Terrebonne Non Federal Levee, Bottomland Hardwood, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District

NOTE: THIS IS A SYNOPSIS, NOT A SOLICITATION. NO QUESTIONS OF A TECHNICAL OR CONTRACTUAL NATURE WILL BE ACCEPTED OR ANSWERED UNTIL THE SOLICITATION IS ISSUED. INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS SYNOPSIS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

This will be a 100% Total Small Business set-aside procurement. All qualified business concerns may submit proposals.

NAICS: 523910. Total value is estimated to be between $250,000 and $500,000.

MITIGATION BANK CREDITS, Terrebonne Non Federal Levee (TNFL), Bottomland Hardwood, Terrebonne Basin, Coastal Zone, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District

The New Orleans District, US Army Corps of Engineers (CEMVN) seeks to purchase Bottomland Hardwood (BLH) mitigation bank credits to satisfy the compensatory mitigation associated with the proposed project under permit application MVN-2011-02351-WPP in the Terrebonne Basin, Coastal Zone, Louisiana.

 As part of CEMVN’s recommended plan to mitigate for unavoidable impacts to BLH habitat caused by the construction of the Terrebonne Non Federal Levee (TNFL) Project, CEMVN will purchase FIM mitigation bank credits. The credits shall be in the Terrebonne Basin, which is coextensive with HUCs 08090302 and 08070300. The bank(s) from which credits will be purchased will be selected through a competitive solicitation/award process. CEMVN may enter into one or more contracts to purchase the amount of credits to meet the permit’s mitigation requirement at the time of purchase; however, CEMVN may purchase a lesser quantity of credits than is required. The amount of credits purchased under this acquisition is subject to the CEMVN’s ability to effectively deliver other CEMVN missions.  Any remaining mitigation requirement under the permit after CEMVN completes their purchase would be the responsibility of Terrebonne Parish to complete.  A separate contract shall be executed for each bank credit purchase.  Award will be made utilizing the lowest price, technically acceptable source selection process.

This mitigation bank must meet all of the following qualifications to be eligible to sell credits to satisfy the TNFL Project mitigation requirements.  For the proposal to be considered responsive and for the mitigation bank to be considered responsible, the mitigation bank shall:

• be approved by CEMVN and in full compliance with its Mitigation Banking Instrument (MBI), its other legal instruments (such as its conservation servitude and its financial assurances) and the standards set forth in 33 CFR Part 332; and
• provide the habitat type that matches the habitat type being mitigated; and
• have mitigation credits assessed using Louisiana Wetlands Rapid Assessment Method (LRAM); and
• meet the requirements of Louisiana Department of Natural Resources Office of Coastal Management’s requirements for purchase; and
• have a duly-recorded perpetual conservation servitude/easement.

The LRAM program provides a rapid and repeatable calculation of compensatory mitigation requirements for unavoidable impacts to jurisdictional wetlands. LRAM has several applications applicable to the USACE Regulatory Program for CEMVN in efficiently and consistently quantifying adverse impacts associated with permit applications and environmental benefits associated with compensatory mitigation projects. In this application, USACE Regulatory used LRAM to assess the anticipated impact of construction for the Terrebonne Parish NFL. This contracting action will purchase credits on behalf of the sponsors for the associated permit application. Future purchases of the additional impacts to the Bottomland Hardwoods (BLH) habitat impacted through the construction of the project outlined in the permit will be addressed in a separate action.

A Request for Proposal (RFP) will be issued on or about July 18, 2023, with a proposal due date established. Actual issue date will be shown when the solicitation is issued.  The solicitation documents for this procurement will be posted on the www.SAM.gov website and can be accessed from the link located at https://www.sam.gov You will need the Adobe Acrobat Reader for .pdf files (www.adobe.com) in order to open most files posted by the CEMVN. You are encouraged, for marketing purposes, to register as an Interested Vendor in SAM.gov.

Prospective Offerors must be registered in the Department of Defense “System for Award Management” (SAM) database prior to submittal of an Offer in response to the Solicitation.  To register, the SAM Internet address is: https://www.sam.gov. The Contracting Officer for this solicitation is Christopher Nuccio, at Christopher.Nuccio@usace.army.mil and the assigned Contract Specialist is Anedra.A.Baldwin@usace.army.mil.