SOW_170_Acres_Fry_Creek.pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

C.1 Scope of Contract

The purpose of this project is to procure services for fuels reduction/modification on approximately 171 acres through hand cutting and piling in order to decrease fuel loading and increase the resilience of the forest to high intensity fire. Hand cutting will involve all live and dead vegetation within a specified size range occurring inside the project boundaries. Piling will be accomplished using a machine/tractor on slopes less than 30% and by hand elsewhere. Specific work requirements are described below in the requirements section. The Contractor shall furnish all labor, equipment, supervision, transportation (including but not limited to mobilization), operating supplies, and incidentals needed to complete the project as described below.

Exclusions (non-work areas): within the unit boundaries, the Government may exclude work in such areas as: archaeological sites, sensitive plant sites, wildlife areas, wet areas, and other special areas. These areas will be flagged, color will vary.

All removal efforts will be recorded with a GPS and field notes by a designated inspector. Payment will only be authorized for actual acres completed. Work is to be completed between August 15, 2016 and January 1, 2017.

C.2 Location and Description

Location – The project is located within the boundaries of the Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District in Southern California (Figure 1). The project is near the community of Palomar Mtn. and can be accessed via South Grade road (S6) or East Grade road (S7) that both connect to Highway 76. Once on Palomar Mtn. access is on Canfield Rd (S6) just past the Observatory and Fry Creek Campgrounds. The legal description is Township 9 South, Range 1 East, Section 33, San Bernardino Base Meridian, San Diego County, California. Additional maps can be purchased at the Ramona District Office (M-F) 8:00-4:30 located at 1634 Black Canyon Rd. Ramona, CA 92065.

Description – The project is on a northern aspect and ranges in elevation from 5110 to 5600 feet above sea level. Slopes range from 0 to 50% steepness with an average slope of 18%. Vegetation within the unit is best described as mixed conifer, with an overstory of mature incense cedar, white fir, and Coulter pine and mixed oak and an understory white fir regeneration. The understory also contains large amounts of dead and down woody debris in large size classes (>16 inches in diameter) and pockets of dense shrubs, ranging in height from 2 to 10 feet. IN the conifer vegetative type retain where available 9 logs per acre. Retain 4 of the largest snags per acre where they exist, or 20 square feet per acre of basal are of snags greater the 15” dbh and 20 feet tall. The project boundaries will be flagged or have actual hand line prior to the start of work.

Figure 1. General vicinity of project area on the Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District.

Figure 2. Location of the Palomar Mountain Healthy Lands Project, Compartment 11, 12 and 13, Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District. Topographic map above.

Aerial photo on top and topographic map below.

Figure 3. Location of the Palomar Mountain Healthy Lands Project, Compartment 11, 12 and 13, Cleveland National Forest, Palomar Ranger District. Aerial photo above.

C.3 Definitions

Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) - The maximum allowable deviation from the Quality Standard established by the Government for work to be performed in this contract before the Government would invoke payment deductions. The AQL does not allow the Contractor to knowingly offer or perform defective services below the Quality Standard, but limits reduced payments to circumstances in which defective performance results in a measurable reduction in the value of services received by the Government.

Diameter at Breast Height (dbh) - The diameter of the main trunk of a tree/shrub measured at 4.5 ft above ground level.

Quality Standard - The established standard against which all of the Contractor’s performance shall be measured.

Slash - The cut or unused portion of vegetation that is no longer attached to the ground.

Sporax® - The brand name for a fungicide containing the chemical borax used to prevent the inoculation of freshly cut stumps by root disease (Heterobasidion spp.).

C.4 Contract Time

In order to minimize the risk posed by the Ips bark beetle infesting the pine slash the project must be completed between August 15, 2016 and January 1, 2017. Contract time includes delays for weather, project activity level restrictions, locating and transporting supplies and materials, and final cleanup. A pre-bid site visit will be scheduled for July 11, 2016 at 9:00 am at the Mother’s Kitchen Restaurant parking lot on Palomar Mtn.

(33120 Canfield Rd., Palomar Mountain, CA 92060).

C.5 Restrictions on Work

Work may be performed at any time during the period of the contract, except as outlined here. Nothing in this part shall be construed to take away any of the Government’s rights under the Suspension of Work Clause (52.242-14). Restrictions are as follows:

C.5.1 All work will be conducted in accordance with the fire plan. See attached

FIRE PLAN FOR CONSTRUCTION AND SERVICE CONTRACTS.

C.5.2 In accordance with the Area 680 PAL (Project Activity Level) each day. PAL is available by 4:30 pm the prior day through CNF Dispatch (619) 557-5262. All work will occur only when PAL permits.

C.5.3 When the Contracting Officer (or designated representative) determines that adverse weather will make continued vehicular travel cause unacceptable road damage and harm to natural resources.

C.5.4 All project related work shall cease immediately if any heritage resources are discovered and notification to COR shall be initiated.

C.6 Requirements

Hand cutting is required, no mechanical cutting is authorized. The general project requirements for tree/brush cutting, piling, and other special requirements are described below.

C.6.1 General cutting.

C.6.1.1 - Cut all live and dead standing trees/shrubs that are over 6 inches in height and less than 6 inches in dbh. This includes all species with a woody base, even those that are short in stature.

C.6.1.2 - All stumps must be less than 4 inches in height.

C.6.1.3 - Limb up, to a height of 4 or 5 feet, all leave trees.

C.6.1.4 - Sporax® or an identical chemical will be applied to all freshly cut stumps originating from trees with dbh’s greater than 2 inches, no more than 3 days after cutting, preferably immediately following cutting. The chemical will be applied according to the manufacture’s recommendations, which are usually more than 1 pound for every 50 square feet of surface area.

C.6.1.5 - Buck and pile all down logs less than 24 inches in diameter.

C.6.1.6 – Limb all trees freshly cut lying on the ground up to a 6” top and pile as described below.

C.6.2 Areas within 25 feet of the project boundary.

C.6.2.1 - Cutting requirements are the same as above except for the following.

Cut and pile all snags and down logs regardless of size.

C.6.3 Piling.

C.6.3.1 - On slopes < 30%. Machine/tractor pile all slash and dead and down material into piles that are between 15 to 30 feet in diameter and between 6 to 15 feet tall. Minor exceptions will be made so as to prevent the possibility of piles being either too close together or too close to adjacent leave trees such that damage might occur during burning. All piled material should be cut sufficiently (generally 3 to 4 feet in length) to produce a tight pile with minimal airspace. No piles are to be constructed beneath the drip line of leave trees and tree clumps (i.e. place piles in openings within the canopy). Piles are located away from residual snags and down logs to avoid ignition during burning operations. Piles do not obstruct roads, trails, or other travel and access. Piles will be built in a vertical-conical arrangement, NOT in a flat/stacked manner.

C.6.3.2 - On slopes > 30%. Hand piles will be constructed and should be between 10 to 30 feet in diameter and between 6 to 15 feet tall. All piled material should be cut sufficiently (generally 3 to 4 feet in length) to produce a tight pile with minimal airspace. No piles are constructed beneath the drip line of trees and tree clumps to a distance of 5 feet from the drip line. Piles are located away from residual snags and down logs to avoid ignition during burning operations. Piles do not obstruct roads, trails, or other travel and access. Piles will be built in a vertical-conical arrangement, NOT in a flat/stacked manner.

C.6.3.3 - All piles shall be located more than 25 feet from the project boundary.

C.6.3.4 - All piles should be covered on the top with a minimum of a 4 by 4 foot piece of Kraft paper and covered with enough slash so as the paper does not fly away for every 10 feet in diameter. The purpose of this is to maintain a dry area in the pile to ease ignition operations in the future.

C.6.4 Special requirements.

C.6.4.1 - No machine/tractor piling will occur within 98.5 feet (30 meters) of the high water mark on the seasonally flowing channel located on the far north eastern boundary.

C.7 Performance Requirements Summary / Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan

The following part of the contract specifies the (1) quality standards and the acceptable quality level for each of the tasks/requirements, the (2) means of measuring the level of quality, and any (3) penalties or incentives associated with the level of quality.

C.7.1 Quality standards and acceptable quality levels for tasks and requirements.

C.7.1.1 – Tree /shrub cutting. More than 95% of all trees/shrubs that are designated for cutting shall be cut following the requirements previously specified. This shall be counted on an individual stem basis, that is, each individual stem originating from the ground shall count as a single stem. Thus, more than 95% of all stems meeting the requirements for cutting shall be cut.

C.7.1.2 - Stump heights. More than 95% of all stumps should be less than 4 inches in height.

C.7.1.3 - Piles. More than 99% of all piles should be covered with Kraft paper.

Additionally, more than 95% of all piles shall meet the size specifications previously mentioned.

C.7.2 Means of quality measurement.

C.7.2.1 – Tree/shrub cutting and stump height. The Contractor shall install 5 (1% sample) randomly placed 1/20th acre (26.3 foot radius) plots throughout the project area to verify project requirements. Each plot center will be marked with flagging. At each plot the Contractor will record, at a minimum, GPS location (latitude and longitude), number of stems that should be cut (as described in the requirements section), the number of stems actually cut, and the stump height (in inches). From this, for each plot, the contractor will compute a percentage of stems cut (number actually cut / number that should be cut) x 100 and the average height of all cut stumps. The Contractor shall show in writing the percentage of stems actually cut and the average stump height both for each individual plot and an average for each Unit.

C.7.3 Inspection.

C.7.3.1 - The Contractor shall inspect their work on an ongoing basis and make available to the Government the results of the inspections. The intended purpose of the Contractor doing self-inspection is quality control of the work being performed, thereby allowing the Contractor to identify and correct any quality deficiencies in their work while the work is in progress. The inspection quality will be calculated on a daily basis and an inspection summary shall be given to the COR at least weekly. The Contractor shall mark on the ground with flagging their inspection plots. The Contractor shall request an inspection of their work by the Government prior to submitting invoices for payment. A summary of the Contractor’s self-inspection, in writing, shall accompany any request for Government inspection.

C.7.3.2 - The Government shall conduct inspections of the Contractor’s work to determine compliance with the contract specifications and determine a basis for making payment. Initial inspections will consist of visual inspection of the work performed and will be based on the AQL for the tasks and requirements. The Government may also install a series of inspection plots to check for compliance with the AQL.

C.7.3.3 - Work will be accepted when it is determined by the visual inspection or plot data that the Contractor’s work conforms to the AQL for the tasks and requirements. Missed areas within the work unit will not be considered a part of the work being inspected and must be re-worked regardless of the results of the inspection of the work completed within the unit. Work units that do not comply with the AQL for the tasks and requirements are unacceptable and shall be reworked. The unacceptable Units will be re-inspected one final time, if the rework fails to comply with the AQL after the second inspection any further inspections will be deemed an excessive amount of inspection by the Government and deductions will be applied following the guidelines stated below, regardless of whether the Contractor chooses to rework the area again.

C.7.4 Penalties and incentives.

C.7.4.1 - Penalties for unacceptable work by the contractor. (1) Where possible, the Contractor shall rework at no cost to the Government, all work which does not meet the minimum AQL. (2) Contractor shall bear the cost of extra inspections by the Government if the Government has to perform extra monitoring of the Contractor’s work (re-inspections of areas reworked). (3) The Government may accept the Contractor’s work, but at a reduced payment rate.

(4) The Government may secure the services of another contractor to complete work or to bring the Contractor’s work up to the AQL prior to final payment, with the Contractor paying for the rework by the second contractor.

C.7.4.2 - Incentives for acceptable work by the Contractor. The Contractor shall receive a good performance rating and receive recommendations for award of similar work in the future.

C.7.5 Payments/deductions.

C.7.5.1 - Payments will be made at the full contract unit price for work listed in the Schedule of Supplies/Services where the Contractor’s work complies with the AQL for the tasks and requirements.

C.7.5.2 - Deductions will be made for work by the Contractor which does not meet the AQL for the tasks and requirements. If the Contractor does not perform rework to bring their work up the AQL, at a minimum, the Government will do one of the following: (1) Determine what it would cost to secure services to bring the Contractor’s work up to the described “Acceptable Quality Level for each task and requirement”, and the cost of performing this work will be deducted from the contract price; (2) Determine the value of the work performed and make a reduced payment based on the value of the sub-standard work; (3) Make deductions from the contract price for unacceptable resource damage; and (4) If the Government inspectors find it necessary to spend more than a reasonable/normal amount of time inspecting the Contractor’s work, the Contractor shall pay for the Government’s increased inspection time. This re-inspection deduction will be calculated based on each employee’s (that is involved in the re-inspection) daily rate times the number of days (hours) spent re-inspecting each Unit.