2025-2026 Apalachicola National Forest Sumatra and Oak Park Common Stand Exam Project

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is seeking professional forestry service contractors to conduct a Common Stand Exam (CSE) project within the Apalachicola National Forest, specifically targeting the Sumatra and Oak Park areas. The project requires collecting stand examination data across approximately 21,073 acres, involving 3,587 individual plots across multiple compartments in Liberty, Franklin, and Wakulla Counties. Contractors must possess a minimum two-year forestry degree or equivalent technical experience and will be responsible for locating and monumenting CSE plots using GPS units, collecting comprehensive plot data including tree, sapling, and seedling measurements, and submitting electronic data through Windows PC Exam Software or Personal Data Recorders. Recommended site visits are scheduled for November 19-25, 2025, with written questions due by December 3, 2025, and sealed bids required by December 10, 2025, at 5:00 PM. The contract term spans approximately five months, concluding by May 31, 2026, with payment structured on a per-plot basis contingent upon successful data collection and United States Forest Service inspection.

The solicitation does not specify explicit set-aside designations or restrictions for disadvantaged enterprises. Contractors must provide their own equipment, including a laptop, GPS unit, and flagging materials, and carry mandatory insurance coverage, including $1,000,000 general liability per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, $300,000 automobile liability, and workers' compensation insurance. Financial consequences are built into the contract, with $150 daily deductions for data submission delays and 50 percent unit price reductions for plots failing re-inspection. While a specific total contract value is not disclosed, the project involves federal fund expenditure and requires vendors to register with MyFloridaMarketPlace (MFMP) and the Vendor Information Portal (VIP). The Department reserves the right to make a single award or no award and potentially renew the contract for three additional one-year periods, suggesting flexibility in the procurement approach.