Fire Plan.pdf

Rocky Mountain Region Contractor Fire Plan Requirements October 2023

I. GENERAL

The following language is intended to be included within “C - Clauses” of timber sale contracts and “Section H – Special Contract Requirements” of construction contracts, and other contractual instruments where activities with potential for ignition are taking place on National Forest System lands and infrastructure within.

This plan requires adherence to 36 C.F.R § 261.52, when Fire Restrictions are in place, including all other Sub-Part B Orders which may include area closures. Specific fire restrictions may be issued at any time and must be adhered to unless a Forest Service Permit No. FS-7700-48 (Permit for Use of Roads, Trails, or Areas Restricted by Regulation or Order), specifically exempting them from an Order or a written determination by a Forest Service authorized officer that a permit is not required under 36 C.F.R. § 251.50(e)(1) or (2)].

This plan outlines the responsibility for fire prevention and suppression activities and sets up procedures in the event of a fire within the project area. The project area is defined as all National Forest System lands within one-half mile of the project treatment units, designated crew camping areas, and roads and trails. Additional fire control requirements may be specified in individual contracts/task orders and may vary between Forests within the region to meet state and local requirements.

II. NORMAL OPERATIONAL PERIOD DEFINITION

a. The “Normal Operational Period Requirements” are applicable at all times. The “Fire

Precautionary Period Requirements” are in addition to or intended to further restrict the normal operation period requirements and applicable during the “Fire Precautionary Period.”

III. NORMAL OPERATIONAL PERIOD REQUIREMENTS

Activities

a) Contractor/Purchaser shall furnish a serviceable telephone, radio- telephone or radio system connecting each operating side with Contractor/Purchaser's headquarters.

b) Immediately notify 911 or USDA Forest Service local zone dispatch center and the Contracting Officer or Contracting Officer’s Representative of the location and status of any unplanned ignition, whether caused by the contractor’s actions or any other cause.

At the Pre-work meeting, the USDA Forest Service local zone dispatch center information shall be obtained by the contractor from the government.

c) Initiate fire suppression actions on any fires started by the contractor to prevent fire spread to or on federally administered lands if the contractor can safely take such action.

If crew safety is a concern, the contractor should evacuate the area.

d) If the contractor observes a fire within ½ mile of the project area (not caused by the contractor’s activities), crews should evacuate the area.

e) Lunch or warming fires will only be allowed at locations approved in advance by the Contracting Officer.

f) The contractor may permit smoking by their employees, but only in safe places such as:

along roads, in truck cabs, or where all inflammable material has been cleared away from an area at least three feet in diameter. During periods of high fire danger, smoking may be prohibited through a forest order in accordance with 16 United States Code (U.S.C.) §551 and 36 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) § 261.50(a) and (b). Under no circumstances will smoking be permitted while operating tractors or other open-type vehicles in areas not cleared to mineral soil, or while walking or working in such areas.

g) Some or all activities associated with this contract may be restricted or prohibited during periods of elevated fire danger through a forest order in accordance with 16 United States Code (U.S.C.) §551 and 36 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) § 261.50(a) and (b).

Equipment

a) Operating or using any internal combustion engine, on any timber, brush, or grass covered land, including trails and roads traversing such land, without a spark arrester, maintained in effective working order, meeting either (I) Department of Agriculture, Forest Service standard 5100, “SPARK ARRESTERS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES,” (current edition); or (II) the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) recommended Practices J335, “MULTIPOSITION SMALL ENGINE EXHAUST SYSTEM FIRE IGNITION SUPPRESSION,” (current revision) and J350, 36 CFR 261.52(j), is prohibited. Information on this standard will be furnished upon request.

b) Carry a minimum of two shovels, five gallons of water, and one 10-pound ABC-rated fire extinguisher on each crew vehicle.

c) Carry a minimum of one shovel and one chemical-pressurized fire extinguisher of not less than 8-ounce capacity by weight per crew. The fire extinguisher shall be immediately available for use during refueling of portable equipment. The shovel shall be always readily available (no more than 5 minutes away).

d) Gas and oil shall be carried only in approved containers.

e) All fire tools and equipment required to be furnished by the contractor shall be always in good working condition.

f) Each internal-combustion motor vehicle or item of equipment shall be inspected and approved in advance of use by the contractor and the inspection shall be documented in daily report (or other contract documentation). Any deficiencies shall be corrected prior to being used on site.

IV. FIRE PRECAUTIONARY PERIOD DEFINITION

The Fire Precautionary Period is from June 1 to October 31. Contracts/Task orders may specify additional Fire Precautionary Period dates based on local forest and environmental conditions.

The Contracting Officer in consultation with the Forest Fire Management Officer, may change the dates of the Fire Precautionary period by advanced written notice if justified by unusual weather or other conditions. Required tools and equipment shall be kept in a serviceable condition and immediately available for firefighting at all times during the Contractor’s Operations or as otherwise required.

V. FIRE PRECAUTIONARY PERIOD REQUIREMENTS

Fire Prevention and Control Plan Prior to initiating Contractor’s Operations during a Fire Precautionary Period, Contractor shall submit to the Contracting Officer a Forest Service a Fire Prevention and Control Plan providing for the prevention and control of fires within the Contract Area and other areas of Contractor’s

Operations.

At least 48 hours prior to working during the Fire Precautionary Period, the contractor shall provide a Fire Prevention and Control Plan to the Contracting Officer. The plan shall include:

- Contractor emergency contact information

- USDA Forest Service local zone dispatch center contact information (obtained during pre-work meeting)

- a list of all personnel and equipment with potential for operations on site during the Fire

Precautionary Period, including list of required Fire Tools and where they will be stored

- Written plans or explanation on how contractor will assure the Fire Precautionary

Requirements are followed and upheld.

- If blasting, welding, or mastication is planned, names of the Fire Guards for those operations.

- Site specific Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) for blasting, welding, or mastication

Smoking and Camp/Lunch Fires Smoking may be prohibited except inside a building, developed recreation site, vehicle, or while seated in an area of at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials (bare mineral soil, sand, snow).

The building of camp, lunch, warming and other fires within the contract area and vicinity may also be prohibited, except at established camps or at other safe places where all flammable material have been cleared away sufficiently (material has been cleared to mineral soil) to prevent the start and spread of wildfires.

All fires and smoking materials shall be completely extinguished at end of lunch or smoking period.

Burning of Refuse No refuse of slash or other debris, such as that resulting from clearing around camps or on right-of-way, shall be burned without the written consent of the Contracting Officer.

Spark Arrester and Mufflers Operating or using any internal combustion engine, on any timber, brush, or grass covered land, including trails and roads traversing such land, without a spark arrester, maintained in effective working order, meeting either (I) Department of Agriculture, Forest Service standard 5100, “SPARK ARRESTERS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES,” (current edition); or (II) the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) recommended Practices J335, “MULTIPOSITION SMALL ENGINE EXHAUST SYSTEM FIRE IGNITION SUPPRESSION,” (current revision) and J350, 36 CFR 261.52(j), is prohibited. Information on this standard will be furnished upon request.

Passenger carrying vehicles, pickups, medium and large trucks will be equipped with a factory designed muffler system which is specified for the make and model of the respective vehicle/truck or with an exhaust system that is equivalent or that exceeds factory specifications.

a) Equipped with a turbine-driven exhaust supercharger such as the turbocharger. There shall be no exhaust bypass.

b) A passenger carrying vehicle or light truck, or medium truck up to 40,000 GVW, used on roads and equipped with a factory designed muffler and an exhaust system in good working condition.

c) A heavy-duty truck, such as a dump or log truck, or other vehicle used for commercial hauling, used only on roads and equipped with a factory designed muffler and with a vertical stack exhaust system extending above the cab.

Exhaust systems shall be properly installed and continually maintained in serviceable condition.

Fire Extinguishers and Tools on Equipment While in use, each internal combustion engine including but not limited to fuels trucks, tractors, yarders, loaders, dozers, graders, welders, generators, stationary engines, or comparable powered equipment shall be provided with at least the following:

a) One fire extinguisher, at least 5#ABC with an Underwriters Laboratory (UL) rating of 3A

– 40BC, or greater.

b) One shovel, sharp, size O or larger, round-pointed with an overall length of at least 48 inches.

c) One axe, sharp, double bit 3-1/2#, or one sharp pulaski.

Passenger carrying vehicles, including light pickup trucks shall be equipped with one (1) long-handled round-pointed shovel and one (1) ABC chemical fire extinguisher not less than 2 1/2 pounds capacity.

Extinguishers, shovels, axes, and pulaskis shall be mounted to be readily available from the ground. All tools shall be maintained in a serviceable condition.

Powersaws and other Small Portable Engines (i.e. Pumps, Generators) Each portable gasoline internal combustion engine (i.e. powersaw, pump, generator) shall be provided with one chemical-pressurized fire extinguisher of not less than 8-ounce capacity by weight, and one size O or larger, round- pointed shovel with an overall length of at least 48 inches. The extinguisher, and shovel shall be maintained in good working order. The extinguisher shall be with the power saw operator and immediately available for use at all times. The extinguisher shall not be affixed to the saw. The shovel shall be readily available to the powersaw operator at all times. Having the shovel with the gas can used to refuel the saw may be considered “readily available” if not more than 200 feet from the saw. Any fueling or refueling of a powersaw shall be done in an area which has been cleared of material which will carry fire. Powersaws shall be moved at least 10 feet from the place of fueling or refueling before starting.

Facilities Protection The grounds around all trailers, buildings, other facilities constructed or placed on or near Contract Area shall be kept free of flammable material for a distance of at least 20 feet from the wall of such structure. Burning of such flammable material shall be as prescribed by Contracting Officer in writing. Stovepipes of all wood burning stoves shall be equipped with suitable roof jacks and serviceable spark arresters. Stovepipes shall be no closer than 2 feet from any wood or other flammables unless adequately protected by metal or asbestos shield.

Fire Tools Contractor/Purchaser shall furnish and maintain (i.e., cutting edges sharp, handles sanded and tightly fitted, clean of rust and foreign material) fires tools to be used only for suppressing wildland fires. These tools are required separate from, and in addition to, the tools required for all equipment. Each independent operation shall be provided with one firefighting tool per person to equip 100 percent of the personnel engaged shall be located in the active operating area unless otherwise stated in the contract.

Approved firefighting tools are:

a) size 0 or larger round pointed shovel

b) double-bit axe, brushhook or Pulaski

c) McLeod or similar scraping/grubbing tool

Vegetation type shall be considered by the contractor in determining the proper tool mix for the vegetation types in the project area.

The proper tool mix will be stipulated within each contract and tailored to the fuel types within the project area.

Gas and Oil Storage At Minimum, gasoline, oil, grease, and other highly flammable material shall be stored either in a separate building or cabinet, or at a site where all debris is cleared within a radius of 25 feet.

Storage buildings or sites shall be a minimum distance of 50 feet from other flammable structures. Storage buildings shall be adequately posted to warn of the flammables and to prohibit smoking in or around the building. The location of equipment service areas and gas and oil storage areas shall be approved in writing by Contracting Officer.

Equipment Service Areas Equipment service areas shall be cleared of brush, litter, grass or other flammable debris for a radius of 50 feet whenever feasible given project site. If 50 feet radius is not attainable without adverse effects, then new radius shall be established with CO.

Blasting All blasting shall comply with section 205 of the FP-14. If blasting is required in any contract then the contractor must include a blast plan (including a fire watch plan) and follow all fire prevention procedures within the blasting plan.

In addition to the fire watch plan, during Fire Precautionary Periods, a Fire Guard is also required for blasting operations. See “FIRE GUARDS FOR BLASTING, WELDING, MASTICATION ACTIVTIES DURING FIRE PRECAUTIONARY PERIOD” herein

Blasting is not allowed during Fire Restrictions unless explicitly approved in writing by the Forest Supervisor and allowed by the Contracting Officer.

Welding An area within a 10-foot radius shall be cleared down to mineral soil before welding operations are started. Prior to welding, Contractor/Purchaser shall have available a round-pointed long-handled shovel, a 5-gallon backpack pump filled with water with attached hand pump, and a 5-pound fire extinguisher at each welding site. See “FIRE GUARDS FOR BLASTING AND WELDING ACTIVTIES DURING FIRE PRECAUTIONARY PERIOD” for Fire Guard requirements for welding.

VI. FIRE GUARDS FOR BLASTING, WELDING, MASTICATION ACTIVTIES

DURING FIRE PRECAUTIONARY PERIOD

When blasting, welding, or masticating during the Fire Precautionary Periods, Fire Guard(s) is required. The Contractor/Purchaser shall designate at least one representative to serve as the Fire Guard. Each such representative shall be named in the fire plan.

The fire guard(s) shall constantly perform their duties during all blasting and welding activities and for at least one hour after completion of blasting, welding, or mastication activities with potential to cause ignitions.

Fire guard on one operating area satisfies the requirements on adjacent areas if the travel time with available transportation is not more than ten (10) minutes to any of the other areas requiring such service.

Each fire guard should be physically able, vigilant, and trained to prevent, detect, and report any wildland fires and to take suppression action promptly and efficiently with available required firefighting equipment and personnel on any wildland fire that starts within the contract area.

Each fire guard shall be equipped with a vehicle and a fire tool cache consisting of a cache box, 2 four-to-five-gallon backpack pumps filled with water, 2 size 0 shovels, 2 Pulaskis, and 2 McLeod tools maintained in serviceable condition.

VII. FIRE RESTRICTIONS

Staged restriction levels are determined by the applicable Line Officer in conjunction with Fire Management Officer(s). The process is a mix of quantitative and subjective measures which allows Line Officers a broad level of discretion considering local conditions and issues when deciding to implement fire restrictions and/or area closures. Contractor/Purchaser will restrict operations in accordance with all fire restrictions that encompass the project area, unless a Forest Service Permit No. FS-7700-48 (Permit for Use of Roads, Trails, or Areas Restricted by Regulation or Order), specifically exempting them from an Order or a written determination by a Forest Service authorized officer that a permit is not required under 36 C.F.R. § 251.50(e)(1) or (2)].