B08_SOL_Attachment_5_-_Sample_Project_SOW_Eastern_Region.docx

Sample Task SOW Exhibit 3 - Sample Task Scope of Work – Eastern Environmental and Historic Resources Studies for Property Acquisition and Project Construction VA requires a contractor to conduct environmental and historic studies and due diligence services at one approximately 10-acre property that will be proposed for acquisition for development as a Community Living Center in the general area of Atlanta, GA. The specific property to be evaluated has not yet been identified.

VA will enter into a property access agreement with the owner of the site, and the contractor will be required to comply with the terms of that agreement. VA will provide a copy of the access agreement.

General Kickoff Teleconference and Progress Calls A project kickoff teleconference will be held within five business days of task award to review scopes, schedules, reporting, deliverables, and coordination for all base tasks. Participants will include the Contracting Officer, VA’s Contracting Officer’s Representative, key VA project staff, the contractor team’s prime and subcontractor project managers, and key contractor technical staff. Regular and recurring biweekly progress calls will be conducted, with additional ad hoc calls as needed.

Deliverable Format (All Subtasks) Except as specified otherwise in this scope of work (SOW), all items shall be delivered to VA electronically.

All draft and final deliverable documents will be delivered to VA in Microsoft Word 2019 or later (or native format for graphics and spreadsheets) for ease of VA review and commenting, and also as Adobe PDF files for final reports. Files must be delivered in electronic formats that can be revised or updated by the government. Documents destined for public distribution shall also be 508-compliant. If the file is larger than 20 megabytes, the document(s) must be delivered by a file-sharing site accessible to VA.

Revised documents shall include Word files with both a clean version and a version showing tracked changes. The government review of draft deliverables will focus on ensuring that the document meets VA requirements. The contractor may be required to adequately address issues overlooked; supplement, improve, or modify analyses; address readability and editorial issues; and make factual corrections. The contractor may be required to undertake iterations of the review/revision activity beyond those listed in the deliverables schedules in this SOW to provide a quality document and meet SOW requirements.

When a hard copy is required by coordinating/consulting agencies or parties: All hard copy documents, maps, and illustrations must be of high quality and easily reproducible on standard or color copiers. Hard copy documents will be double-sided on 8.5- by 11-inch paper. Maps identifying the location of the project will be included within the document and may be used along with tables, figures, and illustrations throughout the document to display project-related information more efficiently. Fold-out pages should be avoided. If these are necessary, they will be no larger than 11 inches by 17 inches and have the same design as the 8.5- by 11-inch graphic pages and will be approved by the government before document preparation. All pages of the documents will be appropriately numbered and inserted into a three-ring binder. For submissions to regulatory agencies, the required format may supersede these details.

Performance Period The period of performance is 18 months from award.

Place of Performance The primary place of performance will be at the contractor’s facilities; however, travel to the project site will be required to complete the onsite studies.

Subtask 1: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment and Vapor Encroachment Screen The contractor will conduct a Phase I environmental site assessment (ESA) of the subject site with respect to the range of contaminants within the scope of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) and petroleum products. The Phase I ESA will be conducted in accordance with ASTM E1527-21 Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process.

The Phase I ESA shall be conducted by an environmental professional who meets the requirements specified in Appendix X2 of the standard; no later than one business day after award, the contractor will provide this individual’s resume for VA acceptance, which shall demonstrate in detail that the ASTM standard is met and identify which specific criterion in paragraph X2.1.1.2 of the standard is met. Relevant experience must be clearly demonstrated in accordance with the definition in paragraph X2.2.1 of the standard.

The Phase I ESA shall include all components and meet all specifications and methodologies described in the standard. The report will follow the recommended table of contents provided in the standard. The report will include a table with the following format, with an entry for every regulatory database finding within the respective minimum search distance as listed in Table 2 of ASTM E1527-21. This includes all listings identified in the “Mapped Sites Summary Table” and “Orphan Summary” in an EDR “Radius Map Report” or comparable if another equally comprehensive regulatory database review approach is used:

A1 A2 ABC Fuel Stop (current) XYZ Gas (previous) 123 Main Street

Note that “distance from site” is not a basis for dismissing a potential REC if it is within the ASTM-specified search radius in Table 2 of ASTM E1527-21.

In addition to the considerations identified in the ASTM E1527-21 standard, the Phase I ESA report will include the findings of a Tier 1 Vapor Encroachment Screen using the methodology specified in ASTM E2600-15 Standard Guide for Vapor Encroachment Screening on Property Involved in Real Estate Transactions.

Subtask 2. Biological Survey The contractor will conduct a biological survey of a 10-acre site for federally and state protected species and habitat.

VA will provide to the contractor an official species list for the site from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) Information for Planning and Consultation system that identifies species protected under the Endangered Species Act, Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The contractor will obtain a similar list from the state wildlife agency to identify species protected under state law.

The contractor will propose a site survey plan specific to the federal and state listed species. The contractor shall plan the survey in accordance with FWS and state agency species-specific survey guidelines, as appropriate for the species of interest, which could include contacting the regional FWS office and state wildlife agency to ensure that site survey methods are appropriate to determining the possible presence of the listed species for that site at that time of year; all FWS and state agency outreach, feedback, and concurrence will be documented.

In accordance with the approved site survey plan, the contractor will conduct research and a thorough onsite biological survey of the entire parcel for suitable habitat and the presence or likely presence of species listed under federal and state laws. The contractor will document findings in a detailed biological survey report including effects determinations for each species (as defined by FWS guidance for Section 7 consultation) from the proposed project.

If the effects determinations did not conclude “no effects” for all species at the property, the contractor will (1) draft a federal consultation letter for VA to submit in accordance with FWS regional guidance, requesting concurrence with the effects determination for federally listed species; and (2) draft a state consultation letter for VA review in accordance with state guidance requesting concurrence with the effects determination for state listed species. The contractor will submit the state consultation letter to the state wildlife agency.

Subtask 3. Cultural Resource Survey The contractor will conduct an initial cultural resources impact prediction (ICRIP) study, using a “windshield survey” approach.

The contractor is responsible for having a current knowledge of the requirements of the local jurisdiction connected with the services described herein. The contractor must meet the Secretary of the Interior’s Historic Preservation Professional Qualification Standards (36 CFR 61). The contractor must also meet any state-specific requirements for conducting these studies. No later than one business day after award, the contractor will provide the resume of the individual who will lead this survey for VA acceptance.

The contractor will examine readily available data on the history, prehistory, ethnography, and environment of the study area. The contractor will identify experts and consulting parties likely to be interested in and knowledgeable about the history, archaeology, and culture of the area, including relevant local government officials and offices, Indian tribal governments, academic interests, and state, local, and other historical, architectural, and archaeological organizations. The contractor will determine whether the study area is within the boundaries of a Certified Local Government.

The contractor will inspect the study area to the extent feasible from areas normally open to the public, and without conducting excavations or other modifications of the land, landscaping, buildings, or structures, to document the general character of each area and its buildings, structures, and other cultural features.

The contractor will document the findings in a report that includes the following as well as all pertinent supporting documentation:

a. Recommended area of potential effect.

b. Potentially eligibility for or listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

c. Likelihood that other kinds of cultural resources exist or occur in the study area.

d. Likely effect of the proposed project on other kinds of cultural resources.

e. Potential consulting parties with contact information.

f. Federally recognized tribes who are likely to have an interest in the study area.

g. Recommendations for further study or other actions, if any, including minimizing or mitigating any potentially negative impacts.

Subtask 4. Section 106 Agreement and Consultation Support The contractor will provide a draft letter to initiate National Historic Preservation Act Section 106 consultation for the proposed undertaking with each consulting party and tribe identified in the cultural resources survey subtask (VA will provide letterhead). The letter(s) will include a finding of either no historic properties affected, no adverse effect, or adverse effect to historic properties consistent with 36 CFR 800.11(d) and (e).

If the SHPO has a project submittal form that is a substitute for a typical Section 106 consultation letter the form will be completed and VA will be informed of the appropriate submittal procedures (hard copy, email, or electronic).

The submittal of these letters to external parties will be the responsibility of VA staff only, unless the contractor is otherwise directed by the appropriate VA staff.

If a Programmatic Agreement (PA) or Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) is required to conclude Section 106 consultation, the contractor will prepare the first draft for VA review, revise as needed, and support discussions and further revisions with the state historic preservation office (SHPO) and consulting parties to achieve a final PA or MOA.

Subtask 5: Traffic and Parking Baseline and Impact Analysis The contractor will perform a traffic and parking baseline study to establish the baseline traffic and parking information for the subject site, including identifying level of service (and, as relevant, vehicle miles traveled) impacts for traffic to and from the site at the present time and at a future time interval to be agreed by VA.

The contractor will evaluate traffic and parking impacts of the proposed project, including current and future level of service conditions (and, if relevant, vehicle miles traveled) for travel to and from the site at the present time and at a future time interval to be agreed by VA. The report will include mitigation options for any potentially significant adverse impacts identified for the proposed project.

The contractor will support and participate in coordination meetings with state and local transportation agencies regarding study findings and potential mitigation options, if required.

Subtask 6. NEPA Environmental Assessment The contractor shall prepare an environmental assessment (EA) for the proposed action and the no action alternative in compliance with the Council on Environmental Quality’s and VA’s regulations for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (40 CFR 1500-1508, 38 CFR Part 26), both as updated through the date of task award.

Annotated EA Outline: The contractor shall draft a detailed annotated outline with brief notes on the project-specific content or analytical approach for each section of the EA for VA review and approval, including any appendices.

Stakeholder list. The contractor shall identify federal, state, local, and tribal agencies; federal and state legislators; and any other stakeholders that may have an interest or environmental oversight responsibility related to the proposed project. The list will be formatted as an Excel spreadsheet and will include the name of the entity, point of contact, street or mailing address, city, state, zip code, email address for sending notices, and web address. The stakeholder list will be initially finalized prior to scoping outreach, updated and resubmitted to VA at the close of scoping, and updated and resubmitted again at the close of the Draft EA public comment period. Additional stakeholders may also be added throughout the EA process in coordination with or at the request of VA.

Notice of scoping. The contractor shall draft a notice of scoping (NOS) for the NEPA review of the proposed project for publication in the appropriate local newspaper of widest general circulation and an NOS to accompany letters to stakeholders and post on VA’s CFM Environmental Program Office (EPO) website. VA will provide examples to use as templates. In coordination with the VA COR, the contractor shall arrange for the newspaper NOS to run for two days, one of which shall be a Sunday and one a weekday. For tribal stakeholders that do not accept email communications, the contractor will prepare and revise as needed a transmittal letter addressed to each tribal representative by name for VA signature and will print and mail (with delivery confirmation) these letters and the accompanying stakeholder NOS to the tribal representatives. The contractor will additionally tailor a transmittal letter for the SHPO that will be emailed by VA. For federal and state legislators, the contractor will prepare a transmittal letter addressed to each legislator by name. VA will manage distribution of these letters and the accompanying stakeholder NOS to the federal and state legislators. VA will email stakeholder NOSs to all other stakeholders.

Scoping comment receipt and summary. VA’s COR will receive and forward to the contractor all scoping comments. The contractor shall summarize all scoping comments in a tabular format that identifies the EA section(s) where they will be addressed and provides a brief note proposing how they will be addressed. The contractor shall forward the comment summary table to VA for review and approval.

Draft EA: VA will provide the contractor with information and details on the proposed project and the no-action alternative for use in preparing the Draft EA. The analysis will incorporate the resource-specific findings and coordination conducted under the other contract subtasks, as well as local sources of information, standard public and technical documents, databases, and online sources. The resource and impact analysis in the Draft EA shall use accepted methodologies and relevant guidance from the Council on Environmental Quality and federal regulatory agencies for evaluating potential impacts. Each resource section will state whether each type of impact is significant and provide sufficient discussion to support the conclusions. References shall be cited and listed in the reference section using either the APA or Chicago Manual of Style formats and include a hyperlink for resources that are publicly available online.

Appendix A of the Draft EA will identify all federal, state, and local requirements applicable to the proposed project and provide their legal citations, a summary of the requirement, and the timing for meeting the requirement relevant to the general stages of the project. This appendix will be comprehensive, robust, up-to-date, and specific to the nature and location of this proposed project. Appendix B will provide all agency, tribal, and stakeholder correspondence and consultations. Appendix C will provide public notices and comments. Other appendices may be included, as appropriate.

The contractor will prepare a partial internal draft, commonly referred to as a DOPAA (Description of Proposed Action and Alternatives), containing Chapters 1 (Introduction – Purpose and Need) and 2 (Alternatives) for early VA review and approval to ensure the resources, issues, and impacts to be analyzed in later chapters are evaluated using correct descriptions of the proposed action and the no-action alternative. The DOPAA will also include brief descriptions of alternative actions not analyzed in detail, with sufficient discussion as to why these alternatives are not viable. If VA’s comments on the draft DOPAA are not substantive and/or VA is confident the needed revisions are well-understood by the contractor, a revised DOPAA may be waived by VA with comments to be addressed in the preliminary administrative Draft EA.

The contractor shall prepare a complete preliminary administrative Draft EA for VA review, including the revised Chapters 1 and 2, all other chapters listed in the approved outline, and all appendices. The full text of the scoping comments received will be included in Appendix C, with relevant information summarized in Public Engagement chapter. The preliminary administrative draft, revised drafts as needed, and final Draft EA will be professionally edited and all information will be presented in language understandable to a member of the public, with limited technical terminology and jargon, and without excessive use of acronyms. VA will provide comments on the preliminary administrative Draft EA. The contractor shall address VA comments and submit a revised draft. The contractor will further revise as needed and submit a final Draft EA. When approved by VA, the contractor will additionally submit a 508-compliant PDF of the Draft EA for VA to post on the CFM EPO webpage.

Publication and Public Review of the Draft EA: The contractor shall draft a notice of availability (NOA) for the Draft EA for publication in the appropriate local newspaper of widest general circulation and an NOA to accompany letters to stakeholders and post on VA’s CFM EPO website. VA will provide examples to use as templates. Both types of NOAs will meet their specific purpose and respective formatting requirements, provide information on a public meeting if one is deemed necessary, and will invite public comment on the Draft EA and provide instructions for how to do so via email. In coordination with the VA COR, the contractor shall arrange for the newspaper NOA to run for two days, one of which shall be a Sunday and one a weekday. For tribal stakeholders that do not accept email communications, the contractor will prepare and revise as needed a transmittal letter addressed to each tribal representative by name for VA signature and will print and mail (with delivery confirmation) these letters and the accompanying stakeholder NOA to the tribal representatives. The contractor will additionally tailor a transmittal letter for the SHPO that will be emailed by VA. For federal and state legislators, the contractor will prepare and revise as needed a transmittal letter addressed to each legislator by name. VA will manage distribution of these letters and the accompanying stakeholder NOA to the federal and state legislators. VA will email stakeholder NOAs to all other stakeholders. The contractor will provide a hard copy of the Draft EA to the public library or municipal office nearest the project site and include this information in the NOA. VA’s COR will receive and forward to the contractor all public comments on the Draft EA. The contractor shall summarize all public, agency, tribe, or other stakeholder comments on the Draft EA, including verbal comments captured in a public meeting transcript, in a tabular format that provides responses to the comments and identifies any EA sections to be revised in response to the comment, and forward the table to VA for review and approval, along with the public meeting transcript.

In-person public meeting: If determined necessary by VA based on scoping input and other stakeholder feedback, the contractor will arrange for and facilitate two one-hour public meetings in the afternoon and evening of the same day. The public meetings will be held in an accessible venue for up to 100 attendees near the proposed project site. The contractor will reserve space, provide or arrange for audiovisual technology, retain a court reporter, prepare and display six to eight 3-foot by 4-foot poster boards summarizing the Draft EA and the NEPA process, staff a welcome/registration table, provide hard copies of the stakeholder notice and comment forms, and draft and revise as needed a PowerPoint scoping presentation that will be presented by VA staff. The venue will be reserved for the entire day, with the room available for any meetings that VA may wish to arrange for additional meetings with specific local stakeholders on focused topics. The contractor and court reporter will be available to support and transcribe any such same-day focused meetings that may be scheduled. All public meeting presentation and support materials will be provided for VA review as drafts and then revised as needed until VA approves.

Final EA and Finding of No Significant Impact: The contractor will prepare a draft Final EA that addresses the comments and updates the Draft EA text as the Final EA. The contractor shall prepare an internal draft finding of no significant impact (FONSI) that is brief and concise, incorporates the Final EA by reference, and includes as an attachment the full text of the mitigation and monitoring commitments presented in the Final EA. Drafts of the Final EA and FONSI will be provided for VA review, and the contractor will revise the documents to address VA comments, with additional revisions as needed until VA approves. Word file(s) of the draft Final EA shall be provided as both a clean version and a version showing track changes, including changes from the published Draft EA, to focus agency review. When approved with no further revision required and the FONSI has been signed by VA, the contractor will prepare 508-compliant PDF files for publication.

Final EA and FONSI publication and NOAs. The Final EA and FONSI will be made available to the public. The contractor shall draft a NOA for the Final EA and FONSI for publication in the same local newspaper used for announcing availability of the Draft EA and a stakeholder NOA to accompany letters to stakeholders and post on VA’s CFM EPO website. Once approved, the contractor will publish the newspaper NOA. The contractor shall arrange for the NOA to run for two days, one of which shall be a Sunday and one a weekday. VA will send the stakeholder NOA to email recipients on the stakeholder list. For tribal stakeholders that do not accept email communications, the contractor will prepare and revise as needed a transmittal letter addressed to each tribal representative by name for VA signature and will print and mail (with delivery confirmation) these letters and the accompanying stakeholder NOA to the tribal representatives; the timing for sending hard copies by mail will be coordinated with VA based on the newspaper NOA publication date. The contractor will additionally tailor a transmittal letter for the SHPO that will be emailed by VA.

Administrative Record: The administrative record will include the NOSs; stakeholder NOS letters; scoping input; the published Draft and Final EAs; the Draft and Final EA NOAs and stakeholder NOA letters; comments on the Draft EA; the FONSI; affidavits of publication of the NOSs and NOAs; all references cited in the Final EA, including memoranda documenting personal communications; any other supporting studies, regulatory communications, and supplemental information used or developed to support the analysis or decision; and other documents typically included in the administrative record. The administrative record will not include internal working drafts or VA feedback/edits on such drafts, contract documents, or VA/contractor coordination emails or meeting minutes, or other internal working documents. The contractor will submit the administrative record, including an index, to VA in electronic format.

Deliverables and Schedule: The Contractor will provide the following deliverables and meet the milestones on the schedule provided below. If a due date falls on a Saturday, the due date will be moved up to Friday. If a due date falls on a Sunday, it will be moved to Monday. If a due date falls on a holiday, it will be moved to the next business day after the holiday. For VA’s actions (italicized), shorter or longer completion dates would move the dependent contractor schedule dates earlier or later, respectively, on a day-for-day basis.