Hoosier National Forest Dam Vegetation Removal-Herbicide

Hoosier Dams Herbicide Treatment Dam Herbicide Contract Statement of Work Introduction/Background The Hoosier National Forest is in south-central Indiana and contains approximately 203,000 acres of National Forest System (NFS) lands. The two zones are the Brownstown Ranger District and the Tell City Ranger District. Brownstown Ranger District includes Brown, Jackson, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, and Orange Counties. Tell City Ranger District includes Dubois, Crawford, Orange, and Perry Counties. In the Tell City District the Forest Service owns and operates 6 large dams. This contract is to help maintain the trees and brush that grow up on the mowed and riprap portions of the dam facilities. The attached exhibits for each dam show the areas that will be treated on each site. The specifications below will provide direction and details on the treatments for the different locations along with other conditions of this contract. General Treatment Specifications The treatment for various patches of woody species will depend on factors such as, location, patch size, the time of treatment. Woody plant treatments may include the use of hand methods, machinery, and chemicals to eliminate woody species in the treatment areas. Only the use of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved, non-restricted use chemicals are to be used. Other EPA approved herbicides may only be acceptable with prior approval of the contractor officer representative (COR). The Contractor shall provide all expertise, labor, supervision, services, herbicides, carriers or adjuvants, materials, equipment, tools, supplies, transportation, licenses, permits, worker personal protective equipment (PPE), and incidentals necessary to perform the required work, for which the desired outcome is in strict accordance with the standards in the contract. The Contractor shall perform and accomplish the work in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and ordinances. Contractors shall use selective herbicides or a selective method to reduce damage to surrounding water bodies. The Performance Work Statement will list any additional necessary requirements. Herbicide applicators shall use typical herbicide concentrations according to all EPA approved manufacturer herbicide directions. The Contractor will mix herbicides in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions and any applicable laws or regulations. Application operations shall be conducted as indicated on the herbicide label, including approved concentrations, rates/acre, and environmental conditions. Only chemicals labeled for aquatic use in or adjacent to water bodies shall be used for this project, such as the aquatic formulation of glyphosate (Rodeo ® or equivalent product) and/or Imazapyr. The Contractor is responsible for the cleanup of any spills and will notify the COR immediately of any spills that occur. The contractor must have herbicide labels and copies of safety data sheets (SDS) of chemicals used on site. The contractor must provide copies or notification by telephone or email of herbicide labels and SDS of chemicals to the COR prior to the start of work. This contract does not allow any indiscriminate broadcast applications that would have application directly onto water surfaces. Where appropriate, vehicle or ATV/UTV/OHV mounted sprayers is permissible to apply herbicides. Other spot spraying typically involves the use of backpack sprayers or other hand techniques. Use of suitable dye is required to indicate where applicators have sprayed or used herbicides. Contractors cannot use ATVs with liquid cargo tanks exceeding 15 gallons. For woody trees, shrubs and vines over 1 inch in basal diameter, the stems will be cut at ground level and immediately sprayed with herbicide. Other work will involve foliar herbicide application to smaller stemmed woody vegetation in the specified areas. Foliar application will occur after full leaf expansion and applicators will apply herbicides in a systematic fashion to provide coverage to all woody vegetation leaves in the areas specified. Contractor shall apply foliar spray in such a manner to thoroughly wet foliage, but not to the point of runoff to avoid runoff into the local water bodies. -- 1 of 8 -- Hoosier Dams Herbicide Treatment Contractor will conduct treatments to at least 95% of the specified project area(s) of the target vegetation as identified in the Performance Work Statement and Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan. Contractor will conduct treatments at a sufficient interval and concentration to meet or exceed the kill rate of 90% for all target vegetation (refer to Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan); or values specified in the Performance Work Statement. The Contractor shall progressively accomplish the work at a rate that will result in completion of the work within the time specified as determined by the final accepted work schedule for the awarded contract. Forest Service COR or Contract Inspectors may conduct visual inspection of woody treatments on site to check on their progression to ensure the Contractor is following the specified requirements of the contract. The COR may conduct random inspections and sampling to verify acceptable kill rates to target woody vegetation. At the discretion of the COR, the Forest Service will accept work based on visual inspection, to confirm kill rates to target vegetation. Recordkeeping and Daily Logs/Diary Minimum record requirements include copies of hazardous material handling certificates, copies of safety data sheets (SDS) of chemicals used, and the location of the waste site and/or use destination locations. SDS and product label must be provided to the COR digitally before work begins. Contractor will maintain an accurate daily treatment log of work activities and chemicals applied in each treatment areas per contract, with a copy made available to the COR at billing or upon request. At a minimum, the Contractor shall provide to the COR,…