Saltmarsh Restoration Design Services-Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Newburyport, MA THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD A SOLE SOURCE CONTRACT AND IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE QUOTES. The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Joint Administrative Operations, Acquisition & Property Operations, FWS Division of Refuges, Parker River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) has a requirement for saltmarsh restoration design services. The proposed contract action is for supplies or services for which the Government intends to solicit and negotiate a firm fixed price contract with only one source under the authority of FAR 13.106-l(b) to the following vendor: Northeast Wetland Restoration 17 Keay Rd Berwick, ME 03901 Period of performance is 02/01/2022 through 03/31/2023. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this requirement is 541620 Environmental Consulting Services; the business size standard is $16.5M. The USFWS collaborated with Northeast Wetland Restoration from 2015-2020 to pilot a suite of innovative restoration techniques to restore marsh hydrology, to increase marsh resiliency, and to benefit salt marsh sparrows. Restoration techniques developed by the owner of Northeast Wetland Restoration under this collaboration include runnels, ditch remediation, microtopography islands, and phragmites control using hydrological alterations. With technical assistance from Northeast Wetland Restoration, the USFWS successfully permitted a pilot project on 100 acres at Parker River NWR using all these techniques in combination to restore single-channel hydrology and pre-alternation flood/ebb tidal hydrology. The USFWS is not aware of any other entity or person has the skills and background knowledge to provide this restoration design. Northeast Wetland Restoration has developed significant new insight as to prior salt marsh alterations, has developed unique innovative approaches to restoration, and has demonstrated the efficacy of this approach at other locations. Additionally, Northeast Wetland Restoration has developed several innovative techniques to control invasive plants without the use of herbicides. No other firm has attempted these techniques nor displayed success in their use. Northeast Wetland Restoration has demonstrated their qualification in the 5 years of developing these restoration techniques in collaboration with USFWS. With the success of these pilot techniques and progress in permitting these techniques, the USFWS is ready to accelerate restoration on the remainder of Refuge's marsh units in order to meet challenges to climate resiliency and rapid decline of salt marsh sparrow populations. Northeast Wetland Restoration will assess the salt marsh units identified for restoration and complete restoration plans that restore marsh hydrology using several nature-based techniques. Services include: 1) Assess of land use history including existing ditches, embankments, and tidal restrictions, and documentation of existing vegetation based on species dominance using current and historical aerial photos and site visits. 2) Assess historical and current hydrology appropriate for the site, including channel dendrology and duration and frequency of flood/ebb hydrology. 3) Develop appropriate restoration designs using combination of runnels, ditch remediation, and micro-topography islands based on #1 & #2 above. 4) Attend meetings and site visits with USFWS personnel during the design process, and after providing final design to explain the restoration design. The contractor shall provide the following: 1) Restoration plans for 737 acres of marsh based on remote assessments using current and historical imagery and ground truthed. Plans shall include a primary vegetation and plant community types layer, all embankments, ditches and historical infrastructure influencing current marsh hydrology. Plans shall identify all auxiliary ditches to be treated and blockages to be removed based on tidesheds to restore primary channel hydrology, as well as identify all micro-runnels and micro-topography needed to reverse waterlogged trajectories where ditch remediation alone will not retore hydrology. 2) A table calculating total number of ditches treated, length and volume of treated ditches. 3) A table calculating the total number of micro-runnels and micro-topography and volume/area. 4) A table calculating the number and area of blockages to be removed 5) All features shall have corresponding GPS/KZM data and this data shall be shared with the USFWS. 6) Documentation of the restoration design process and metrics for successful restoration as required for permitting with Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, Coastal Zone Management, and Army Corp of Engineers. Interested persons may identify their interest and capability to respond to the requirement or submit proposals. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive proposals. However, all proposals received within ten calendar days after date of publication of this synopsis will be considered by the Government. A determination by the Government not to compete with this proposed contract based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will normally be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. If any interested party believes they can meet the above requirement within the needed period of performance, it may submit a statement ot capabilities. The statement of capabilities must be submitted in writing and must contain clear and convincing evidence that competition of this requirement would be advantageous to the Government. If parties choose to respond, any cost associated with preparation and submission of data or any other cost incurred in response to this announcement are the sole responsibility of the respondent and will not be reimbursed by the Government. Capability statements shall be submitted by e-mail ONLY as a Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF attachment to the following address:
[email protected]. NO TELEPHONE REQUESTS/OFFERS WILL BE HONORED.