Kaye Chester

Kaye Chester serves as the Technical Contact for the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, providing critical technical oversight for procurement initiatives aligned with forest health and public safety objectives. In this role, Chester collaborates closely with contracting officers to define technical requirements, evaluate vendor proposals, and ensure compliance with federal standards for environmental stewardship and operational safety. Their expertise guides acquisitions centered on forestry support activities, including hazardous tree removal, trail and infrastructure maintenance, and ecological restoration services. Chester’s technical input ensures that contract deliverables meet the U.S. Forest Service’s rigorous standards for sustainable land management and public access. Chester maintains consistent working relationships with specialized contractors such as CLIVUS MULTRUM, INC, and VALLEY TRACTOR & EQUIPMENT, INC, both of which provide niche equipment and services tailored to remote forest operations. These partnerships reflect a preference for vendors with proven experience in wilderness logistics, arborist equipment, and low-impact terrain machinery. The working relationship is characterized by collaborative pre-solicitation engagement, on-site technical evaluations, and post-award performance monitoring to ensure mission-critical outcomes are met under challenging field conditions. Chester’s procurement portfolio reflects a 100% commitment to small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, consistently directing opportunities to small businesses with demonstrated capacity in forestry support. This reflects a deliberate strategy to foster local economic resilience and ensure contract performance by firms with intimate knowledge of Pacific Northwest forest ecosystems. No other socioeconomic categories are utilized, underscoring a singular focus on broad-based small business inclusion. The agency’s procurement activity is exclusively focused on NAICS 115310—Support Activities for Forestry—encompassing services such as vegetation management, erosion control, trail construction, and wildfire mitigation support. Chester’s technical domain expertise lies in evaluating contractor capabilities for field-based, environmentally sensitive operations requiring specialized equipment, certified personnel, and adherence to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) protocols.