CUSTER GALLATIN NATIONAL FOREST: Opeeche Timber Sale TSI, Russell TSI, & Associated Slash Treatment

Project Title: Custer Gallatin National Forest - Opeeche Timber Sale TSI, Russell TSI, & Associated Slash Treatment Description of Work: This project encompasses tree thinning and stand improvement activities on the Custer Gallatin National Forest, Sioux Ranger District. The Forest Service is in need of tree thinning and associated slash treatment services to reduce the tree density and, by the deliberate selection of leave trees, improve the overall health and condition of the stand based on prescribed objectives. Tree selection and cutting of undesirable or excess trees will provide space for the leave trees to grow, reduce the incidence of insect and diseases that affect growth, and undesirable tree qualities. In the spring of 2006 and 2008, severe winter storms severely damaged and killed trees within all sub item project areas. The trees damaged by the storms in these project areas do not need to be treated the same as Contractor created slash, unless the Contractor is not able to meet the Contractor created slash specifications as identified in the Silvicultural Prescription Summary presented in the solicitation. The successful Contractor shall furnish all labor, equipment, supervision, transportation, operating supplies (except those designated as Government furnished), and incidentals necessary to complete the work. All work shall conform to the specifications outlined in the solicitation and shall be performed in an organized, systematic manner to assure services will be performed over the entire unit/s. Project Location: The project is located on the Sioux Ranger District of the Custer National Forest in Carter County, MT. The project area is divided into Sub-Item units. Sub-Items 1.01 to 1.17 and 2.01 through 2.02 are associated with an active timber sale and work will not commence until harvest activities are completed and the CO authorizes work to begin. All of the items consist of cutting undesirable understory ponderosa pine trees while selecting trees with desirable characteristics for release and treatment of activity created slash. NOTE: No trees 8-inches dbh (diameter breast height) or larger, or with blue or orange paint, shall be cut. No timber sale boundary marked trees with paint shall be cut. No section or quarter section trees marked or inscribed or tagged shall be cut. No blazed property boundary trees shall be cut. All sub-items are located 4 to 15 road miles southeast of Ekalaka, MT in T1N, R58E, Sections 1, 2, 3, 12, 13 & 35; T2N, R58E, Section 35; and T2N, R59E, Section 31. The main access routes are Highway 323 and Forest Roads 3101. Pre-bid Tour: A pre-bid tour will be conducted on 25 August 2015 at 1000 hours Mountain Daylight Time. Interested parties must contact Scott Elmore at the Sioux Ranger District Office (phone 605-797-4432) no later than August 24th at 1600 hours to reserve a participant slot on the tour. If no reservations are made for participation in this pre-bid tour by the close of business on August 24th, the pre-bid tour shall be cancelled without further notice. Interested parties shall take reasonable steps to ascertain the nature and location of the project area and the work to be completed, as well as the general and local site conditions which can affect the work and cost of performance. Failure to take the actions described in this paragraph will not relieve the Contractor from the responsibility of properly estimating the difficulty and cost to successfully perform the work, or from successful completion of the work without additional expense to the Government. The solicitation will be available on approximately 13 August 2015, and can be downloaded from this website at that time. A Firm-Fixed Price contract is expected to result from the solicitation.