Sol_140P5424Q0050_Attach__0001-SOW.pdf

Scope of Work

Scope of Work Procurement of Services for Web Dashboard Design and Implementation

South Florida Natural Resources Center (SFNRC) Everglades National Park

1.0. GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Retaining the services of a company providing a developer/designer to work on developing a web-based dashboard for the South Florida Natural Resources Center (SFNRC). This is a 12-month base contract with four option periods of 12 months, totaling 60 months.

2.0 BACKGROUND

The National Park Service (NPS) is a Bureau within the Department of the Interior (DOI); its mission is to preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.

Everglades National Park (ENP) was established in 1947 as a public park for the benefit of the people, to preserve the ecological functions and integrity of a representative portion of the original Everglades watershed. It was set aside as a permanent wilderness, preserving essential primitive conditions including the natural abundance, diversity, behavior, and ecological integrity of its flora and fauna. ENP has received several other conservation designations because of the beauty, biological diversity, and vastness of its wetland habitats.

At the Florida State level, the park is designated an Outstanding Florida Water and an Outstanding National Resource Water, providing a high level of legal protection against nutrient pollution and other contamination. An additional federal protection is that of the Wilderness Act of 1964: the majority of ENP (86% of the current park extent) was provided this additional protection via the declaration of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Wilderness in 1978.

Three important international organizations have given recognition to the special characteristics of ENP.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1976 designated ENP as an International Biosphere Reserve under the Man and the Biosphere program. In 1979, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, supported by recommendations of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), declared ENP a World Heritage Site and inscribed the park on the World Heritage List during the 3rd session of the Committee.

Several natural resources criteria were emphasized in the inscription, including the unique geological processes of the limestone substrate, the juxtaposition of temperate and subtropical species and habitats, the complexity and integrity of biological processes in the park, the large number of bird and reptile species, and the unique threatened and endangered species that reside in the ecosystem, including the Florida panther, Everglades snail kite, American alligator and American crocodile, and the West Indian manatee. In 1987, the park received its third international recognition with its designation as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. Such a diversity of designations and protections is indicative of the special place that ENP holds in the consciousness of people from the local level through the international community.

The South Florida Natural Resources Center (SFNRC) within Everglades National Park is composed of scientists conducting scientific inquiries into the ecology of the region as a whole and evaluating the impacts that land-use and water resources management actions have on the freshwater, estuarine, and coastal ecosystems of south Florida in close collaboration with other agencies and organizations.

SFNRC consists of approximately 48 staff with responsibility for both Everglades ecosystem restoration as well as direct natural resources program management. The SFNRC scientists work to conserve and, where necessary, restore the normal suite of interactions occurring among the biological and physical elements of the environment. The SFNRC technical staff also serve on numerous Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project (CERP) teams establishing goals for ecosystem restoration, evaluating the design and implementation of restoration projects, conducting scientific studies, and monitoring field conditions to measure progress toward our restoration goals. Moreover, the SFNRC is also managing the natural resources of the Everglades National Park, coordinating with the other park units on natural resources management, monitoring the ecosystem hydrology, fauna, and flora, controlling invasive species, and providing compliance assessment to many of the construction projects currently being planned in the four park units. SFNRC technical staff also actively participate in numerous interagency or regional resource management work groups and initiatives.

Florida Bay is a major ecosystem within the park. It is a highly used recreational and ecological resource for boaters, fishers, wildlife viewers, and researchers. Recurring algal blooms, water quality issues, and reduced freshwater inflows have impacted the health of the Bay. Monitoring and understanding the conditions of Florida Bay is both timely and challenging. ENP and other partners have collected many sources of information that could be useful in tracking and detailing the Bay’s status. For instance, a water quality array, a water stage network, fish monitoring surveys, and others could be integrated into a tool to visualize near real-time conditions.

3.0 SCOPE

The National Park Service has determined that it requires the support of a developer and designer to create a web-based dashboard for our Florida Bay ecosystem. The dashboard product would allow park users, partners, and resource managers to visualize near-real-time environmental and resource conditions, explore how those conditions relate to historical data, and picture the impact of ecosystem restoration projects on Florida Bay. We expect that the variables included in the dashboard would include at minimum raw and interpolated data on flow, salinity, water quality (e.g., chlorophyll-a, turbidity), and fish abundance. Easily accessible visual products would mean that partners could quickly detect changes in the condition of the bay and respond as necessary.

Guided by the data needs of potential dashboard users, physical, hydrological, and biological parameters will be evaluated for inclusion based on quality and availability. Data will be drawn from existing ENP and partner sources, using live data links where possible to maintain an autonomous and continuously updating product. We anticipate the creation of visual products including maps and graphical interpretations of raw data, although transformative data products

(e.g., derivation of new parameters) may be included as time and data permit. We have already started work with an expert in stakeholder engagement that will organize the needs of park users including researchers, fishers, boaters, campers, and others. All work will be done in partnership with the SFNRC Data Sciences and Biological Sciences teams. SFNRC will provide staff and support to sketch, develop, and design the dashboard.

The work of building the dashboard by a web app developer is the focus of this contract. The data stored and infrastructure available in DataForEVER, our in-house relational MySQL database, will be the core of the dashboard. The developer will need to connect to this database along with additional outside data sources through an API. The contractor must have experience in handling data stored behind government firewalls including familiarity with federal information technology processes. The developer must lead all front-end website work including the creation of the client-side application, navigating proper hosting requirements, and supplying training to NPS staff for long-term maintenance. The developer may consider JavaScript and D3.js to integrate data visualizations. The contractor must have experience in thinking through data visualizations from a cognitive science perspective. Also, the contractor must have expert data science skills to work with our team to perform descriptive analyses of data and create automated flagging or data cleaning procedures before display. The contractor should have demonstrated expertise in the analysis of hydrology and ecology data (as evidenced by graduate education in a related field, publishing in scientific journals, etc.) along with demonstrated skills in developing water resources dashboards. The final web app must be compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act at least to the standards provided by the World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, following DOI guidelines.

4.0 TASKS, DELIVERABLES, and MILESTONES

The Contractor shall dedicate one qualified designer to this effort for:

Develop a dashboard detailing near real-time physical and biological conditions of Florida Bay useful to a wide audience of fishers, researchers, and managers.

o The contractor will provide a dashboard development plan for review based on input and direction from the SFNRC Data Sciences Branch by January 1, 2025.

o The first draft of a workable dashboard incorporating at least ENP’s hydrology-related data sources is expected by March 15, 2025.

o A second draft of a workable dashboard incorporating outside ENP data sources such as weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or water quality information from the South Florida Water Management District is expected by June 15, 2025.

o A third draft of a workable dashboard with all agreed-on datasets is expected by August 1, 2025.

o After several rounds of reviews and edits, the final fully functional and hosted dashboard will be completed by September 14, 2025.

o The final dashboard must be compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act at least to the standards provided by the World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, following DOI guidelines. A brief user manual describing how to use the dashboard is required.

o A half-day workshop with SFNRC’s Data Sciences Branch and a written guide to help staff manage the dashboard is expected by the completion of the project.

o Optionally, maintenance for the dashboard and additional training for NPS staff may be required beyond the base year.

4.1. Task 1 – Hold Kickoff Meeting with the SFNRC Data

Sciences Branch Lead

The SFNRC Data Sciences Branch Lead will set up a virtual kickoff meeting to discuss all tasks, roles, and responsibilities. The contractor and the government will agree on key milestones and deliverable dates at the meeting. The meeting will also include other key SFNRC staff. During the kickoff meeting, the contractor may suggest changes in the schedule and tasks to streamline the process. Any changes to the tasks and process specified here would need to be agreed on by the respective parties before proceeding with the project. We ask that throughout the project the contractor be available to respond to a written request within 2 business days unless otherwise agreed upon (e.g., leave of absence).

No Deliverable

Milestone: within 14 calendar days after the contract award.

4.2. Task 2 – Creating a dashboard development plan

With input and direction from SFNRC Data Sciences Branch staff as well as the results from the stakeholder engagement expert, the contract will prepare a dashboard development plan. SFNRC will first provide the contractor with a sketch of the dashboard. The goal of the document and presentation by the contractor will be to ensure agreement on the vision, challenges, and timeline of the dashboard design process.

Deliverable: Document/presentation dashboard development plan

Milestone: January 1, 2025

4.3. Task 3 – First draft incorporating local data sources

This task is to provide the first working view of the dashboard and to ensure a live connection with our local database. Objectives within this task will include: 1) setting up the development environment and access to DataForEVER MySQL database, 2) designing and implementing the dashboard’s front-end interface, 3) integrating data sources through APIs and ensuring real-time data updates, and 4) developing interactive visualizations using D3.js and/or other appropriate technologies.

Deliverable: First draft of the dashboard

Milestone: March 15, 2025

4.4 Task 4 – Second draft incorporating external data sources This task will include an effort by SFNRC and the contractor to establish data sources, ensure quality and availability for dashboard integration, and implement those connections to external data sources. It will also provide another opportunity for feedback on the design and usability of the dashboard. This draft will likely be canvased for external feedback. The contractor should have a mechanism for allowing testing of functionality and user experience for a testing group outside of a government firewall.

Deliverable: Second draft of the dashboard

Milestone: June 15, 2025

4.5 Task 5 – Third draft incorporating all data sources

The contractor will provide a third draft of the dashboard that includes all agreed-upon data sources. There may be additional edits or drafts beyond this third draft depending on the results of function and user experience tests.

Deliverable: Third draft of the dashboard

Milestone: August 1, 2025

4.6 Task 6 – Final dashboard

The contractor will deploy the dashboard to a hosting platform. The final dashboard must pass tests for functionality and user experience as determined by NPS. The contractor will provide a final dashboard that is compliant with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act at least to the standards provided by the World Wide Web Consortium Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, following DOI guidelines.

Deliverable: Final 508 compliant dashboard

Milestone: September 14, 2025

4.7 Task 7 – Training and education to government staff

The contractor will put on a half-day workshop with SFNRC’s Data Sciences Branch and write a guide to help staff manage the dashboard. The contractor will have the option for this to be a remote training event. The document will include a description of the general dashboard functioning, trouble-shooting instructions, routine maintenance suggestions, and recommendations for further training.

Deliverables: Workshop and document

Milestone: September 14, 2025

4.4 Task 8 – Regular dashboard maintenance

Optionally, the contractor may need to be retained beyond the base year at the discretion of NPS for routine maintenance, further staff training, and unforeseen issues that affect the functionality or performance of the dashboard (e.g., firewall issues, IT changes, database developments, etc.).

Deliverables: N/A (as needed, services will be measured by the functionality of the dashboard product)

Milestone: After the base year during option years The contractor shall ensure that all support is compliant with applicable Federal Regulations and Guidelines. Additionally, ordering activities are strongly encouraged to verify that any additional requirements about contracting for acquisition support services are met.

Due to the risks associated with contractor performance of acquisition support services, the ordering agency’s Inspector General or other interested parties may select delivery orders for these services to be reviewed for compliance with statutory, regulatory, and policy requirements.

Thus, proper documentation of the delivery order file (addressing the questions/issues described above), along with sufficient management and oversight of the contract, is necessary to protect the Government’s interests.

5.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

This work will be done remotely. SFNRC staff are working from the Krome Center 950 North Krome Avenue, Suite 301, Homestead, FL 33030.

6.0 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The Period of Performance is 364 calendar days or 730 total from the date of award.

Contract Period Beginning End Base 12 Months September 16, 2024 September 15, 2025 Option Year One

12 Months September 16, 2025 September 15, 2026

Option Year Two

12 Months September 16, 2026 September 15, 2027

Option Year Three

12 months September 16, 2027 September 15, 2028

Option Year Four

12 months September 16, 2028 September 15, 2029

7.0 PLACE(s) OF DELIVERY

Originals of all deliverables and correspondence shall be delivered to the SFNRC Data Sciences Branch Lead and copies to the Contract Officer Representative. Email addresses and contact information will be provided after the award. All the deliverables will become the property of the NPS and NPS can share and use however they see fit.

8.0 NOTICE REGARDING LATE DELIVERY

The Contractor shall notify the appointed CO and COR via email as soon as it becomes apparent to the Contractor, that a scheduled delivery will be late. The Contractor shall include in the notification the rationale for late delivery, the expected date for the delivery, and the project impact of the late delivery. The COR will review the new schedule and guide the Contractor.

Dates for milestones within the performance period are subject to alteration if agreed on by both parties, NPS and the contractor.

9.0 GOVERNMENT FURNISHED EQUIPMENT

Government-furnished equipment will only be provided if determined to be critical for the completion of the dashboard by NPS. If necessary, NPS will supply a government-issued laptop and PIV card.

The contractor will need to be or place a qualified individual who can pass a government Tier 1 background check to receive a PIV card. In addition, this individual will be required to complete the Information Management and Technology Awareness Training and other cybersecurity-related training as deemed necessary by NPS.

10.0 TECHNICAL AND PRICE SUBMISSION

Please include the developer/designer’s resume listing any relevant education, work experience, and scientific publications. In addition, we request a portfolio with samples of work including links to water- or natural resource-related interactive dashboards created by the individual or company.

The government may also request references or schedule interviews to evaluate the experience of the individual/team on similar past projects.