Recording Aerial Extent of Coastal Kelp Canopies

The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is seeking a contractor to record the aerial extent of coastal kelp canopies from imagery previously collected in 2023 and 2024 within a specified survey range. The purpose of this sole source contract is to provide long-term monitoring data on critical nearshore kelp habitats that support threatened species like salmon and orca whales. The contractor, Ecoscan Resource Data, LLC, will be required to map the aerial extent of the kelp canopies, provide low altitude kelp canopy composition observations, analyze the canopy planimeter area by species and survey range, and provide various output products such as maps at several scales. The work is to be completed in four tasks with deliverables due between March 15, 2025 and May 15, 2025. Ecoscan Resource Data has been performing this specialized work for DNR since the program's inception in 1989, and DNR has justified the sole source award due to the company's unique qualifications, consistent methodologies, cost-effective workflows, and broad expertise in this scientific field that would be difficult for other vendors to replicate.

This sole source contract opportunity is restricted to Ecoscan Resource Data, LLC, as DNR's market research found no other vendors with the required capabilities to continue this legacy data stream. The total compensation for the seven-month contract shall not exceed $86,816, with specific amounts allocated for each of the four tasks. DNR may opt to extend the contract for up to three additional one-year increments. The proposed contract costs are reasonable compared to the expected value of the consistent, high-quality data that would be produced.