Sole Source Justification Gray Whale Survey Photo ID UAS Monitoring Redacted.pdf

Version 2.0 19Aug2020

SINGLE SOURCE DETERMINATION USING

SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES (SAP)

FOR AN ACTION NOT EXCEEDING THE SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION THRESHOLD

(AUTHORITY: FAR 13.106-1(b)(1))

PR/RFQ No.: TBD

1. Agency and contracting activity. Department of Commerce, NOAA Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO), Western Acquisition Division, Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) and Marine Mammal Laboratory (MML).

2. Description of supplies or services required to meet agency needs (including the estimated value). This requirement is for scientific support services from Cal Poly Humboldt State University to conduct Pacific Coast Feeding Group (PCFG) gray whale photographic identification and uncrewed aircraft system (UAS)-supported surveys between Cape Blanco, Oregon and Cape Mendocino, California. The work includes twelve (12) vessel-based surveys annually to collect photo-identification imagery, UAS imagery, body condition observations, recruitment observations involving known females and calves, foraging observations, entanglement documentation, and NOAA-compatible electronic datasets. Deliverables, including imagery, metadata, survey logs, and associated datasets, will be provided to the NOAA Marine Mammal Laboratory and Cascadia Research Collective by January 1 following each year of collection. The period of performance is 08/02/2026 through 08/01/2029, including a Base Year and two Option Years. The planned contract type is a firm-fixed-price single source scientific support services contract. The total estimated value is $25,000 for the Base Year, $25,875 for Option Year 1, and $26,781 for Option Year 2. Option years are contingent upon future funding availability. The total contract value shall not exceed $77,656.

3. Identification of the single source or the brand name to be solicited. Cal Poly Humboldt State University, Marine Mammal Education and Research Program, Arcata, California. Point of Contact:

. The single source/brand name to be solicited is Cal Poly Humboldt State University.

4. Supporting rationale. Only one source or brand name is reasonably available as detailed below:

X Other - Only one source is capable - Cal Poly Humboldt State University is uniquely qualified to conduct this requirement due to its long-term continuity of PCFG gray whale research within the project region and its established integration with NOAA gray whale monitoring efforts. The required work depends on specialized expertise in vessel-based and UAS-supported gray whale surveys, photographic identification of known individual whales, body condition assessment, recruitment monitoring, and documentation of entanglement scarring and fisheries interactions within dynamic nearshore feeding habitats. The project region includes surf zones, kelp-associated habitats, rocky reef environments, and shallow benthic feeding areas where PCFG gray whales forage, requiring specialized regional operational and ecological expertise. Continuation of standardized survey methods and NOAA-compatible data collection protocols is necessary to maintain compatibility with the long-term PCFG gray whale dataset and associated analytical workflows. Observations of known PCFG females accompanied by calves provide information on recruitment into the PCFG population segment, a recognized population parameter used in population projection modeling, abundance estimation, and NOAA management products. The proposed contractor has more than twenty (20) years of regional large cetacean research experience