Fence Removal

DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK Fence Removal and Clean-up Specifications Division 100 - General Specifications 110 - Scope of Contract-It is the intent of this contract to dismantle, remove and dispose of woven wire deer fences on the Monongahela National Forest. Much of this fencing is old and may be knocked down in many areas. The fence material is often rusted/broken and may be buried under vegetation. a. The deer fences are located in wooded areas and may contain large woody material (live and/or dead trees) on the fence. Most fences also have saplings/brush intertwined in the fence. All deer fences have walk-through gates, to remove on each fence. 120 - Location See Project Map. 140- Contractor Representative Before work starts, the Contractor shall designate a person knowledgeable of contract requirements to act in their absence. The Contractor or authorized representative shall be at the job site whenever work is in progress. In the absence of the Contractor, the authorized representative may receive instructions from the Contracting Officer. 150 - Protection of Existing Structures The Contractor is required to protect existing improvements such as pipelines, powerlines, roads/traffic gates, plantings, etc. which may be located in the project area. The Contractor shall be required to repair or replace such improvements if damaged as a result of their operations. Division 200 - Technical Specifications 210 - Project Description These Items consist of taking down and disposing of seven foot high woven wire deer fence. The fencing is comprised of two 4' rolls of fencing stacked on top of each other. Metal or wood posts, 2x4 lumber, gates, miscellaneous wire, and fasteners are also included for removal. 211- Fence Material - Most fence material is old and has been exposed to harsh weather conditions for many years. The fencing will most likely be rusted and have vegetation intertwined in the material. All fence wire, hog rings and other wire must be removed from Government property and disposed of properly. 212- Steel Posts - Steel posts must be pulled and removed from Government property and disposed of at the contractor's expense. 213- Fasteners - All nails and fence staples must be completely removed from live trees. Saw log Sized Trees (greater than 11 dbh) - Remove all nails, staples, and embedded metal. In some cases deeply embedded wire cannot be removed without moderate damage to the tree. In this case, the tree will be girdled. In areas nears roads or trails, the COR has authority to designate trees to be felled rather girdled. All trees felled will have a stump height of 6 inches or less on the uphill side of the stump. All stumps will be cut parallel to the ground; no angular cuts on stumps will be accepted. Pole Sized Trees (less than 11" dbh) - If nails or embedded metal cannot be pulled free, then the tree will be felled or girdled if not along a road or recreational trail. All trees felled will have a stump height of 6 inches or less on the uphill side of the stump. All stumps will be cut parallel to the ground; no angular cuts on stumps will be accepted. Red painted or blazed Forest Service property boundary trees with ingrown fence will not be cut down. 214 Wooden boards and posts - All 2'x 4 boards shall be removed from trees, and all 4'x 4 or larger posts shall be pulled or cut flush with the ground. All wooden materials shall be removed from Government property. All holes in the ground created by removal of round or square wooden posts will need to be backfilled to reduce tripping hazards. Soil from the edge of the hole will be pulled in to assist in backfilling. 215 Gates - Walkthrough (man) gates will be removed from each site, unless otherwise designated by the COR. 216- Brush Cutting - All brush cut to remove the fence will be completely severed at a height no greater than 6 inches above the ground on the uphill side of the tree. All stumps will be cut parallel to the ground; no angular stumps are permitted. 217 - Downed Woody Material (Live/Dead Trees) - Deer fences are located in a wooded setting and there are often trees that fall onto the fences. Trees shall be bucked up and removed off the fence. The downed woody material shall be bucked up into short sections to allow enough space for equipment to operate while minimizing residual damage to surrounding trees and saplings. 220 - Vehicle Operation Project areas may be reached by Forest Roads that are accessible by standard pickup during the normal working season. The Government assumes no obligation to plow snow or do special maintenance to keep roads open. Some project areas may be on a gated road and require signing out a key with the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR). ATV's (All-Terrain Vehicles), UTV's (Utility Terrain Vehicles), and small Skid Steers may be operated around the perimeter of the fence to accomplish fence removal activities only. The operator is subject to fines if found using ATV's or UTV's in manners other than for the purpose of fence removal. Not all fences can be traversed along their entire perimeter. If at any time the Forest Service inspections indicate that soil damage or excessive rutting has occurred due to the use of equipment such damage shall be repaired by the Contractor at his/her expense. 230 - Project Area Clean Up The contractor is responsible for proper disposal of fencing materials as indicated above. Any and all additional trash and debris generated in the performance of this contract shall be removed from Forest Service land. 240 - Project Area Materials Staging Staging areas large enough for gathering, sorting, piling, etc. of removed materials prior to removal from Forest Service land are permitted in each project area. The contractor must notify the Forest Service as to the desired location for each staging area. Location will be mutually agreed upon prior to start of removal operations. 260 - Work Plan and Schedule (All Items) Prior to the start of work, the Contractor shall prepare a work plan and schedule that demonstrates when work will be completed within the performance period described in Deliveries of Performance. The Contractor shall advise the Contracting Officer or COR of any periods that the Contractor will not be working as outlined in the work plan. The Contractor may update the work plan as needed. Work Plans shall be accepted by the Contracting Officer before work may commence. The Contractor will notify the COR as individual fence removal is completed. The Government may set the order in which fences shall be removed. This is to avoid conflict with other activities that may be occurring in the fence removal areas. The government reserves the right to direct the contractors operations to alternate sites if soil conditions are unfavorable for operations. 270 - Safety It is the Contractor's responsibility to ensure that the work environment is safe for themselves, their employees, and the general public. If the Contractor feels that a requirement of this contract would place any of the aforementioned in a unsafe environment, then work should stop on that area of work and the Contractor should contact the COR (Contracting Officer's Representative), or CO (Contracting Officer) if COR is unavailable. Work in other areas that the Contractor does not view as unsafe should continue. The Contractor is required to follow all applicable OSHA standards while working on the job site. In addition, it is required that the successful contractor utilize appropriate personal protective safety equipment/clothing, which may include, but is not limited to, a hard hat, leg protection, eye protection, ear protection, and hand protection, DOT approved ATV helmet (if using ATV's or UTV's) while working in the project area. 280 - Measurement & Payment The estimated linear feet of the fences have all been measured using GPS technology. The Contractor may at any time after award request remeasurement of any project area. The request shall be made in writing to the contracting officer. Remeasurement will be made within the established boundaries. If remeasurement indicates a variance of 15 percent or less, the Contractor shall bear the cost of remeasurement and payment will be based off the current contract amount. If remeasurement indicates a variance greater than 15 percent, payment will be based on the remeasured footage and the Government will pay the cost of remeasurement. Payment will be authorized upon bid item completion and inspection/acceptance (by Forest Service Personnel). Partial payments will not normally be made on any resultant contract which totals less than $1,000 or occurs more frequently than once a month. 290 - Equipment Cleaning Provisions - Non-native Invasive Plant Control To help prevent the spread on non-native invasive plants, Contractors shall ensure that prior to moving any equipment to a work site on the Allegheny National Forest that they clean all soil, seeds, vegetative matter or other debris that could contain or hold seeds from equipment. Equipment shall be considered free of soil, seeds and other such debris when a visual inspection does not disclose such material. Equipment includes, but not limited to, the following: mechanized spreaders, augers, shovels, off-road equipment used for transport of materials (ATV's and trailers), heavy equipment (dozers, backhoes, excavators, or other tracked and/or wheeled vehicles), and power hand tools (chain saws, brush cutters, etc.). The government reserves the right to request for equipment cleaning if the contractor is moving from an infected project site to a project site that has no invasive species present.