Establish a viable population of eastern oysters at the east side entrance of the newly restored town pond in portsmouth, rhode island

The Corps of Engineers is issuing this Sources Sought announcement seeking qualified sources to establish a viable population of eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica) along the east side entrance of the newly restored Town Pond in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. Town Pond is located near the entrance to Mount Hope Bay at the northern end of Aquidneck Island. The oyster restoration site is located just inland of the railroad bridge that crosses the entrance to the site and measures approximately 85 ft along the shore by 80 ft from mid-intertidal to subtidal, which translates to 0.16 acres (~7,000 ft2).

Requirements: The site must be fully prepared with aged shell cultch in 2008 and seeded each year for two years (2008 and 2009). The target planting density for this project is 200 oysters per square meter, thus this project will require the planting of ~155,000 juvenile oysters on cultch each year for two years. Shell length of oysters at the time of planting shall be one inch. Oyster larvae for this project shall be produced using locally collected oysters from Narragansett Bay for broodstock, and the batch oysters produced will require health certification prior to being moved to the restoration site if transported from outside the immediate vicinity of deployment. All work must be conducted in accordance with current Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and CRMC Biosecurity Board specifications.

Interested parties should submit a capabilities package to include the following: business classification (i.e. HUB ZONE, etc.), the resumes of key personnel as well as qualifications and experience in performing the work requirements stated above. Please include documentation of prior experience in this type of work. Responses are due by 23 May 2008 and should be addressed to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742, ATTN: Mr. Norman Krause (978-318-8833; Norman.a.krause@usace.army.mil).All questions regarding this Sources Sought Announcement should be directed to the identified point of contact. The Government will not pay for any material provided in response to this market survey nor return the data provided. This is not a request to be placed on a solicitation mailing list nor is it a Request for Quotations (RFQ) or an announcement of a solicitation.