Attachment_1_-_Mulching_SOW_(Final).pdf

STATEMENT OF WORK

FOR

FUEL REDUCTION/MULCHING

AT POINSETT ELECTRONIC COMBAT RANGE

11 MAY 2018

Mulching Poinsett SOW

1. SCOPE OF WORK:

The Contractor shall furnish all labor and materials to mechanically reduce undesirable forest fuels from 339 acres. This work consists of the mechanical removal of woody understory vegetation under pine stands totaling 339 acres. Contractor shall furnish all labor, materials, equipment (including safety equipment), tools, transportation, supervision, and perform all work required in accordance with the specifications and provisions of this Statement of Work.

2. LOCATION OF PROPERTY:

The areas to be mechanically treated are located at Poinsett Electronic Combat Range, Sumter County, South Carolina. The Range lies between Wedgefield, SC to the north and Pinewood, SC to the south; it is bounded on the west by Hwy 261 and on the east by Hwy

120. The boundaries of the areas to be harvested will be marked with flagging tape and depicted on a site map, which are attached.

3. DESCRIPTION OF WORK:

The project areas shall be treated with heavy-duty mulching and/or brush-cutting machinery that chips/mulches trees. The equipment to be used will be a tracked or rubber-tired heavy duty type cutter with a front mounted rotary drum flail cutter head or fixed tooth fecon-type cutter head. The cutter head must be capable of being raised and lowered. The width of the cutter head should be equal to or greater than the width of the machine so that all trees will be cut in the path of the machine. The machinery must be capable of cutting and shredding trees up to 5 inches Diameter at Breast Height (DBH).

Machines with low ground pressure are preferred to reduce soil disturbance.

Every effort shall be made by the contractor to avoid damaging the larger pine trees, and merchantable hardwood trees remaining in the area. Treated areas shall have all midstory trees ≤ 5” DBH mulched so that all woody material lies within 6" of ground surface, unless otherwise specified. All downed trees and limbs shall be mulched/mowed over to reduce limbs standing 6” or more above the ground. Mulching of logs, cut tree stems and stumps shall consist of running over them at least twice with the cutting equipment. The objective is to get all material reduced to pieces that are substantially in contact with the ground or within 6” of the ground surface. There is no maximum size for the resulting pieces of the woody material and none of the material has to be fully reduced to chips.

Stumps may be left higher than 6” only if the cutter head must be raised to negotiate terrain features. The surface of the work sites shall retain the litter of the cut material.

Target species to be mulched in this project are Sweet Gum, Tulip Poplar, Turkey Oak, Maple varieties, loblolly pines and slash pines. Desired trees to be left standing and undamaged for wildlife and commercial benefit are larger than 5 inch DBH White Oak, Southern & Northern Red Oak, Hickory spp., and all Longleaf Pines unless specified by the Base Forester.

Standing trees larger than 5 inches in DBH (mature trees) shall not be cut and no more than 5% of the remaining trees damaged from the machinery. Any midstory stem situated adjacent to a mature tree that cannot be cut without damaging the mature tree shall be left in place. Logs, limbs, and/or stumps that cannot be mulched without injuring an adjacent mature tree shall be left in place.

All vertical limbs on downed trees, cut as described above, shall be mowed, mulched, shredded, or otherwise ground into small pieces. This shredded material shall be scattered over the treatment site and not piled.

All trees or groups of trees marked with pink flagging will be retained and not cut.

All labor, supplies, transportation, supervision, and equipment needed to complete this contract will be supplied by the contractor. No property will be furnished by the government.

The contractor must stay at least 200 yards away from any Red Cockaded Woodpecker (RCW) tree during nesting season (April-June). All RCW trees are painted with a white band, and should be avoided from damage at all cost. The contractor must minimize rutting activity in or around archeological sites depicted on attached map.

4. CONTROL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS AND WASTES: No hazardous substance may be discharged onto the ground or into the streams and surface waters. This includes all petroleum products, waste oil and lubricants (POLs). Any repair or maintenance which could result in leakage or spillage of POL’s or any substance must be done in such a manner as to prevent it from entering any ditches, streams or natural drainage. In the event of accidental spillage, the contractor will be required to report all spills to Shaw AFB Environmental Management Flight at 803-895-5071 during duty hours, or to the Base Fire Department at 895-4709 after duty hours. Used POL’s and other hazardous material will be containerized and removed from the Installation by the Contractor. The Contractor shall bear the cost of clean-up of all spillage.

5. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:

a. The Base Forester shall be contacted by the Contractor either in person or by telephone (803-895-9995) prior to beginning work under this contract.

b. All environmentally sensitive areas shall be avoided by all of the Contractor’s operations. The Base Forester will identify the boundaries of these sensitive areas prior to initiation of work.

c. All work shall be accomplished by the Contractor’s personnel and with the Contractor’s equipment and materials. All equipment needed for timber removal operations shall be furnished, transported and maintained by the Contractor.

d. While on Poinsett Bombing Range, the Contractor shall have a representative readily available in the area that will be authorized to receive, on behalf of the Contractor, any notices or instruction given by the Base Forester in regard to performance under this contract. He/She shall also have a copy of the technical provisions on the site at all times.

e. Although unlikely, it is possible that an emergency situation may require the Contractor and all of his personnel to immediately cease work and evacuate the property for safety/security reasons if ordered to do so by the Base Forester, Range Operations Officer, or Range Control Officer.

6. DAMAGE TO AIR FORCE PROPERTY:

Extreme care shall be exercised to avoid damaging trees, shrubs, roads, bridges, culverts, gates, fences, utility lines, buildings, or other structures. Slash shall not be left in roads, trails, ditches, utility rights of way, or fire breaks. Air Force property damaged beyond normal wear and tear shall be replaced at the original condition as directed by the Base Forester at no expense to the Air Force. All repairs will be inspected and accepted or rejected by the Base Forester. The damage to haul roads while standing water is present or road surfaces are soft from moisture will not be considered as normal wear and tear.

7. INSPECTIONS:

Equipment Washing. All off-road equipment utilized for this contract shall be inspected by the Base Forester for the presence of invasive weed seeds or propagates prior to being off-loaded at the Range. Off-road equipment includes skidders and feller bunchers, but does not include service vehicles, pickup trucks and similar vehicles. It is strongly recommended that all off-road equipment be cleaned with a pressure washer to remove all soil, plant parts, seeds, vegetative matter or other debris that could hold seeds.

The visual inspection by the Base Forester will focus on but not be limited to air breathers, tracks or tires, open framing, floor plates, skid plates or other areas that can trap seeds such as drive shaft guards. If seeds, clumps of soil or propagates are found the Base Forester will not allow the equipment to be off-loaded and the contractor will be required to remove the equipment from the Range where it can be washed or rewashed.

All work is subject to inspection by the Base Forester both during and after the Contractor’s operation. Unsatisfactory work shall be corrected promptly at no expense to the government.

8. FOREST FIRE SUPPRESSION:

The Contractor shall exercise due diligence both independently and in cooperation with the Air Force and will take all reasonable and practical action to prevent and suppress forest fires on the contract area or vicinity. The Contractor agrees to reimburse the Air Force for the cost of fire suppression incurred as a result of his negligence and/or willful acts. All fires shall be reported immediately to the Range Operations Officer, 803-895- 2597, and the Base Forester.

9. EXAMINATION OF PREMISES:

Contractors are expected to satisfy themselves as to the conditions that may affect the cost of performance under this contract. It is considered impractical to determine by other means the exact nature of work, site conditions under which work is to be performed, product break down and total quantity to be harvested. The submission of a bid will be considered as certification that the site has been inspected and the nature of work and the effects of existing and/or adjacent work have been determined. Two site visits will be conducted by contracting prior to closing of the bid. It is encouraged that all participants view the project prior to placing a bid.

10. TRASH AND REFUSE:

Trash and refuse resulting from the Contractor’s operations shall be removed daily and disposed of in a manner as directed by the Base Forester. No trash of any sort shall be burned, buried, or left on the ground at the end of the day.

11. CONTAMINATION & UNEXPLODED ORIDINANCE:

The Contractor is forewarned that there is a possibility of contaminated wood in the harvesting areas. Wood could possibly contain metal fragments such as barb wire, lead bullets and various scrap metal that may cause damage to equipment used in the process of logging and milling. With that being said, all areas have been harvested before with no issues of contamination. It is our duty to inform contractor of risk prior to bidding. The Contractor shall assume all risks from exposure to such property and shall discharge the property. The Contractor also agrees to hold the Government harmless from any and all claims arising therefrom or incident thereto. When found, these unnatural objects shall not be tampered with or removed. The Contractor shall immediately report these findings to the Base Forester or Range Control Officer so proper identification and disposal can be made by the government.

12. SCHEDULE

All work shall be completed prior to September 20th 2018. Additional time may be allowed if increment weather or missions stops work for more than 4 days.

The POC for this action is the Base Forester:

Mr. Aaron Souto

20 CES/CEIEA

428 Chapin Street Shaw AFB, SC 29152

(803) 895-9995 aaron.souto@us.af.mil