Attach 1 - PWS.pdf

US Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Performance Work Statement

Contents Project Title

General Information

1.0 Background and Purpose ......................................................................................................................................... 32.0 Definitions

Contractor Requirements

3.0 Technical Requirements / Tasks

4.0 Deliverable / Schedule

5.0 Government Furnished

6.0 Travel

7.0 Contractor’s Key Personnel

8.0 Security Requirements

9.0 Data Rights

10.0 Section 508 - Electronic and Information Technology Standards

11.0 Performance Requirement Measures

Attachment

Project Title Buttermilk Creek Slash Pile Conversion

General Information

1.0 Background and Purpose

The Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest (OWNF) is a high priority forest for reducing wildfire risk. The Forest is seeking to increase the pace and scale of fuel treatments to decrease the risk of wildfire. However, this is not always possible because, in some locations the patterns of smoke transport and dispersion result in smoke impacting downwind communities with regularity. Because smoke from prescribed burning is regulated by the Washington Smoke Management Plan, increasing the pace and scale of prescribed burning is limited by this plan because of the need to protect air quality in these downwind communities. As such, the Forest is seeking opportunities to reduce excess fuels using alternative techniques.

New technologies like air curtain incinerators which produce biochar or mobile pyrolysis units present an opportunity to reduce excess fuels without the smoke impacts to communities. For example, an air curtain incinerator acts as an air pollution control device which prevents smoke from escaping during the combustion process except when the air curtain is broken, such as during loading. Additionally, the new generation of air curtain incinerators can stop the combustion process before all the material is turned to ash, by quenching the material in water. In doing so, a useable product is created called biochar. A mobile pyrolysis unit combust wood in a closed reactor where the gases are recirculated back into the reactor and the char is discharged through a separate port.

The Regional Office in combination with the OWNF are seeking to conduct a pilot study to explore the usefulness of the new generation biochar production equipment in locations where excess biomass exist and where increasing pace and scale of prescribed burning is limited by smoke management.

The purpose of the project is to convert slash piles to biochar, distribute the biochar to the pile locations and landings, de-compact the soils at the pile locations, and stockpile excess biochar. In addition to the base item, four optional items (i.e., additional project locations and associated piles) are offered. The optional items have the same purpose as the base item.

2.0 Definitions

N/A

Contractor Requirements

3.0 Technical Requirements / Tasks

The Forest Service is seeking contractor to convert numerous slash piles into biochar, redistribute the biochar onto the areas where the piles were located (1/4” thick), de-compact the soils at some of the pile and landing locations, and stockpile the excess biochar. The contractor shall provide all personnel, supplies, supervision, tools, materials, equipment, transportation and other items and non-personal services necessary to perform this work. Additionally, the Contractor shall perform to the standards in the contract as well as all local, state, and federal regulations. Interested contractors should prepare costs estimates for the base project and each individual optional project as an incremental cost.

Roads:

Forest Service roads are characterized in five levels, according to maintenance requirements, as specified in Guidelines for Road Maintenance Levels stelprd3793545.pdf (usda.gov) (USDA Forest Service 2012). This document has photos of roads at the different maintenance levels which can help contractors anticipate what to expect.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprd3793545.pdf#:~:text=The%20Forest%20Service%2C%20an%20agency%20of%20the%20U.S.,level%202%20roads%20are%20maintained%20for%20high-clearance%20vehicles.

Buttermilk Creek road (Forest Road 4300) is paved to the intersection with 4300-500, which is a rocked aggregate road south of that intersection. The entire road is maintained as Level 3. Roads in this maintenance level are typically low speed with single lanes and turnouts and have a weight limit of 105,000 pounds. Maintenance level 3 provide drainage via a combination of dips and culverts and typically, may have potholes or wash boarding.

Spur roads off Forest Road 4300 are characterized as level 2. Road maintenance level 2 is assigned to roads open for use by high-clearance vehicles. Passenger car traffic, user comfort, and user convenience are not considerations Maintenance level 2 roads have the following attributes are not suitable for passenger cars have dips or cross drains as the preferred drainage treatments and typically, have very few, if any, signs or other traffic control devices. Additionally, the roads do not always provide motorists with alerts to potential hazards and may not be passable during periods of inclement weather.

Little Bridge Creek Road (FS Road 4415) is a Level 3 unpaved road. Thompson Ridge Road (FS Road 4410) is also a Level 3 unpaved road. Twisp River Road (Road 9914) is a Level 4 narrow, paved road with no centerline, until it reaches the Mystery Campground after which it turns into a Level 3 unpaved road. Goat Creek Road is a paved road.

Should the contractor desire access to the project site before snow melt, the contractor must provide the equipment and personnel to plow the roads.

Contractor shall minimize dust emissions from contractor vehicle movement on Forest Service unpaved roads by watering roads as necessary.

Should Forest Service roads be damaged through contractor use (e.g., roads no longer drain water), the contractor must restore to original condition.

Water:

The contractor shall not withdraw water from any water bodies on the national forest. However, water is available at two locations, one in Winthrop and one in Twisp. In Winthrop, water may be obtained at the lower compound at the Winthrop Ranger Station, 28 State Route 20. It is the first left after the bridge on the North side of Winthrop on highway

20. Here a water tender may be filled. In Twisp, water may be obtained from the hydrant at Okanogan Fire District 6 located at 234 west 2nd Avenue. The amount of water obtained from each site must be reported in the daily reports.

If water is needed to quench the combusted forest slash to create biochar, water should be discharged into a pit dug on the processing site. No discharge water is allowed to reach a surface water body or cause erosion into such a water body. After the completion of the project, the pit should be filled to restore the pit as found.

Soils Most of the upland soils that will be de-compacted at landing sites have a thick ash mantle over colluvium, residuum, glacial outwash, or glacial till. While the ash thickness varies across the project area, it tends to be >30 cm thick. The ash tends to be on the finer side, but some course (vitric-) properties occur in pockets. Figure 9a is a photo of the soil pit near the Mission processing site which is somewhat representative of the area. However, the soils may contain compacted platy structures as shown in Figure 9b, and some glacial rocks.

Figure 9a. Soil Pit Figure 9b. Platy soil structures

Biochar Stockpile Should the amount of biochar created exceed the amount needed to be distributed to the pile locations and landings, the biochar should be stockpiled at a single location. Biochar may be piled unbagged at the landing where the conversion of biomass occurs.

4.0 Deliverable / Schedule

Table 2 provides a list of project deliverables, along with the objective of each deliverable and expected time of delivery.

Please note, the inclusion of the daily report to the Forest Service Contracting Officer’s Representative. Contractors must ensure they have the means to meet these expectations at the expected time of delivery.

Table 2. Project Deliverables

Item No. Deliverable Objective Due

1 Slash pile removal Deliver slash to biochar production staging location

Daily and at end of project

2 Biochar production

Convert all slash to biochar and deliver to individual landing

Daily and at end of the project

3 Apply biochar to landings.

Deliver biochar to all landings where piles were located and distribute a 1/4” layer of biochar evenly across each landing

Daily and at end of project

5 De-compact soils at landings

Soils shall be de-compacted down to bedrock or rock glacial till at each landing

Daily and at end of project

6 Amount of water filled in the tender

Amount of water filled in the tender and location Daily and total at each location at end of the project

7 Stockpile excess biochar

Excess biochar is stockpiled at the landing where the biochar production equipment is located.

At end of the project

8 Restoration of roads

All unpaved roads in which contractor equipment traveled shall be returned as found i.e., they drain water.

At the end of the project

9 Daily Status Report

Report progress on items 1-6 and morning check in.

Daily

10 Utilization report Provide an estimation of slash inputs and biochar outputs (either tons/acre or yards/hour or other unit of measurement)

A the end of the project

11 Traffic Control Specify traffic control methods and outcomes Daily, include as part of the daily status report.

12 Health and Safety Identify any injuries or illnesses to contractor or other affected individuals.

Daily, include as part of the daily status report.

5.0 Government Furnished

6.0 Travel

The base item and optional items are all located on the Methow Valley Ranger District of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. If options are exercised, they will be done while contractor equipment and personnel are on the forest as part of the base item.

Base Item: Buttermilk Creek The base item is located approximately 10 miles west of Twisp, WA, along Buttermilk Creek (Forest Road 4300000) and associated sub-roads, as illustrated on Map 1. There are 55 landing piles in this project area of which 30 are tractor piles and 25 cable piles. The piles consist of a mixture of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir treetops and branches. The total mass of the piles in the Buttermilk Creek area is approximately 966 tons.

The 30 tractor piles are each approximately 30’x30’x20’ in dimension and weigh approximately 28.7 tons. These are distributed on the 16 tractor landings identified by the green icons on Map 2. Photos of the tractor piles and logging decks in the base project area are shown in Figure 1. Only the slash piles are to be converted to biochar; the logging decks are to be left in place.

Figure 1. Buttermilk Creek Tractor Piles and logging decks.

The cable piles are each approximately 15’x15’x10’ in dimension and have a mass of 4.2 tons each. They are distributed in six landing areas as represented by the pink dots on Map 2. Photos of the cable piles are shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2 Buttermilk Creek Cable Piles

The equipment needed to process the slash to biochar should be located at the wide area near the “Y” intersection of the Forest Road 4300000 and 4300610 and 4300600, as indicated by the red-colored square with a “P” in the middle, as shown on Map 2. Photos of the processing site are shown in Figure 3. Here, there are a few tractor piles and some log decks which were purposely left for firewood for the public. Logging decks in this area may be consolidated or moved to allow for more efficient operation of equipment, but they are not to be processed. Haul trucks are to bring biomass from the slash piles from other locations within the Buttermilk Creek project area here to be staged for processing.

Excess biochar should be stockpiled here as well.

Figure 3. Photos of the processing site location for the Buttermilk Creek project area.

Once all processing of slash piles is complete, biochar should be brought to all pile locations and landings and distributed to help revegetate the area, except for the cable piles. For these areas (i.e., the cable piles), if the slope steepness exceeds 15%, biochar should not be placed here, due to concerns with material runoff. Once all processing is complete at the landing, biochar should be distributed here as well. Biochar which is not needed for distribution (referred to as excess biochar) should be stockpiled at the processing site. The biochar should be spread to a depth of approximately ¼” when distributed to the former piles and landings.

After the biochar is applied, the soils should be de-compacted, except where it biochar wasn’t applied nor at any cable pile locations. Soils should be de-compacted to a depth of 30 cm (11.811 inches) or a restrictive layer (e.g., bedrock or extremely rocky soils w/ >60% rocks). See Section 4 for a description of the soils and Section 6 for performance objectives associated with de-compacting soils.

Option 1: Little Bridge Creek Road There is an option to convert the slash piles along Little Bridge Creek road to biochar and distribute the biochar (1/4” thick) at the removed pile locations. Soil decompaction is not needed and as such is not included as a task in this option.

Little Bridge Creek Road (aka Forest Road 4415) is located on the north side of the Twisp River road, approximately seven miles west of Twisp, WA, as shown on Map 1. There are 75 piles in this area to be processed: nine landing piles and 66 machine piles. Map 3 provides more detail of this project area. The pile locations are shown by green dots on the map. However, not all pile locations along the road are shown. There are many small piles located between the processing site and the end of the road. These piles are all located just off the road and are easy to locate. The total mass of the piles in this area is estimated to be 374 tons.

The 66 machine piles are approximately 11’x11’x7’ in dimension and weigh 1.35 tons each. Figure 4 is a photograph of a typical machine pile in this project area.

Figure 4. Photo of small slash piles along Little Bridge Creek Road.

There are also nine landing piles in this project area. Each landing pile is approximately 50’x28’x12’ in dimension and weigh approximately 31.6 tons. Photos of a few of these landing piles are shown in Figure 5, in which a person can also be seen for scale.

Figure 5. Photos of the large landing piles along Little Bridge Creek Road

The recommended location to process the piles is shown in map 3. Specifically, the equipment to process the slash piles in this project area should be located across the road from the three large landing piles first encountered when driving north on Little Bridge Creek Road as approached from Twisp River Road. The piles are on the west side of the road and the recommended processing area is the large open area across the road.

Option 2: Thompson Ridge Road

The Thompson Ridge Road project area is illustrated on Map 1. Map 4 provides a closer view of the project area, including pile locations and processing area. The piles in this project area are located along FS Road 4410000. This road can be accessed either from the Twisp River Road by following Forest Road 4410, or from the west side of Winthrop by following Patterson Lake Road past the Chickadee trail head straight onto Forest Road 4410000.

There are ten slash piles distributed amongst three areas in this project location. All piles should be converted to biochar and the biochar applied to the all the former pile locations and the landing, except where the slope exceeds 15%. Soils should not be de-compacted on any of these areas. There’s a total of approximately 37 tons of slash to be processed in this project area.

There are six piles located at the landing closest to the Chickadee trail head. Four of these piles are approximately 20’x16’x10’ and weigh approximately 4.59 tons each. There are also two smaller piles which are approximately 20’x10’x4’ and weigh 1.28 tons each. Figure 6 is a photo of some of the slash piles in this area with the larger piles in the back and one of the smaller size piles in front.

Figure 6. Photo of piles along Thompson Ridge

There’s a small pile located about ¼ mile further up the 441000 which is approximately 14’x14’x6’ and weighs approximately 1.87 tons. This pile is located on a slope which may be greater than 15%. If so, the biochar should not be applied here. There are three more piles about another ¼ mile up the road. The piles have the following dimensions:

16’x14’x10’, 3.57 tons; 40’x15’x10’, 9.56 tons; and 20’x8’x3’, 0.77 tons. Biochar should be applied to these pile locations (1/4” thick). Excess biochar should be stockpiled at the processing site.

Option 3: Twisp River Road and Sno-Park.

This project location is illustrated on Map 1 with more details provided on Map 5. There are twelve slash piles in this project area which are to be converted into biochar and the biochar distributed back onto the piles and landings. Soils do not need to be de-compacted in this project area.

Nine of the piles are located along Twisp River Road and three piles are located within or adjacent to the Twisp Sno-park, as shown on Map 5. There are two places to process the material in this project area: one at the Sno-park and another at the gravel pit on the northeast side of the road, past the Mystery campground turn off. These areas offer the most room for the processing equipment, slash staging, and biochar stockpile.

Table 1 presents the number, dimensions, and weight of each pile in the project area, along with whether the pile is located along Twisp River Road or in or adjacent to the Sno-park.

Table 1. Twisp River Road and Sno-Park pile characteristics

Size Number Tons/pile Total tons Location

15'x15'x10' 1 3.6 3.6 Twisp River Road

8'x8'x8' 2 0.8 1.6 Twisp River Road

25'x25'x12' 5 12.0 59.8 Twisp River Road

50'x50'x15' 1 59.8 59.8 Twisp River Road

19'x17'x8' 1 4.1 4.1 Sno-park

80'x40'x5' 1 25.5 25.5 Adjacent to Sno-park

54'x50'x12' 1 51.6 51.6 Adjacent to Sno-park

Total 12

206.0

The Sno-park is on the west side of the road and the sign is facing the opposite direction. There is a bathroom located at the Sno-park. Figure 7 contains photos of the piles at and adjacent to the Twisp Sno-Park.

Figure 7. Piles at and adjacent to the Twisp Sno-Park

Option 4: Goat Creek Sno-Park

The Goat Creek Sno-Park is located approximately seven miles northwest of Winthrop and two miles southeast of Mazama along Goat Creek Road, as illustrated on Maps 1 and 6 . Here, there are four log decks which need to be converted to biochar. Soils do not need to be de-compacted in the Sno-Park. Each deck has 30-40 logs of 12-24 inches in diameter, composed of spruce and ponderosa pine, except the 4th deck which only has ten logs. The decks have the following dimensions: (1) 25’x18’x10’, (2) 25’x20’x8’, (3) 25’x15’x8’, and (4) 15’x8’x4’. Figure 8 contains photos of decks at the sno-park. Notice the slash to the left of the log deck in the photo. This is not a clean pile, and the slash need not be processed. The Sno-Park is a large open area which is suitable for processing the log decks into biochar and stockpiling the biochar. There is a restroom at the Sno-Park lot.

Figure 8. Photos of the log decks at the Goat Creek Sno-Park.

There are time constraints for this project due to road closures, snow-packed roads, fire restriction, and time needed to obtain any permits (e.g., air quality). Roads into Buttermilk Creek, Little Bridge Creek, and Thompson Ridge will be closed from December 1 – March 31 for winter recreation. After March 31st, roads may still be snow-packed and access will be unavailable until snow melt, which typically is around the end of May, but does vary year to year. However, contractor may choose to access the area as soon as April 1, 2023, but they would need to plow the road using their own equipment and labor. Additionally, during the summer, fire danger may be elevated and cause restrictions on equipment which could ignite new fires. The contractor must also follow any limitations specified by Industrial Fire Precaution Levels (IFPLs). The contractor shall have obtained all required environmental permits from the appropriate regulatory agency before operating on site.

7.0 Contractor’s Key Personnel

8.0 Security Requirements

9.0 Data Rights

10.0 Section 508 - Electronic and Information Technology Standards

11.0 Performance Requirement Measures

The contractor service requirements are summarized into performance objectives that relate directly to Mission Area essential items. The Acceptable Quality Level (AQL) describes the minimum acceptable levels of service required for each requirement. These thresholds are critical to Mission Area success.

Exhibit 1

Performance Objective Required Task or Deliverable Performance Standard Method of Surveillance

PRS # 1.

The contractor shall deliver slash to biochar production staging location

Slash pile removal daily and at the end of the project

Daily and at end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 2.

The contractor shall convert all slash to biochar and deliver to individual landing

Biochar production daily and at the end of the project

Daily and at end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 3.

The contractor shall deliver biochar to all landings where piles were located and distribute a 1/4” layer of biochar evenly across each landing

Apply biochar to landings daily and at the end of the project

Daily and at end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 4.

The contractor shall de-compact soils down to bedrock or rock glacial till at each landing

De-compact soils at landings daily and at the end of the project

Daily and at end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 5.

The contractor shall ensure that the amount of water filled in the tender and location is correct

Make sure that the amount of water filled in the tender is correct daily and total at each location at the end of the project

Daily and total at each location at end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 6.

The contractor shall stockpile excess biochar at the landing where the biochar production equipment is located

Stockpile excess biochar at the end of the project

At the end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

PRS # 7.

The contractor shall return all unpaved roads as found i.e., drain water, in which contractor equipment traveled

Restoration of roads at the end of the project

At the end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 8.

The contractor shall report progress on PRS items 1-6 and morning check in

Provide Daily Status Report on a daily basis

Daily. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 9.

The contractor shall provide an estimation of slash inputs and biochar outputs (either tons/acre or yards/hour or other unit of measurement)

Provide Utilization report at the end of the project

At the end of the project. All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 10.

The contractor shall specify traffic control methods and outcomes

Provide Traffic Control status daily.

Daily, include as part of the daily status report.

All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

PRS # 11.

The contractor shall identify any injuries or illnesses to contractor or other affected individuals

Provide Health and Safety status daily.

Daily, include as part of the daily status report.

All work performed by the contractor pursuant to this PWS shall be deemed satisfactory by the Government and shall not require more than one revision to ensure accuracy, and completeness

100% Inspection (The Government at its sole discretion reserves the unilateral right to change the Method of surveillance at any time during contract performance.)

The work will be performed to accomplish the following objectives:

Efficiency of Operation The contractor shall work with Forest personnel to layout the project site to promote the most efficient use of the equipment and decrease costs to the Forest Service. Based upon past experiences with air curtain incinerators, some known bottlenecks to operation include (1) rate of water delivery, (2) rate of delivery of slash piles to a centralized location, (3) rate of delivery of material into the air curtain incinerator, and (4) rate of biochar removal. The site should be laid out to anticipate and minimize these bottlenecks before operations begin and may need to be re-evaluated as modified as the project continues.

Removal of Slash Piles and Conversion to Biochar All slash piles identified in the project area shall be removed and converted to biochar. A small amount of slash may be left at each pile location or landing but shall not exceed 4”. Slash conversion should yield at least 5% biochar by volume.

Loading and hauling of material Unpaved Forest Service roads shall be watered to minimize dust emissions from contractor vehicles and equipment travel in the project area. Should road damage occur, the contractor will return to the road to the condition it was in before the project started.

Burning of slash material Contractor must comply with all local, state, and federal air quality rules as needed to operate their equipment. These requirements include obtaining a permit to discharge air pollution issued by the Washington Department of Ecology, or the local air quality district. Contractor must also comply with all requirements specified within the permit.

Biochar Distribution onto pile areas and landings Once the biochar is generated, it should be brought to each pile area and associated landing and spread evenly to a depth of approximately ¼”. However, sites with slopes steeper than 15% may cause biochar to run off the desired location. Therefore, biochar should not be applied to these locations.

Soil De-compaction Tractor pile landings will be subsoiled to a depth of 30 cm (11.811 inches) or a restrictive layer (e.g., bedrock, paralithic contact, compacted till, or extremely rocky mineral soil w/>60% rocks). Depth will be validated by the inspector with a shovel, a T-handled probe, or other suitable instrument. Monitoring will be done in cross sections of the treated temporary road or trail. Cross sections will be randomly placed with at least 4 readings done per 500 feet of subsoiled area. Soil decompaction is only needed at the tractor piles and landings in the main project area; it will not be required at any of cable pile locations, or at any of the optional project sites.

Subsoiling Operational Limitations:

1. Stumps: In general, all area between and around stumps is to be subsoiled within 3 ft of the stump. Where large roots prevent treatment within 3 ft, subsoiling shall be as close as possible to treat as much area as possible.

2. Rocky ground: An area that is too rocky or stony that would result in damage to the subsoiling implement may be avoided for subsoiling treatment. This determination will be made by the contractor and verified by a Soil Scientist. Vegetation and slash treatment would still occur.

3. System roads: Permanent system roads are not to be treated.

4. Type of equipment used for subsoiling.

a. Dozer subsoiling

i. Subsoiling will include the berms of temporary roads. This will require the start of subsoiling passes to begin approximately 3 feet outside of the road prism, and then continue into the road prism. The topsoil contained within berms will be returned to the disturbed surface of either legacy or new temporary roads.

b. Excavator or Loader Subsoiling

i. Subsoiling will include the berms of temporary roads.

ii. Excavator

Subsoiling with an excavator mounted implement, (i.e., SGR) requires proper subsoiling technique;

this is essential to the ease of activity and avoidance of abusive wear on equipment. When the proper angle of the subsoiling pass is not maintained throughout, adverse plowing will take place.

This will not attain the desired lateral fracturing from subsoiling and will promote undue stress on the equipment.

Stockpiling Biochar

Excess biochar shall be stockpiled at the landing site where the biochar production equipment is located, but in a location which will not interfere with the movement of equipment or vehicles, and where it can be easily accessed for future removal. If needed, please consult with forest personnel to determine a suitable location for the stockpiled biochar.

Minimize Resource Damage Resource damage must be always minimized. Equipment shall only operate on the roads and not cause damage to native soil. Scarring of seed trees and standing adjacent timber will not be acceptable. Any damage to road surface, cut, or fill slope must be repaired prior to Forest Service acceptance of the work.

Traffic control and public safety The Contractor shall provide and maintain all necessary barricades, danger signals, signs, and other traffic control devices, and shall take all necessary precautions for the protection of the work and safety of the public. Suitable warning signs shall be provided to properly control and direct traffic. The Contractor shall erect warning signs in advance to any place on the project where operations may interfere with the use of the road or trail by traffic and at all intermediate points where the new work crosses or coincides with an existing road or trail.

Attachments