Exhibit A - Specs.pdf

FY22 Area Wide Tree Release

Allegheny NF

DIVISION 100 - GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS

110 - Scope of Contract

It is the intent of this contract to release desirable tree species from competing trees or shrubs using chainsaws and/or brush cutters or other hand tools in timber stands harvested in the last 14 years.

The Contractor is responsible for furnishing all supervision, labor, equipment, transportation, tools, materials, and incidentals necessary to complete the work (except as noted in Section 130 Government Furnished Property).

120 - Location and Description

Location - These areas are located within the Marienville Ranger District. Vicinity Maps and Individual Project Maps are included for locating specific sites. Contract areas will have an orange tag posted indicating tree release.

Area 812014/812021. Located on FR 460 which lies north of Kane. From Kane, drive east on RT 6 towards the Kane Country Club (about 3 miles). There, turn left on Detrick Road. Drive north 1.75 miles to FR 460. The unit is located on the uphill side of the road.

The area was timbered in 2018.

Area 812039. Located on FR 461 which is just south of Area 812014 as described above.

This area was timbered in 2018.

Area 842005. Located on FR 152 just west and south of James City. Travel west out of James City for about 1.8 miles until you reach FR 152 on the left. Travel south on FR 152 for 0.5 miles and the unit will be on the left hand side of the road. There is an oil and gas road that goes throuh the middle of the unit. This stand was timbered in 2012 and birch is the predominat species to cut.

Areas 849028. Located on FR 118 just past the junction of FR118 and FR 118A. Travel south on SR 66 from James City for about 3.2 miles. FR 118 is on the right as you begin to descend the hill at Nansen. This stand was timbered in 2008 and is mostly birch with some striped maple and beech to be cut.

Area 702079. This unit is located near Sheffield Junction on Township Road 374. After passing the intersection with the large Allegheny National Forest sign at the junction of 66 and 948, continue south on SR 66 for about 1.2 miles. Sheffield Junction RD splits off to the right. Continue on this dirt road for 2.5 miles. There will be an unmarked oil and gas road on the left through a pine stand. This road will take you back to the unit. It was timbered in 2015 and oak planted in 2018. OAK STAND.

Area 703022. Also located on Sheffield Junction Road on FR 394. This road is about 1.3 miles from SR 66. It was timbered 2013 and birch will be the main species of interference, along with beech.

Area 697032. Located on FR 227. From RT 66 in Pigeon, travel east on Township Road 327 towards Duhring for roughly 3 miles. Take FR 124 on the left towards Four Corners for about 1.6 miles. FR 227 will be on the right. Travel south about 1.5 miles to arrive at the unit. It will be on the right-hand side of the road. It was timbered in 2013. Birch and beech are the predominant species to cut here.

Area 707014/707015. This unit is located on FR 227 directly across from 697032 as described above. It was timbered in 2014 and birch is the main source of interference to cut. There is a small piece of this unit just north of the main cutting area.

Area 697001. From the two previous units, continue south on FR 227 for about 1.75 miles. The unit is on the hillside above the road. The reserve areas are not mapped. They will be flagged by the Forest Service. This sale was timbered in 2018. Birch is the main species to cut here with some beech and buckthorn throughout.

Area 892029. Located on FR 343. Travel south from Owls Nest for approximately 1 mile. FR 343 will be on the right. Travel 0.4 miles and there will be a landing on the right-hand side of the road. Park here and walk in via the skid trail. This unit is enclosed by a deer fence. Only cut within the fence. The main species to cut here are birch and buckthorn. This unit was timbered in 2013.

Area 625004. Located on FR 212 just west of Muzette. From Marienville, travel south on

SR 66 for 2 miles. At the sawmill, turn right onto Guitonville Rd. Continue for 4.8 miles and FR 212 will be on the right. Travel north on FR 212 for 1 mile and the unit will be on the left-hand side of the road. It was timbered in 2020 and planted in 1993. OAK STAND.

Area 620026. This unit is located on FR 577 just down Guitonville RD from FR 212.

Travel south on FR 577. The unit is on both sides of the road. There is a pipeline on the southern edge of the stand. It was timbered in 2020. The main species to remove is beech.

OAK STAND.

Area 620002. This stand is located along Township Road approximately 0.5 miles from its intersection with Guitonville RD. The unit will be on the south side of the road. It was timbered in 2020. OAK STAND.

121 - Accessibility - Forest Service System Roads are marked with a signpost or some other sign marking next to the road. If the road is not marked with a signpost, it is probably an oil and gas road and not in the best condition for driving on. Some areas may be behind a gated road and the Contractor will coordinate with the COR for gaining access behind locked gates. The use of any vehicles will be subject to conditions of the Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM) July 29, 2011.

The MVUM shows which roads, trails and areas of the National Forest that are designated for motor vehicle use pursuant to 36 CFR 212.51. Use outside of the MVUM designations is not permitted unless written permission is granted by the COR.

130 - Government Furnished Property

The Government will provide the following Government property at the time of the pre-work conference, unless otherwise stated:

131 - Vicinity Maps (see attachment)

132 – Project Maps (see attachment)

133 – Copy of this contract.

The contractor and any sub-contractor must have a copy of this contract on site at all times. This contract has detailed cutting instructions by area and the contract must be consulted at the start of cutting at each area.

134 – Contractor Card.

Must be posted on contractor vehicle while working on site. This is to identify the vehicle as involved in a Forest Service contract.

140 - Pre-work Conference

Prior to the start of work, the Contractor will contact the Contracting Officer or the

Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) and mutually agree on a pre-work conference date and location to discuss the contract terms, and work performance requirements.

At this conference, the contractor will be required to submit a plan of work outlining the date work will begin. The plan should also include where and what order the work will progress.

141 – Progression of Work

Contractor will have no more than 2 areas with work in progress at one time unless otherwise agreed to by the COR.

DIVISION 200 - TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

210 - Area Tree Release

211 - Tree Species to be released.

1. red, white, and other oaks

2. yellow/tulip poplar

3. cucumber tree

4. red maple

5. black cherry

6. sugar maple

7. red/white pine

8. hemlock

See the table below for the required height the desirable tree needs to be in order for it to be released. If the released tree is not tall enough as indicated in the table below it does not have to be released.

The minimum height and clearance of the crop trees to be released

Site Area

Min Height

Min Height

Oak Clearance Acres

YR

Timber Harvest

1 812014/ 812021 6 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only 14 2018

2 812039 6 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only 11 2018 3 842005 10 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only 11 2012 4 849028 15 1’ from drip line, 1 side only 13 2008 5 702079 2 1 2' from drip line on oak, 1' from dip line other 6 2015 6 703022 10 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only 35 2013

7 707014/ 707015 10 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only * 21 2015

8 697032 10 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only 10 2013 9 697001 5 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only (BT) 19 2018

10 892029 8 1’ from drip line, 2 sides only (BT) 8 2013 11 625004 2 1 1' from drip line on oak, 1' from dip line other 19 2020 12 620002 3 1 2' from drip line on oak, 1' from dip line other 31 2020 13 620026 1 1 2' from drip line on oak, 1' from dip line other 16 2020

*No lopping requirement.

BT - Cut all buckthorn, regardless of proximity to crop trees. This will be done in all areas, but BT notes areas of heavy infestation.

212 – Species Requiring Treatment

The following species specified shall be cut and are considered competing vegetation -undesirable species:

1 - Striped Maple - All live striped maple which is taller than one foot in height shall be felled and completely severed from the stump when occurring within the drip line clearance required in Section 211 table.

2 - Pin (Fire) Cherry - All live pin cherry which is taller than one foot in height shall be felled and completely severed from the stump when occurring within the drip line clearance required in Section 211 table.

3 - Beech - All live beech taller than one foot in height and less than 6.0” in diameter at a point 4.5 feet (DBH) above the ground shall be felled and completely severed from the stump when occurring within the drip line clearance required in Section 211 table.

4 - Birch - All live birch taller than one foot in height and less than 6.0” in diameter at a point 4.5 feet (DBH) above the ground shall be felled and completely severed from the stump when occurring within the drip line clearance required in Section 211 table.

5 – Buckthorn shrub. All live buckthorn shrub will be cut regardless of size, regardless of proximity to crop trees, including any within reserve areas. Note: reserve areas on supplied maps are estimated in numbers and locations are taken from timber sale maps.

Special Notes:

1. Area 702079 has been planted to oak with tree shelters. Any live oak in tree shelters will be released regardless of the height of the oak within the tree shelter.

2. The contractor shall avoid injuring of crop trees in any way during the release work. A maximum of 10% of the crop trees may be cut when intertwined and among pin cherry, striped maple, birch, beech.

3. No live trees greater than 8 inches in diameter at breast height (dbh) and no snags of any size shall be felled (unless such snags present a safety hazard, in that case check with COR to see if they should be cut or work should be move to another location).

4. No trees with fence or fencing hardware attached to them will be cut.

213 - “Wild” fruit trees and wildlife shrubs shall not be cut, as listed below.

1) serviceberry,

2) witch hazel,

3) ironwood,

4) deciduous holly,

5) mountain laurel

214 - Reserve Trees

Reserve trees, usually pole-sized or larger, retained under the regeneration cut shall not be cut. These trees are sometimes designated with a green or white painted band at diameter at breast height.

220 – Boundaries

Area boundaries are marked by existing painted two or three stripe. In some cases, if the paint is no longer visible, “orange” ribbon/flagging marks the boundary.

230 - Stump Heights

Maximum stump height is six (6) inches, unless otherwise stated to the Contractor in writing by the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) due to unusual circumstances.

Stump sprouts (multiple stems) will be cut as close to the ground as possible. Angular stump cuts will not be allowed.

240 - Slash Disposal

Slash created by the Contractor's operations shall be removed 15 feet away from the following features:

Clear R-O-W & ditch lines private land fence maintenance trails historic railroad grades well openings fences old main skid trails oil/gas lease roads stream courses pipelines maintenance trails seeps power lines recreational trails active stone pits

No slash shall be left hanging in trees and slash will be laid horizontal to the ground and lopped to 5’. All crop trees and minority trees chosen for release will be released from all slash so they are standing straight up on their own.

NOTE: Area 707014/707015 does not have lopping requirement. However, all crop trees must be left standing upright.

The Contractor is responsible for any damage to fences, oil/gas developments, pipelines, powerlines, and other improvements caused by his/her operations.

250 – Notification

Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer's Representative prior to starting work on any items. The Contractor shall also notify the Contracting Officer Representative at least weekly of the progress being attained on this project. This notification can be either oral or written.

260 – Payment

Payment(s), which require Forest Service inspection and acceptance, may be made on completed areas only, in accordance with the Prompt Payment Act (FAR 52.232-25).

Payment will be processed upon receipt of properly completed invoice entered into the Department of Treasury's Invoice Processing Platform (IPP). All invoices are to be submitted online via the electronic Invoice Processing Platform. Vendor is encouraged to notify Contracting Officer's Representative immediately upon completion of a specific Item(s).

270 – Safety

It is the Contractor’s responsibility to ensure that the work environment is safe for themselves as well as their employees. If the contractor feels that a requirement of this contract would place them or their employees in an unsafe environment, then work should stop on that area of work and the contractor should contact the COR. Work on other areas of the contract that the contractor does not view as unsafe should continue.

The Contractor is required to follow all applicable OSHA standards while working on the job site. The successful contractor will utilize appropriate personal protective safety equipment/clothing while using chain saws, which includes, hand, foot, leg, eye, face, hearing and head protection, while working in the project area. Brush cutting equipment is not covered by the OSHA standard for chain saws but it is recommended that the same protective equipment listed above be used for brush cutters.

Contractor is required to keep COR/District posted to current work site.