TO - 2 Payette_WestZonePlanting_FY22StatementOfWork_Final121121.pdf

US Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Payette National Forest

West Zone 2022 Tree Planting

Task Order

Project Title Payette National Forest West Zone 2022 Tree Planting

1.0 General Information

Background and Purpose The Payette National Forest West Zone needs planting and related services to assist in reforestation after two major fires in 2018 (Mesa Fire) and 2020 (Woodhead Fire). Planting in needed in spring and fall 2022 to recover forest on 779 acres across 52 designated planting units. Tree species to be planted are ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, western larch, engelmann spruce. In addition, the project will repopulate whitebark pine habitat on Cuddy Mountain, a site known to have historically supported this species. Future planting of Woodhead Fire area, including whitebark pine habitat, will continue in Spring and Fall 2023 and potentially into 2024.

Scope of Task Order The Intermountain Region (R4) Planting IDIQ defines the scope of tree planting and related services in R4, including the Payette National Forest (PNF). The scope of this Task Order includes specifications on project locations, tree transport, seedling counts and stock types, materials, planting seasons, personnel requirements, pre-work meetings, and related services required for PNF West Zone 2022 Tree Planting.

Location and Description The Mesa Fire Project located east of Council, Idaho includes two planting areas (North Mesa and South Mesa) with 16 distinct planting units covering 308 acres to be planted in Spring 2022. Within the Mesa area, regeneration of shrubs, brush, forbes, and grasses is substantial. Crews will have to be diligent with scalp size to clear a space for seedlings to develop amongst the new vegetation.

The Woodhead Fire Planting Area located west of Council, Idaho includes three planting areas (Climbing Bear, Calamity Creek, and Cuddy Whitebark) with 36 distinct planting units covering 471 acres to be planted Fall 2022. Within the Woodhead area, post-fire regeneration of the understory varies across the landscape; bare soils persist in some areas.

Burned snags are frequently encountered. Steep slopes are common.

Two alternate units, one for spring and fall, have been identified for optional planting if excess trees are available.

Seedlings will be staged for pick up at the PNF Work Center at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho.

Maps of the Planting Areas are available to review in Appendix A. Maps of the distinct planting units will be provided at the pre-work meeting.

Boundaries Planting unit boundaries are designated by geo-referenced maps. The contractor will be provided geo-referenced PDF maps that can be utilized through Avenza Maps on your smartphone or tablet. Unit boundaries will be flagged by the COR where unit boundaries are not naturally demarcated by an obvious natural feature (stream, drainage, forest edge).

Stock Types The two stock types used for Payette National Forest West Zone 2022 Tree Planting are FT128 (8 cu. In) container-grown mixed pine seedlings, and 98 Super Cell (10 cu. In.) container-grown whitebark pine seedlings.

Planting Seasons The spring planting season runs approximately April - June 30 and the fall planting season runs approximately September - November 15. These seasons may be extended to adapt to road and weather conditions. The COR and contractor will maintain regular contact in anticipation of favorable conditions to begin planting. Contractor will be available to plant within 72 hours. The spring planting season may be divided into two or more planting windows to adapt to road conditions and access with melting snow conditions. For fall plantings, the contractor will have a 10-day window from the start date to complete planting to maintain the integrity of seedlings.

Safety There are snags, burned trees, loose soils, and may be other hazards in planting units. All work must be done after providing for safety first. Contractor shall maintain a stocked first-aid kit on site. Contractor shall immediately report any hazards or unsafe conditions to the Contacting Officer Representative (COR) working on-site.

2.0 Definitions

Natural Fiber Mulch Mat. Type of shade/rigid tube installatios. Compressed coconut fiber mat placed around seedlings to reduce vegetative competition and protect soil. Each disc measures 29 centimeters in diameter and 1/4-inch in thickness. Brand name is ‘Coco Weed Guards.’

Seedling Protection Guards. Type of shade/rigid tube installation. Rigid shade tube made of cardboard rectangular box 95x95mm x300mm tall for protection of seedlings from elements. Installed with two 600mm tall bamboo stakes each.

3.0 Government Furnished Property

Item Where Delivered

Container-Grown Trees Staged for pick up at the PNF Tree Cooler at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho

Shade/Rigid Tube - Seeding Protection Guards

5 boxes of 2 liter cardboard carton tree guards (count 1,250) staged for pick up at the PNF Tree Cooler at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho

Shade/Rigid Tube - Natural Fiber Mulch Mats

2 boxes of 29 cm diameter ‘Coco Weed’ mulch mats (count 480) staged for pick up at the PNF Tree Cooler at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho

Bamboo stakes 7 boxes of 600 m long bamboo stakes (count 3,000) staged for pick up at the PNF Tree Cooler at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho

Radios Available upon request at the PNF Work Center at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho

Combination Locks Combination locks will be placed on gates to allow Government and Contractors to access planting units. Combinations will be provided at the prework meeting or prior to planting.

Geo-referenced Unit Maps Unit maps will be provided at the pre-work meeting. Area maps are available in Appendix A

4.0 Contractor Requirements/Tasks

Travel Contractor is to travel to Council, Idaho, Council Ranger Station Work Center to pick up trees. The Government tree coolers are located at the Work Center at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho. Travel to and from the units will be guided by the COR and Government personnel. Maps will be provided digitally via Avenza or Field Maps, to the preference of the contractor, in addition, paper maps will be made available. Approximate driving distances are as follows:

● Spring Mesa planting distances from the Work Center: ~ 15 miles

● Fall WBP planting distances from the Work Center: ~ 30 miles

● Fall Woodhead planting distances from the Work Center

○ Climbing Bear (CB) area: ~ 55 miles

○ Calamity Creek (CC) area: ~20 miles

○ Alternate units for fall Woodhead: ~30 miles

Access

Road Access Units adjacent to open roads are specified in the Detailed Unit Information Sheet (DIS) in Appendix B. Contractor is expected to meet the COR at the Council Tree Cooler to pick up trees at the start of each work day and then travel to the planting units. Contractor is expected to have a four-wheel drive vehicle to get to units, as some units are on or near native surface roads and either spring or fall conditions may be adverse for a two-wheel drive vehicle. Some units have areas designated as Roadless Area, where no motor vehicles are allowed, these units are specified in the DUIS.

Walk-in Units If the unit is accessed via a walk-in, the distance is provided in the DIS. These units can be accessed via walk-in from the nearest road system. Some units have areas designated as Roadless Area, where no motor vehicles are allowed, these units are specified in the DIS.

Locked Gates If the unit is behind a closed gate, the contractor shall close and lock gates after passing through. Units that are located behind closed gates are specified in the DIS.

Orders, Deliveries, and Returns Seedlings Trees will initially be stored at the Council Ranger District tree cooler, located at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho.

During planting, the COR will meet the contractor at the tree cooler to provide access for tree pick up.

The number of seedlings planned for each unit is provided in the DIS. The exact quantity of seedlings received from the nursery may be higher or lower than the requested count. In the case of a seedling deficit, all acres will not be planted and the COR will direct contractor which units to exclude from the deliverables. In the case of extra seedlings, alternate units have been identified and can be planted in addition to mandatory units.

Artificial Shade and ADC Materials Will be used for a sub-set of trees planted in the Cuddy Whitebark Project Area. These materials shall be ordered 24 hours in advance of desired installation date. These materials will be available for pick up at the Council Ranger District tree cooler, located at 201 N. Dartmouth St. Council, Idaho.

Return of Government Furnished Property The contractor shall return unused Government supplies, unplanted trees, all packaging, wrapping, and materials to the delivery point (Council Tree Cooler) at the end of each planting day. Maps showing access points will be provided at the pre-work meeting.

Equipment All trees shall be planted using a hoedad hand tool for scalping and hole excavation.

Tree Planting Scalping and Clearing All debris, live vegetation, and roots shall be scalped and cleared in a 18 in. or 24 in. diameter around each planting spot as specified in the DUIS.

Tree Species or Stock Type Mix The species mix for each planting unit is specified in the DIS. The distribution of species to be planted within each unit will be indicated on planting maps provided at the pre-work meeting.

Acceptable Established Seedlings and Acceptable Existing Trees All trees shall be planted away from existing pine and aspen seedlings by a distance of 20 ft. All trees shall be planted outside the canopy drip-line of existing trees.

Shade Requirements – Existing Shade Only Trees will be planted (regardless of spacing) next to stationary shade sources, listed in order of preference with the most favored first. Planting spot selection will move down the list if higher priority stationary shade sites don’t exist. If no priority sites exist, seedlings are planted to achieve spacings as indicated in the DIS. Planting spot selection takes precedence over spacing requirements. Refer to Exhibit 05 in the R4 Planting IDIQ for an example of this method. In order of priority:

▪ Downed logs greater than 3 inches in diameter highest priority

▪ Stumps (dead trees that already fell)

▪ Standing dead trees lowest priority

▪ Do not plant open areas with no shade available (where trees did not occur) within planting unit boundaries Trees shall be planted on the north, northeast, or east side of shade material when available, at a distance of ½ the height of the shade material ( ½ the width of snags) with no exceptions.

Tree Planting – Regular Spacing Trees shall be planted to achieve the average spacing specified in the DIS. Individual spacing between trees may vary as much as 75% in any direction to attain the best plantable spot.

Shade/Rigid Tube Installation Installation of seedling protection guards and mulch mats may be performed in conjunction with the tree planting operation or may be performed as a separate operation but is to be accomplished within 24 hours of planting.

Protection guards and mulch mats shall be installed as to not damage the tree, including, but not limited to, skinning the bark, breaking the leader, damaging the root, or excessive bud stripping.

Cardboard seedling guards will be installed using two bamboo stakes slipped trough the provided slits and forced into the ground vertically so that the stakes and the cardboard guard are equal height.

Mulch mats shall be installed by sliding the mat around the tree stem using the provided slit and smoothing so that the mat is flat on the ground. Mulch mats shall be secured by skewing two bamboo stakes into the mat and driving the stakes into the ground at a depth of 2 inches.