SOLICITATION NOTICE
F -- Long Term Wild Horse Holding Facility Located within the Continental U.S.
- Notice Date
- 1/9/2008
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- BLM-BC NATIONAL BUSINESS CENTER* BC663 BLDG 50, DFC, PO BOX 25047 DENVER CO 80225
- ZIP Code
- 80225
- Solicitation Number
- NAR080053
- Response Due
- 2/25/2008
- Archive Date
- 1/8/2009
- Point of Contact
- Steven Santoro Contracting Officer 3032363518 Steven_Santoro@blm.gov;
- E-Mail Address
-
Email your questions to Point of Contact above, or if none listed, contact the IDEAS EC HELP DESK for assistance
(EC_helpdesk@NBC.GOV)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has a requirement for a pasture facility located within the continental U.S. to maintain up to 2,500 wild horses for one year, with 4 additional one year option periods. The following sets forth the background of BLM's needs and the basic requirements needed for each Wild Horse & Burro Holding Facility: Wild horses and burros on public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and Forest Service are protected, managed and controlled under the provisions of the Act of December 15, 1971, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1331 1340). As resource conditions and other factors warrant, excess wild horses and burros are removed from the public lands and placed in private maintenance through the Adopt A Horse program. Horses that have not been adopted because of age or other factors are being cared for on private land. Some of the horses that have not been adopted because of age or other factors are currently being cared for by Reed Brothers in Foraker, Oklahoma. The purpose of this contract is to continue the maintenance of these animals for the remainder of their lives. The possibility exists that more unadoptable animals will be removed from the range and transported to the facility. This is not the preferred management method for these animals. However, on occasion it will be necessary to place animals at the facility, on an as needed basis. It is the intent of the BLM that the number of animals at the facility will decline during the period of this contract. On December 8, 2004 Public Law 108-341; Section 142 amended the 1971 Wild and Free-roaming Horses and Burros Act (Public Law 92-195) that requires the BLM to sell excess wild horses and burros which meet the following criteria: Animals that are 11 years of age and older; or Animals that have been offered unsuccessfully at three adoptions. This may require the BLM to remove animals that meet the above criteria from the contracted facility during the course of the contract. All animals that are in too poor of health to be prepared or transported will be released back to the pastures or humanely destroyed to avoid undue suffering. All wild horses that do not meet the above criteria will remain in a free-roaming environment. The horses currently being maintained at the Foraker, Oklahoma facility are a non-reproductive herd consisting of primarily older geldings. It is anticipated that in the beginning only a few older horses will be shipped into the facility, but the number may increase as the contract continues. The horses maintained for long term will be a non reproductive herd consisting of primarily older horses in the age range of 6 to 30 years old. As horses die or are removed for adoption, it is possible that they may not be replaced with additional horses. Therefore, the number of horses may decline during the life of the contract. Objectives - To maintain excess wild horses on private land in pastures that are large enough to allow free roaming behavior and that can provide the food, water, hoof care and shelter necessary to sustain the animals in good condition; In the long-term holding, to minimize handling of wild horses by humans and sorting of the animals through chutes, gates, and corrals; To provide pasture and semi-free roaming behavior in the younger, adoptable animals, or sale animals until they are shipped to an adoption; Provide humane care of the younger, adoptable animals or sale animals that are held a minimum of 30 days prior to shipment. All horses that are gathered for adoption will be held in small pastures or corrals for at least 30 days prior to shipment; Provide humane care during receiving, holding, preparing and shipment of horses; Provide regular, on the ground monitoring of the wild horses to ascertain their well-being and safety; Provide management by individuals who are knowledgeable and experienced about the behavior and nutritional requirements of equines and the management of land for the sustained production of grass and other desirable forage plants. General Services - The contractor shall provide all necessary land, facilities, personnel, and supplies to perform the following general tasks. Facility: Provide land, forage, shelter, salt, minerals, water, and fences necessary to properly care for a maximum of 2,500 geldings. Provide supplemental feed as necessary to maintain the horses in good condition; Pastures: Pastures or combination of pastures must be of a size adequate to encourage free-roaming behavior in a natural setting; Pastures will be adjacent to and served by a corral/working facility capable of holding 300 wild horses and burros. The corral/working and pasture facilities will be designed for ease of movement, sorting and restraining wild horses for a minimum of 30 days when holding younger, adoptable animals or sale animals awaiting shipment. Provide corrals and adequate facilities to load and unload wild horses; Load, unload, sort, and segregate the BLM delivered wild horses upon their arrival at the site; Gather and hold younger, adoptable animals or sale animals for a minimum of 30 days until time for shipment to adoptions; Provide corrals, chutes, and adequate facilities to vaccinate, deworm and draw blood samples for younger, adoptable animals prior to shipment for adoptions; Gather and move horses from pasture to pasture as needed, supervise their health and welfare, provide supplementary feed as needed and maintain the facilities in a safe condition; Provide regular monitoring (at least once a week) of horses on site and a record keeping system that documents the frequency and results of observations; Provide a record keeping system that identifies the location of each horse on site and other information such as horses' overall condition, death, etc; Record the death of any animal including each animal's identification number and physical description, or, if unreadable brand, a good physical description with location of death; Dispose of the remains of dead horses. The contractor may be required, after consultation with the COR, to euthanize horses that are suffering or are in pain. Specific Services - Handling and Gathering: Horses will normally arrive at the site in trailer loads of approximately 40 head per load. The contractor will provide a telephone number where they can be reached 24 hours per day for scheduling shipments. BLM will attempt to schedule shipments for daytime arrival. However, horses shall be unloaded immediately, regardless of arrival time. The contractor will unload, sort by age, and condition, if determined to be appropriate by the Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) and/or the Project Inspector (PI), into various groups; All horses shall be handled, treated, and maintained in a humane manner. Horses in corrals and chutes shall be worked in a manner that minimizes excitement of the horses to prevent injuries from crowding or trampling; Roundup or movement of horses from pastures shall be done with the concurrence of the COR and/or the PI, except in emergency conditions when the contractor determines an immediate gather or movement is necessary for the safety and welfare of the horses. The contractor shall notify the COR and/or the PI within 24 hours after such movement. Handling of the horses will be kept to a minimum. However, it may be necessary to move the horses from one pasture to another because of range management practices; Gathering for the purpose of removing younger or sale animals will be conducted not more than 12 times per year. The gather time will be determined by the COR and/or PI. A BLM designated representative will be on site during the gather. The gather will be conducted in a humane manner. Adoptable or sale horses will be maintained separate in a corral area for a minimum of 30 days, until notified by the COR and/or PI for shipment. The Contractor will provide sufficient labor and facility to move and sort adoptable or sale horses during holding prior to shipment; The contractor will be notified by the COR and/or PI one week prior to gathering of the animals. The COR and/or PI will notify the contractor of the number of animals that need to be gathered, prepared and shipped for adoption. Corral Facility: Corrals may be permanent or temporary (portable panels). The corrals will be used to receive, hold, gather and prepare horses. The corrals must be at least 72 inches high and made of stoutly constructed material i.e. pipe, steel, lumber, etc. Barbed wire will not be allowed in the construction of corrals. Any corral constructed of mesh wire (openings no larger than 2 by 4 inches) must be equipped with at least 3 wood sight boards (2 by 8 inches) located on the upper portion of the fence. The three sight boards shall be spaced no more than 12 inches apart. Corrals constructed of pipe or wood must have openings of not more than 12 inches between horizontal members. Corrals and holding areas shall be free of protrusions and hazards. Corral gates shall be constructed of wood or pipe the same height as the fences. Gates shall be visible to the horses either from the materials used in construction or by using materials such as plywood or plastic mesh placed on the gates. The contractor will furnish a concrete pad and electricity for a hydraulic squeeze chute, which will be furnished by BLM; Two sorting corrals, each with a minimum of 5,000 square feet shall be provided; Separate corrals at the facility shall be available for confining lame or sick animals needing special care. Soil in corrals/pens must be well drained and non-alkaline in nature. Slopes within the pens shall provide for adequate drainage; Two large corrals, each with a minimum of 10,000 square feet, are to be used as holding corrals; The facility will have the following - Small pastures to maintain approximately 300 adoptable or sale horses prior to shipment. These pastures shall be accessible to the working corral, and constructed with fencing to hold foals during the weaning process. This will include small, wire mesh, low to the ground to prevent a foal from going under the fencing; The pastures shall provide sufficient water for 300 adoptable or sale animals at a rate of 16 gallons per animal/per day; Two large corrals with a minimum of 10,000 square feet (approximately 100x100 feet), to be used as holding corrals; Two sorting corrals, each with a minimum of 5,000 square feet; Adequate chutes and crowding alleys to facilitate gathering, preparing, and shipping animals; The runway must have solid sides, have at least three sliding gates, be solidly constructed of steel or lumber, be at least 36 feet in length, 28-32 inches wide, and at least 72 inches tall. Unloading and Working Facility - The facility shall have a chute(s) sufficient to safely unload and load semi-trailer trucks and small stock trailers. The chute(s) may either be permanent or temporary. The floor should be at least 4 feet high (standard height for loading and unloading both drop-center and straight-deck trailers). The height of the sides of the chute should be approximately 5-1/2 to 6 feet. Chute shall have solid sides which restrict the animal's vision and will minimize the risk that the animal will attempt to jump out of the chute. The width of the chute must be at least 32 inches. In order to load horses at the site, a crowding pen and runway at least 36 feet long and a 32 inches wide, with at least three slide gates will be required. A catwalk is required for at least one side of the chute and the runway. Fences shall be at a minimum of 72 inches high, stoutly constructed and made of lumber, pipe, or steel. Fences- Pasture perimeter fences shall be a minimum of 54 inches in height with eight inches of highly visible flagging attached to the top horizontal member of the fence every 20 feet, designed so that horses can see the fence. If determined necessary by the COR and/or PI, flagging may be required on other fencing as well. Pasture division fences shall be a minimum of 48 inches in height. All pasture fences shall consist of four strands of barbed wire or other acceptable fencing materials. Gates, rather than cattle guards, shall be used at all fence openings to keep horses in pastures. Pastures - Each contract facility shall have sufficient land and forage available to sustain a maximum of 2,500 wild horses. Pastures shall be of sufficient size to allow horses freedom of movement and exercise necessary for good health and continue their free roaming behavior. Pastures shall be free of hazards such as unfenced paved public highways. If pastures are noncontiguous, they shall be managed as separate units, with the maximum number of units being four. Horses shall not be moved from one unit to another except under extraordinary conditions and only with the permission of the COR and/or the PI. The maximum allowable distance between units is 50 miles; Sufficient land and forage shall be available for the number of horses maintained. However, as the herd is reduced by mortality or shipped to adoption, pastures may be converted to domestic livestock use by the contractor, provided the use does not interfere with the wild horses. Stocking domestic horses adjacent to or with wild horses is unacceptable; The available standing vegetation in pastures must be of sufficient nutritive quality and quantity to maintain horses in good condition. Good condition is described as follows: ribs cannot be visually distinguished, but can be easily felt; backbone is not visible; hip bones do not show; withers are distinguishable but do not protrude; shoulders and neck blend smoothly into body; The stocking rate for the site shall be adjusted as necessary to assure horses are maintained in good condition; Shelter from the natural elements shall be provided in each pasture by the topography (e.g., canyons, hills, etc.), other natural features such as trees, or manmade structures; The rangeland must be of sufficient roughness to maintain hooves in good condition without the need for trimming. Manmade enhancements that cause natural wear may be acceptable. Supplemental Feed - Supplemental feed shall be of such quality and fed in sufficient quantity to sustain the horses in good condition. Supplemental feed shall not be fed to individual horses in declining health because of age and other natural causes. Hay used as supplemental feed shall be leafy, green, well cured, properly stored and free of dust or mold, and any weed or grass not considered healthy forage for domestic animals. Except while confined in corrals, supplemental feeding is intended to SUPPLEMENT the animals during periods when inclement weather prevents grazing or during seasonal variations in forage quality. Supplemental feeding is not intended to provide all intake of forage for extended periods while in pastures; Feed will be required daily for animals maintained in the corral areas, and supplemental feed will be required for pastured animals during times when natural forage will not maintain the animals in good condition. For example, this could be during the winter months when the forage production is low; Horses and burros maintained in corrals shall be fed hay in sufficient quantity to sustain the horses in good condition (see feed requirements below). Hay used shall be leafy, green, well cured, and free of dust, mold and weeds or grasses deemed unhealthy forage for wild horses. Feed shall be provided to the animals in cribs of appropriate size for the number of animals in the pen. Feed Requirements - Adult animals: A good quality, grass/legume hay shall be fed to and made available in sufficient quantity for each animal, with a crude protein not less than 10 percent. Animals shall be fed at least 2.5 percent of body weight per day. The COR may test hay to verify quality; Inclement weather will stress animals, requiring that the volume of feed be increased to maintain their body flesh. Water, Minerals and Salt - All holding corrals and pastures shall have reliable water sources capable of supplying 16 gallons of clean water per horse, per day. The maximum distance to water in any pasture shall be 4 miles; Granulated, rock or block salt shall be accessible to all horses in each pasture; Minerals necessary to maintain the horses in good condition and that are deficient in the available forage in the pasture shall be provided to all horses in each pasture either as a supplement or added to the salt. Deaths and Disposal of Remains - Deceased horses shall be identified by freeze number, four-digit number on left hip, if possible, and physical description, and disposed of in accordance with State and/or local sanitation laws. Rendering plants may be used for carcass disposal provided no compensation is received by any agency or individual disposing of the remains. The contractor shall notify the COR and/or PI immediately if the death of a horse is suspicious and it appears that a postmortem examination should be performed by a veterinarian. The COR and/or PI shall hire a veterinarian and make the arrangements for this procedure. The contractor may be required, after consultation with the COR, to euthanize, for humane purposes, hopelessly sick or injured horses and burros. Observation of Horses - The wild horses shall be observed by the contractor a minimum of one time per week, and more frequently when conditions warrant, i.e. during flooding, tornados and fire season, to ascertain their safety and well- being and assure that fences are properly maintained. Except in emergency situations, observations shall be carried out on foot, from a vehicle or horseback. In unusual situations, such as deep snow, etc., which make ground transportation impractical, aircraft may be used with the approval of the COR and/or PI. Records that document as a minimum the date of the observation, condition of the horses, problems and concerns, and the name(s) of individuals making the observation shall be maintained. Any problems or concerns shall be reported to the COR and/or PI within 24 hours. Access - Access to the unloading and loading chute shall accommodate both sedans with trailers and semi trucks. Access shall be available during inclement weather. Observation by the Public - The site is not intended to be a public viewing area. Therefore, the contractor will prohibit access onto the private land by the general public; The contractor shall notify the COR within 24 hours of any request from humane organizations or wild horse interest groups to observe the horses. All such organizations and groups shall be allowed to tour the site only under the approval and guidance of the COR. Records - An inventory shall be kept at the site, which identifies all horses delivered to the site. A record shall be kept on the location (pasture) each horse occupies. Horses will be identified with a four digit freeze number on the hip, along with an angle freeze mark on the left side of the neck Horses that die shall be identified by physical description and if possible the freeze mark on the left side of the neck and/or the four digit freeze number on the hip. as soon as possible and noted on the inventory. Probable cause of death shall also be noted. A copy of the death records and monthly inventory will be submitted monthly with each invoice. Environmental Assessment (EA) -An environmental assessment of the facility shall be performed by BLM representatives prior to shipment of horses to the facility. It is anticipated that shortly after contract award, arrangements will be made with the contractor for the BLM Environmental Assessment Team to inspect the facility. In preparation, all offerors shall provide the following information: Listing of major rangesites within the facility; Major vegetation types within the facility; Carrying capacity by pasture; All improvements of land and ownership on a 1:24,000 scale topography map; 1/4 1/4 legal descriptions of all lands in the facility (to accommodate USFWS and SHPO clearances); List of possible point plants on the facility; Contractor's detailed management plan and rotation schedule; Contractor's supplemental feed schedules; Contractor's proposed acclamation period - period of time the animals will be held to accustom them to their new surroundings; Directions to the facility from a major highway; Name(s) of the contractor's key contact(s), phone number(s) and e-mail address(es), if any. The items listed above shall be submitted to the BLM with the proposal. Responsibilities of BLM - Veterinary Care: The BLM will provide and pay for a veterinarian to treat sick or injured animals as deemed necessary by the COR and/or PI. The veterinarian may be used to perform euthanasia on horses and conduct postmortem examinations as requested by the COR and/or PI. The contractor may be required to assist the veterinarian; BLM will be responsible for preparation of, adoptable or sale animals prior to shipment. The Contractor will be responsible for assisting the COR and/or PI in the handling and movement of animals to administer booster vaccinations and to assist in treating sick or injured animals, trimming of hooves, drawing blood for Coggins tests, and worming; BLM is responsible for notifying the contractor within 7 working days prior to conducting veterinary services for animals to be adopted or sold, except for emergencies that require immediate action; BLM will be responsible for providing the appropriate paperwork for the shipment of animals to other locations, such as health papers and state requirements for shipment of equines. This is not intended to be a complete list of the specifications. The full requirement will be posted in solicitation NAR080053, which will be available at http://www.fbo.gov on or about January 23, 2008. This requirement is 100% set aside for small businesses under NAICS 115210. Hard copies of the solicitation will not be provided. Facsimile proposals will not be accepted. Vendors must be registered at http://www.ccr.gov to be considered for award.
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