Forest Health Aerial Surveyor Services

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, through the Forest Service’s CSA Intermountain 2 office, is seeking a total small business set-aside contract for aerial surveyor services during the 2026 forest health survey season, with an option to extend for up to four additional years. The contractor will conduct aerial mapping of tree mortality and damage across the Rocky Mountain Region, including Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Kansas, using a government-provided aircraft and a government-issued tablet loaded with the Digital Mobile Sketch Mapping System (DMSM). Work is scheduled for June 1 through October 31, 2026, with a maximum of 240 billable hours per contract year. The contractor must possess specialized expertise in western forest pests, forest types, GPS and GIS technologies—particularly ESRI products—and aviation experience, and must be qualified as a Fixed Wing Flight Manager Special Use to operate independently. All data collected is government property and must comply with Section 508 accessibility standards and be freely shareable with the public. Proposals are due by May 18, 2026, at 1700 MST and must be emailed to sarah.cotton@usda.gov with the solicitation number in the subject line. The solicitation requires submission of past performance information for five relevant contracts, limited to a combined 8 pages of experience and performance documentation. The contract is structured as a firm-fixed-price requirements contract with one base year and four one-year options, each offering up to 240 labor hours. Evaluation will be based on experience in aerial forest health survey work, past performance in government contracting, and price, with no formal trade-off process but a best-value determination that considers added value beyond the minimum requirements. Experience factors that receive higher consideration include prior work in Mountainous terrain, qualifications as a Fixed Wing Flight Manager Special Use, knowledge of Rocky Mountain tree species, and compliance with IAT.gov standards. Past performance will be rated for recency, relevancy, and quality using adjectival scales and confidence levels to assess risk. The acquisition is a total small business set-aside under NAICS code 541370 with a $19 million size standard, and the contractor must be registered in SAM with a valid UEI, certified as a small business, and satisfy all representations and certifications including anti-discrimination and DEI compliance under AGAR 452.203-70. Contractors must