District springs and spring runs monitoring and mapping

The St. Johns River Water Management District is seeking proposals from qualified firms to conduct comprehensive springs and spring runs monitoring and mapping across its 18-county jurisdiction in northeastern and central Florida. The procurement focuses on visual, quantitative, archivable, and georeferenced aquatic habitat assessment for nine specific springs, including Alexander Springs, Blue Spring, Silver Glen Springs, and Wekiwa Springs. Required services encompass detailed evaluations of flora (terrestrial canopy, emergent and submerged vegetation), channel morphological characteristics, water quality parameters, and fauna assessment. Respondents must demonstrate a minimum of three years of experience in springs monitoring, with successful completion of at least three similar projects within the past five years. The RFP requires a comprehensive proposal including field-collected data, processed GIS data, annual reports, and data attribute tables using ESRI ArcPro. Key submission deadlines include questions due by January 29, 2026, at 5:00 PM, with full proposals required by February 9, 2026, at 1:00 PM. Successful contractors will be expected to complete monitoring on a rotating schedule of no more than every three years, with detailed documentation of restoration areas and physical impacts.

The solicitation does not explicitly outline specific set-aside designations or restrictions for disadvantaged enterprises. The contract appears to be structured as a three-year initial contract period with clearly defined annual benchmarks and milestones. While a specific budget range is not disclosed, the comprehensive nature of the monitoring work suggests a substantial professional services contract. Contractors will be responsible for obtaining necessary permits, with the District facilitating access to Florida Department of Environmental Protection State Park permits. Special considerations include navigation of three federally designated U.S. Forest Service Wilderness Areas, where motorized equipment and mechanical devices are prohibited. The District Project Manager will coordinate access with various state and federal agencies to ensure complete mapping coverage. The complexity of the project, requiring sophisticated environmental monitoring and geospatial data collection, indicates this is a technically demanding contract likely suited to environmental consulting firms with specialized ecological and geospatial mapping capabilities.