Superior National Forest Non-Native Invasive Plant Herbicide Treatment

The USDA Forest Service seeks herbicide treatment of approximately 121 acres of non-native invasive plant infestations across approximately 200 miles of roads and trails on National Forest System land in St. Louis, Lake, and Cook Counties, Minnesota, with proposals due July 8 and questions due July 2 at 12:00 PM Eastern Time. The procurement is a Total Small Business Set-Aside under NAICS 115310 (Support Activities for Forestry), with a size standard of $11.5 million.

Place of performance is Duluth, Minnesota. Field work runs July 13 through October 2, 2026 for the base period, with four option years (each June 15 through October 31). The contractor must treat six invasive plant species (spotted knapweed, common tansy, St. Johnswort, wild parsnip, Canada thistle, and bull thistle) using approved herbicides (Milestone and Escort) and shall furnish all labor, equipment, herbicides, dyes, surfactants, supervision, transportation, supplies, and incidentals except those designated as government-furnished property.

The contractor must have at least two employees holding current Minnesota commercial pesticide applicator licenses and demonstrate field identification capability for all target species. Treatment effectiveness must achieve 80% or higher on average across all sites, with re-treatment required for sites below 50% effectiveness. GPS recording of all application sites and submission of shapefiles are required. Service Contract Labor Standards apply at $19.13 per hour plus fringe benefits for landscaping and ground keeping work. Evaluation weights past performance most heavily, assessed via a questionnaire for three relevant contracts completed within three years, with price evaluated for fairness and reasonableness. Award will be made as a firm fixed-price contract to the highest technically rated offeror with acceptable or neutral past performance. Amendment 01, effective June 24, updated evaluation method language, removed the Experience Questionnaire attachment, and added FAR 52.222-43 (Fair Labor Standards Act price adjustment for multiple and option contracts).