BLM ID USFO Announcement for Youth Projects.doc

Office: Upper Snake Field Office Notice of Funding Opportunity Number: L22AS00174 Project Submission Dates and Times: April 5, 2022 by 5:00 p.m. ET

Project Title: Upper Snake Field Office Recreation Youth Opportunity

Maximum Available Funding in FY22: $34,000 BLM has determined $600 weekly stipend equal to $15.00 per hour is a reasonable. Stipends above this amount must be justified in the budget narrative.

Project Background Information:

The Upper Snake Field Office (USFO) has an extensive recreation program. A spectacular landscape provides visitors with an abundance of recreational opportunities. The USFO includes the St. Anthony Sand Dunes Special Recreation Management Area (SRMA) and the Snake River SRMA (also known as South Fork), premier outdoor recreation destinations for motorized recreation and fishing opportunities respectively in the nation. Recreation visitors to the USFO come from four primary sources: local, regional, and national and international locations.

Visitors from the region and surrounding states come to the USFO because it is easy to travel to in a weekend, provides an abundance of recreation opportunities and settings, and offers two highly popular recreation areas (St. Anthony Sand Dunes and the South Fork). Visitors also come to the USFO from all over the U.S. and from international locations to visit the St. Anthony Sand Dunes and South Fork. The St. Anthony Sand Dunes SRMA is highlighted in numerous all-terrain vehicle (ATV) magazines and through ATV organizations. The Snake River SRMA is highlighted in numerous fly-fishing magazines and by the eight permitted commercial fishing outfitters.

The USFO provides opportunities for a wide variety of outdoor recreation activities and related benefits. While most recreation users participate in recreation activities in the St. Anthony Sand Dunes and Snake River SRMAs where there are numerous developed facilities, another large percentage of recreationists participate in dispersed recreation opportunities provided throughout the field office. Some of the typical recreational activities on public lands include, but are not limited to, boating and river-based recreation, camping, hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, OHV use, and cross-country skiing. Migrating and resident wildlife provide plentiful opportunities for hunting, photography, and wildlife observation.

Project Objective: BLM, USFO, Idaho has an opportunity to introduce youth to careers in the BLM under the Recreation Program. The USFO Recreation staff would like to a provide work experience to youth for their career and educational benefit. This will be accomplished by providing them opportunities to gain experience, learn about public lands, further their understanding and appreciation of natural and recreation resources, and pique their interest in Recration Management careers. From this they will gain an increased appreciation and understanding of our public lands and of the value of public service, and are likely to become life-long advocates for those values. This opportunity will be focused on gaining experience in recreation management. There is the potential to hire multiple youth under this opportunity. The youth will be able to work at the St. Anthony Sand Dunes or South Fork SRMAs depending on their interest. Both programs are implementing changes in management. The youth will gain experience with inventory and monitoring of recreation resources and development of public outreach programs and interpretion of sites. This project would be especially appropriate for a student studying recreation management, visitor services, river management, OHV management, and/or Wilderness Study Area (WSA) management. This opportunity will provide opportunities to enhance basic career skills such as organization, writing, detail, and communication, as well as field skills including inventorying and monitoring visitor use and WSAs, use of GPS equipment and maps, field note methods, OHV use, and boating. Previous experience with any or all of these skills would significantly enhance the student experience.

Work Schedule: Generally 7 AM to 5:30 PM 4 days per week, for 12 weeks, with flexable start/end dates in May-June/August-September. Weekends are required since this project supports the recreation program.

Qualification Requirements: This opportunity is suitable for youth working towards an undergraduate or graduate degree in recreation/visitor services-related discipline. As stated in the duties this opportunity will require time outdoors and field work that is often under somewhat rigorous physical conditions. Applicants must also meet the following criteria: 1). Pass a DOI security background check.

Housing: Agency cannot provide housing but may be able to assist in locating appropriate clean housing. A maximum monthly housing stipend of $1600 is allowable. This would go towards a crew to stay in one house or to be split between individuals to find housing. The USFO is located in Idaho Falls. Youth would report to the office and a government vehicle will be provided for their transport to project duties. The housing market is very difficult, similar to most cities throughout the west. Rental prices range $800 (1bd) - $2000 (3-4bd).

Vehicle Needs: A personal vehicle is NOT required for the position but is strongly encouraged as it makes the applicant's days off much more enjoyable. The closest regional airport is located in Idaho Falls, ID, but the nearest large airport is in Salt Lake City, UT (Salt Lake Internation Airport - about 220 miles away), where you can get much lower fares. There is not public transportation in Idaho Falls. During scheduled work, a government vehicle will be provided.

Other Project Considerations:

Food: The crews will be based out of Idaho Falls. It is unlikely that the crews will be field camping. Youth will report to the USFO daily for project assignments.

All Supplies: The BLM will provide computer, GPS units, hand tools, etc. needed for project assignments. The Youth Corp is not responsible to purchase or provide equipment or supplies.

Training Requirements: BLM will provide training for first aid/CPR, computer training, OHV, boating, GPS, proper use of hand tools and equipment, and trailering.

Travel: Travel is not necessary to complete this project.

Duties: The successful youth applicant will assist the Outdoor Recreation Planners with the USFO’s recreation program, which covers almost 1.8 million acres of public land in southeast Idaho. Numerous opportunities exist for primarily field work and limited office work. Field work includes inventory and monitoring visitor use, inventory of WSAs, fence construction, sign installation, maintenance of recreation facilities (e.g., cleaning toilets, lawn mowing, weed control, painting), education and interpretation, and interaction with visitors to public lands. Office duties will largely consist of data entry, completing inventory and monitoring reports, counting of recreation fees, and development of education materials.

Field work will be conducted largely in the St. Anthony Sand Dunes and Snake River SRMAs, the 11 WSAs in the USFO, and dispersed recreation sites throughout the USFO. Methods consist of driving to these areas and completing different assigned projects. Sometimes operating equipment, hiking, riding OHVs, and/or boating to complete the assigned tasks.

The participant will work out of the USFO in Idaho Falls, ID. and the project will be coordinated by the Outdoor Recreation Planners. Fieldwork will be done in the St. Anthony Sand Dunes SRMA, Snake River SRMA, and in remote backcountry settings. Field work requires strenuous exertion. Weather and terrain conditions may be extreme (e.g. heat, cold, thunderstorms, steep badlands).

Project expected outcomes include monitoring 11 WSAs within the field office. This will be documented by the inventory reports completed. Monitoring and inventory of visitor use with in the SRMAs. This will also be documented by the completed monitoring and inventory forms. Completion of various projects (fence construction, sign installation, painting of buildings, trail construction) within the SRMAs and dispersed recreation sites. These can be measured by the number of projects completed.

BLM’s Involvement: There will be substantive BLM programmatic involvement by BLM professionals that will work daily side by side with recipient on all projects and also be providing project orientation and hands-on training. BLM will have the right to intervene by modifying the project management plan, if project is not staying on schedule, technical issues arise, etc. In addition, BLM and recipient will meet weekly to discuss progress and track project outcomes; review any training needs; and then make a decision what direction to take in finalizing project or move to the next phase.

BLM Program Contact:

Field PO Name: Monica Zimmerman

Field PO Phone Number: 208-524-7543 or 208-709-2371 (cell)

Field PO Email: mzimmerman@blm.gov

Applicants are encouraged to refer to the full program announcement number L22AS00174 posted on Grants.gov for all program requirements and applicable terms and conditions. Recipients selected for awards will be required to adhere to those requirements should an award be made.

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