:

a. Equipment may operate within the buffer only on slopes less than 15 percent.

b. Buffers of streams that overlap the meadow buffers still apply as no equipment zones, but the 100 foot stream buffers are reduced to 50 feet and buffers of other streams are 25 feet.

c. Equipment entries into the meadow buffer are limited to no more than one entry every 40 feet along the perimeter.

d. Equipment may not make turns in the meadow buffer. Any turning gouges shall be rehabilitated to natural contour and 100 percent ground cover.

e. Side-hilling in the meadow buffer is limited to a maximum of 20 percent of the perimeter. Disturbance from side-hilling in the meadow buffer that is greater than or equal to 10 feet long and six inches deep in soil (as opposed to litter or duff) shall be immediately rehabilitated by hand to replace soil and provide a minimum of 50 percent ground cover.

INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

GOVERNMENT QUALITY ASSURANCE PLAN

Inspection (General): Government inspections are for the purpose of satisfying the Government that the services are acceptable and do not relieve the Contractor of the responsibility for maintaining quality control. The Contractor shall conduct inspections on all units in accordance with the Contractor’s Quality Control Plan included in the Contractor’s technical proposal which is made part of this contract.

Inspection (Specific):

Item 1. Removal of Sawlogs from Public Land

Measurable Performance Standards

• Cut and removal of designated cut trees from Contract Area

• Height of stumps after cutting designated trees

• Condition of leave trees

• Material meeting utilization standards are removed from Contract Area

• Treatment of slash as specified

Item 2. Road Maintenance

Measurable Performance Standards

• Condition of road surfaces

• Abatement of dust during hauling

• Condition of drainage structures

• Condition of roadside vegetation

Item 3. Road Reconstruction

Measurable Performance Standards

• Condition of road surfaces

• Abatement of dust during hauling

• Condition of drainage structures

• Condition of roadside vegetation

Item 4: Biomass Thin and Stack at Landing

Measurable Performance Standards

• Selection and condition of leave trees

• Spacing of leave trees

• Amount of material left uncut that meets the cutting specifications

• Removal of cut trees to landings as specified

• Treatment of slash as specified

• Height of stumps after cutting

Optional Item 5 and 6: Biomass Thin and Stack at Landing

Measurable Performance Standards

• Selection and condition of leave trees

• Spacing of leave trees

• Amount of material left uncut that meets the cutting specifications

• Removal of cut trees to landings as specified

• Treatment of slash as specified

• Height of stumps after cutting

Government Inspections: The Contracting Officer or Contracting Officer’s duly authorized representative will conduct all inspections. The Contractor (or designated representative) is encouraged to be present to observe inspections. Inspections will be a walk-through visual examination of the Unit. When work appears satisfactory, it will be accepted. When work appears unsatisfactory, the Contractor will be responsible for rework to correct the deficiencies. The Government may suspend operations if it is apparent the Contractor is not meeting specifications. It is recommended that the Contractor perform their own quality control inspections and keep records. The Government has the right to inspect and test all services called for by the contract, to the extent practicable at all times and places during the term of the contract. The Government shall perform inspections and tests in a manner that will not unduly delay the work.

Measurement for Stewardship Credit. Acreage shown in this contract is estimated.

Acreage was measured on a horizontal plane using a Global Positioning System for all units. Acreage was not taken out for streamcourse buffer strips or other non-workable areas. The Forest Service plans on measuring completed work with a Global Positioning System. GPS does not compensate for slope distances when determining acreage. Unless otherwise indicated by this contract, the Contractor may request re-measurement of any quantities. The request must be made in writing and must be made within 10 calendar days of completing work on the unit in question. If re-measurement indicates a variance of five percent or less from the stated quantity, the Forest Service may deduct Stewardship Credits to the Contractor equal to the cost of this re-measurement. If re-measurement indicates a variance of more than five percent from the stated quantity, Stewardship Credits will be based on the re-measured quantity, and the Contractor will not be liable for the costs of re-measurement. All re-measurements will be done by the Forest Service. The Forest Service may re-measure quantities of completed stewardship work activities at its discretion. Forest Service will bear all costs for discretionary re-measurement. Re-measured quantities will be the basis for awarding Stewardship Credits. Re-measurement of acreage will be done using a Global Positioning System.

Inspection by plot: To determine if the correct number of leave trees are present, the Government may elect to use plots to inspect work. Plot size used will be 1/40 acre (18.6 plot radius). Plots shall assess the measurable performance standards for the item inspected.

UNIT ACCEPTANCE

The Contractor shall submit a unit to the Contracting Officer for acceptance only when the Contractor's inspections for quality control assure the work specifications have been met. The Government may perform formal inspections to determine acceptance of the work units. The Contractor shall give the Contracting Officer and/or COR at least 48 hours advance notice prior to completion of the unit for scheduling of final inspection.

The Government will accept a unit when all work has been completed and formal and informal inspections show that all work specifications have been met.

DEFINITIONS

Additional Timber - Any sawtimber size tree that is designated and agreed to by the Contracting Officer after contract award.

Best Management Practice (BMP) - An alternative structural or nonstructural practice approved by the California Regional Water Quality Board for the effective manual erosion control and management of surface runoff. BMP's are described in Chapter 30 of the Forest Service Manual (the BMP Handbook).

Biomass - Any portion of any tree, designated for cutting, which does not meet the utilization standards for Sawtimber set forth in the contract, but has minimum large end diameter of 5 inches and 6 feet minimum length. The anticipated product of this material is wood chip for fuel or mulch. This material includes non-sawtimber quality products.

Blister Rust – A disease occurring in Sugar Pine. Indicators are flagging or mortality of branches, swelling of branches or trunk, cracked bark exuding pitch and sometimes showing of yellow powdery spores

Bole - Stem portion of a tree.

Conifer - A cone-bearing tree with needles or leaf scales (e.g. pine, fir, cedar).

Comparison Tree - A tree considered but not selected as a leave tree.

Crop Tree - A healthy looking, well formed, undamaged tree that will remain in the stand.

Crown Class-Crown class is the description of the relative position of the tree crown with respect to competing vegetation surrounding trees.

(1) Dominant- Tree crown receive full light from above and partly from the sides, Crowns extend above the general level of the crown cover of others of the stratum by 30% or greater.

(2) Co Dominant- Tree crowns receive full light from above but comparatively little form the sides. Crowns form a general level of crown stratum.

(3) Intermediate- tree crowns occupy a definitely subordinate position and are subject to strong lateral competition for crowns of dominants and co dominants.

(4) Suppressed- Tree crowns receive no direct light from above or from the side and are entirely below the general level of dominant and co dominants.

Cull Logs – Logs from included timber that do not meet merchantability standards as described in Appendix B.

Cut Tree - A tree that is designated by the Forest Service for felling.

Damaged Trees - Any tree with one or more of the following injuries:

1. Any true fir that has any bark cut or removed to the cambium from more than 10% of the circumference of the bole.

2. Any other tree species that has bark cut or removed to the cambium from more than 30% of the circumference of the bole.

3. Any tree that has a broken or dead top above a live crown and showing declining vigor (chlorosis or flagging of individual branches).

4. Any tree that has had 25% or more of the live limbs or branches broken or removed by any operation.

5. Defects, which include sweeps in the bole or crooked boles.

DBH - Diameter at breast height; the diameter of a tree measured at a point 4.5 feet above the ground on the uphill side of the tree.

Down Logs – Existing logs found in unit prior to treatment activities.

DSH - Diameter at stump height; the diameter measured at a point six inches above the ground on the uphill side of the tree or stump.

Excess Tree/Snag - A tree or snag that is left but should have been cut to meet spacing standards.

Fuel ladders - An arrangement and volume of vegetation (brush and/or trees) that grows beneath the drip line or whose bole/stem lies within 8 feet from the drip line of a residual overstory tree. This vegetation increases the threat of ignition and spread of fire into the canopy of trees it grows under.

Ground Cover or Duff Layer - Living or dead vegetation. Usually consists of a composition of cast needles, fine sticks or twigs, live plants, and slash under 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter large end.

Hang-up Tree - A cut tree suspended above the ground by a leave tree or brush.

Hardwood - A tree with broad leaves rather than clusters of needles (i.e. oak, willow, etc.).

Leave Tree - Conifers planned to become part of the forest canopy in the long term. A leave tree is determined by both spacing and vigor of existing conifers. Any tree marked with orange, or black paint shall not be cut. Trees marked with a combination of paint colors that include orange and double band blue, orange and double band green or green or blue with black paint shall not be cut.

Limbed - Cutting of exposed limbs from products prior to skidding/forwarding from woods.

Lop and Scatter - Slash shall be scattered to reduce concentrations not to exceed the specified depth. Slash shall be scattered into openings away from trees.

Mineral Soil - State of soil, generally below where humus and large organic matter is not present. The absence of combustible material.

Noxious Weeds – Those plant species designated as noxious weeds by the Secretary of Agriculture or by the responsible State official. The primary species of concern for the project area is: bull thistle. Any plant species designated as noxious by the California Department of Agriculture would be of concern if found in the project area. This list can be viewed at www.cdfa.ca.gov/weedhome.

Opening – An area where there are no leave trees or snags within 30 feet of each other.

Plastic Limit – A measurement of soil moisture.

Pre-commercial tree - A tree between 3”DSH and 9.9” DBH.

Pre-commercial leave tree - A tree between 3”DSH and 10” DBH which will not be cut under contract specefications.

Sawtimber - Any log length, of any tree painted for cutting, which meets the minimum specification for pieces required for removal as specified in Division AT of Appendix B – Timber Removal Specifications. The anticipated product of the Sawtimber material is lumber.

Sample Mark – Area marked to display specifications of contract as reference

Slash - Vegetative debris generated by Contractor's Operations. In addition, material in chip or shredded form will be considered slash.

Snag - Any standing conifer tree without green leaves.

Species Mix – The proportion of a species to be selected as crop trees (leave trees).

Contractor shall leave 70 to 80 percent ponderosa pine and 20 to 30 percent other species. For each 10 trees select as crop trees (leave trees) the best 7 to 8 ponderosa pine will be selected and 2 to 3 other species should be selected based on other leave tree selection criteria.

Thinning - The cutting of trees in excess of those to be left for future stand needs.

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/weedhome

Utilization - The removal of all felled and yarded material from National Forest land.

Forms of utilization include chips, logs, fuelwood, posts, etc.

Vegetation – A woody plant, live or dead, with no main stem, which does not usually grow higher than 8 feet. For example: ceanothus, manzanita, and choke cherry.

Whole Tree Removal - Felling designated thinning material using a self-propelled mechanical harvester (feller/buncher) capable of operation on slopes up 35 percent, with an articulating boom having an operating radius of at least 20 feet for cutting trees, capable of lowering and placing trees up to 22.0 inches DBH, on the ground. Trees exceeding the processor's capability may be felled by conventional chainsaw methods.