Attachment_1-_Statement_of_Work.docx

WILD HORSE AND BURRO CENTER

AT ELM CREEK NEBRASKA

WILD HORSE AND BURRO FEEDING CONTRACT

STATEMENT OF WORK

1. POTENTIAL CONTRACT PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

July 1, 2024 – June 31, 2025

2. CONTRACTING PRICING INFORMATION

The offeror shall provide pricing for each contract line item number (CLIN) in the Schedule of Supplies/Services of the SF 1449 of this solicitation. The contractor shall provide monthly pricing for the feeding of 300-500 wild horses and burros and the unloading of approximately 200 tons of large round hay bales. Contractor shall combine the feeding of animals and unloading of hay into a monthly rate. The contractor will only be allowed to invoice for actual services performed and accepted by the Government.

3. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Wild Horses and Burros (WH&Bs) ranging on public lands are administered by the United States, Department of the Interior (DOI) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the United States Forest Service (USFS). WH&Bs are protected under Public Law 92-195, issued December 15, 1971, as amended (16 U.S. 1331-1340). WH&B populations on public lands shall be maintained to ensure a healthy rangeland and to promote healthy ecosystems. The BLM will perform periodic gathering and removal of animals to maintain healthy inventory levels of WH&B. The BLM places animals into holding facilities to allow for the adoption or sale of animals through the BLM WH&B Adoption and Purchase Programs.

The WH&B Center at Elm Creek (EC) Nebraska is the primary holding facility for WH&Bs being placed with private owners through adoption or sale. The EC facility routinely receives animals from other facilities and holds the animals until they are transported to various adoption facilities throughout the United States. The EC maintains between 300-500 animals on a daily basis. In addition, EC is a temporary resting place for wild horses being transferred from facilities in the western United States to off-range pastures in the Midwestern United States.

4. OBJECTIVE

The objective of this Statement of Work (SOW) is to obtain a contract to provide services for the daily feeding of WH&Bs and the unloading of large round hay bales delivered to the EC facility. The BLM hay contractor will deliver approximately 200 tons of large round hay bales per month which will be the responsibility of the BLM feeding contractor to unload.

The objective is for all animals to attain and/or maintain a good fleshy condition. The description of “Fleshy” as used in this SOW is: Level Back; ribs not visually distinguishable; Wither is full and well rounded; Neck and shoulders blend smoothly into the body. If this objective is not being met, the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) may direct a change in the feeding of the animals.

5. SERVICES

The contractor shall provide personnel that are experienced and qualified in the feeding of animals as outlined in this SOW. The contractor shall also provide equipment as outlined in the “Contractor Furnished Equipment” section of this SOW. The contractor will be expected to perform the following services:

· Daily feeding of WH&Bs at the EC facility

· Unloading of large round hay bales

6. FACILITY DESCRIPTION

The facility consists of nine (9) large outside pens and twenty-one (21) smaller pens. The large outside pens house the majority of the animals and can hold 50-80 animals per pen. The outside pens have movable large round bale feeders. The smaller pens are inside and consist of ten (10) pens used for animals that are being prepared for shipment or adoption events. Five (5) smaller pens are used for BLM saddle horses or animals requiring special attention. The smaller pens have hanging feeders that require small square hay bales, several also have round bale feeders that can be used. There are also six (6) isolation pens that are used to house sick or injured animals, these pens have permanent feeders that require small square hay bales.

7. GENERAL SERVICES

The contractor shall provide sufficient personnel and equipment to perform the daily feeding of 300-500 WH&Bs, 365 days per year. The contractor will also be responsible for the unloading of large round hay bales delivered to the EC facility by the hay contractor, this is expected to be several loads per month, the delivery schedule will be determined by the COR and the hay contractor. Approximately 200 tons of hay will be delivered per month.

The majority of the duties are to be performed outdoors and subject to varying weather conditions.

8. SPECIFIC TASKS

The contractor shall provide the following equipment during the performance of this contract.

· Tractor or loader with a round-bale grapple loader. Must have the capability to transport large round hay bales to various feeders throughout the facility. The tractor shall be equipped with front wheel assist due to the steep grades and slippery conditions during wet weather.

· OPTIONAL ITEM – pickup truck to make moving small square bales to the feeders more efficient.

The Contractor shall leave the tractor at the EC facility for the entire period of performance of the contract. The contractor may remove the tractor for maintenance, fueling, etc. with prior approval from the COR.

9. SPECIFIC TASKS

The Contractor shall be responsible for performing the following tasks on a daily basis:

a. The Contractor shall feed the animals the quantity of hay and supplemental feed necessary to satisfy the animal’s nutritional needs. The hay requirement for adult horses is twenty-five (25) pounds daily. The daily requirements for supplemental feed are a grain mixture for foals and weanlings at the rate of approximately two (2) pounds for weanlings and one (1) pound for foals. The hay requirement for adult burros is twelve (12) pounds per day.

b. The Contractor shall space the feed in the feeders/mangers so that all animals are afforded equal access to the feed. In the nine (9) large outside pens, this will be fifteen (15) adult horses per large round bale and twenty (20) weanlings per large round bale. The Contractor shall periodically move the large round bale feeders to prevent excess hay buildup around the feeders. The smaller pen feeders will be fed at the direction of the COR.

c. Feed supplements shall be placed in BLM provided troughs. The supplemental feed bunks will be moved and fed by the contractor in a well-spaced pattern to allow animals access to the supplemental feed.

d. The Contractor shall feed all animals in accordance with the requirements set forth above, at least once per day, every day, to include Saturdays, Sundays, and all holidays. Feeding shall be conducted between the hours of 8 a.m. and Noon.

10. CONTRACT PERFORMANCE

a. The Contractor is responsible for the behavior/conduct of Contractor personnel during the performance of this contract.

b. The Contractor is responsible for the safety of Contractor personnel during the performance of this contract.

c. In the event that the contractor notices any animals in distress (i.e. sick, injured, mares with foaling problems, deceased animals, etc.), the contractor shall immediately notify a BLM representative of the problem so appropriate action may be taken.

d. The contractor shall notify a BLM representative of any water trough malfunction.

e. The Contractor shall be held accountable for any employee’s misconduct, negligence, and/or failure to perform.

f. Contractor personnel shall have a working knowledge of feeding large numbers of animals in a feedlot environment.

g. The Government may require the contractor to remove any personnel observed performing unsafe acts during the performance of this contract. In the event contractor personnel are observed performing unsafe acts that endanger the animals, Government or Contractor personnel, or endangering the Government Furnished equipment/supplies, the employee(s) shall be removed from the job site immediately. The contractor shall provide a replacement worker within two hours of being notified.

h. The EC facility is open to the public, the contractor and all contractor employees shall perform duties in a manner that will not bring discredit on the BLM or the contractor.

i. Equipment shall be operated in a safe manner at all times during the performance of this contract.

j. The Contractor is responsible for any damage to government facilities or equipment caused due to negligence or accidental acts of contractor personnel.

k. The contractor shall perform an inspection vehicles/equipment used in the performance of this contract. The inspection shall ensure that all equipment is safe to use and proper maintenance has been performed.

l. Each morning the Contractor shall check in with the BLM COR for the current count of animals at the facility and any special instructions.

11. GOVERNMENT PROVIDED MATERIALS/INFORMATION

a. The BLM will provide all hay and supplemental feed required for the daily feeding of animals at the EC facility.

b. BLM representatives will also provide the following information to the Contractor:

c It is recommended that the feeding services for the wild horses and burros will require at least two contract personnel, one to operate the front-end loader tractor and one to operate the pickup on a daily basis, and a second person to open and close gates. The contract personnel will be required to unload all shipments of the large round bales of hay that arrive at the facility, and to haul the large round-bales using the contractor-provided tractor/loader to the large outside pens from a central holding area. In addition, the contractors will need to haul small square bales from a central storage area to the small pens using the contractor provided pickup truck or tractor/loader. It is recommended that one contractor employee would drive the vehicles and the other would open gates and off-load the small square bales into the feeders. As for the unloading of the shipments of the round bales of hay delivered by the hay contractor, it is anticipated that the contractor will need to provide a tractor operator for the contractor provided tractor. The feeding contractor, the hay contractor, and the BLM COR shall coordinate all delivery times to ensure that hay is delivered and unloaded in a timely and efficient manner.

d. If necessary (e.g., when unexpected loads of animals arrive, when horses are sorted into different pens than were designated that morning, when animals consume more feed than was fed, etc.), the Government reserves the right to feed the animals at the facility. Contractor shall check with the COR before leaving to see if there are any changes.