Columbia plateau trail noxious weed control

COLUMBIA PLATEAU TRAIL ---NOXIOUS WEED CONTROL

The Columbia Plateau Trail is the abandoned Burlington Northern Railroad grade (formally called SP&S Railroad) which runs through portions of Adams County for a cumulative total of 33 miles. The noxious weed control project consists of boom spraying, spot spraying, and back-pack spraying (where applicable) pesticides on Class A, B, and C noxious weeds along an AVERAGE WIDTH of 75’ from center of the trail to both sides of right-a-way boundary usually identified by fence line. There are approximately 1,006 acres on this trail, of which approximately 133 acres will require an appropriate method of noxious weed control.

The contractor IS REQUIRED to contact the Columbia Plateau Manager and each appropriate County Noxious Weed Control Board PRIOR to applying pesticides to discuss present requirements and (or) recommendations. It is required that chemicals, rate of application, and application methods meet all Pesticide Laws and requirements of the local County Weed Control Board while in their jurisdiction. Contractor is required to spray only noxious weeds and must be careful of off target vegetation kill and to be careful of drift.
The contractor is required to forward to Columbia Plateau Trail State Park AND each appropriate County Weed Board a copy of the Pesticide Application Record (as required by the Dept. of Agriculture) for work performed in each county. Each Weed Board shall be invited to inspect the project with Washington State Parks in a timely manner following project completion. The contractor shall respray areas identified by Washington State Parks and the appropriate County Noxious Weed Board that were not properly covered by the initial spray application. The contractor shall return to the noted sites and apply chemicals at no additional costs to Washington State Parks. The contractor may also be invited by the Columbia plateau Trail Area Manager to return to spray noxious weeds that germinate during the summer season after the initial spray application and be paid at the same per acre rate as the initial application.
There will be no pre-bid project tour for this project. It is recommended that the contractor inspect that portion of the trail that is to be bid prior to applying pesticides to confirm for themselves: trail access points; barriers and gates; areas requiring special attention; county boundaries; equipment needs; and physical characteristics that might effect this project. The contractor shall apply chemicals to the various varieties of noxious weeds at the most appropriate time to affect the best vegetation kill. Depending upon which county is being sprayed, the anticipated start date for this project is August 1, 2014 and all work will

be completed by August 15, 2014.

NOTE: Due to weather and noxious weed growth considerations and with mutual agreement between the Contractor, the effected County Noxious Weed Control Board, and Columbia Plateau Trail Area Ranger (Melinda Owens), start and completion dates may be earlier or extended but all work must be completed prior to August 15. Padlock combinations to enter gates or bollards may be obtained from Melinda Owens to the vendor(s) awarded the contract(s).
Information pertaining to the project may be obtained at the following location:

Melinda Owens, Park Ranger 2

Columbia Plateau Trail State Park

110 South Main

Washtucna, WA 99371

509-646-9218

NOXIOUS WEEDS

The contractor will be required to apply chemicals primarily by spot application, some boom spraying, and when necessary, back-pack spraying to control noxious weeds found to grow along the Columbia Plateau Trail. The Class A, B, and C noxious weed list for Adams County with weed names on/in vicinity of Columbia Plateau Trail can be found @ http://www.nwcb.wa.gov.

PESTICIDES

Previous contractors have had success controlling noxious weeds on Columbia Plateau Trail by applying the following pesticides:
Escort, Weedmaster, Tordon, Banvel (Vanquish) and 2,4-D for dry land areas.

Roundup for Jointed Goat Grass

Rodeo for wetland areas (and perhaps Weedar 64 near wetlands)
The contractor must follow pesticide labels for recommendations and proper application rates for control of these noxious weed species.

INSTRUCTIONS --- REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (see attached)

Please fill out the attached Request for Quotation and mail to:

Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission

Eastern Region Headquarters

Attn: Andrew Fielding

270 9^th Street NE Suite 200

East Wenatchee, WA 98802
Quotes must be received by July 22, 2014
Under each county that vendor may bid, please write in the name of the pesticides proposed and the rate of application. Also, consider your labor, equipment, and travel expenses to come up with a total price based on cost per acre sprayed. Fill in quantity, unit, and amount, and complete the bottom of the cover page. Bid by the acre (not hourly rate). The Total, Sales Tax, and Total Amount on the first page of the Request for Quotation, lower right, is your sum total bid to spray those portions of the 75 mile long stretch of Columbia Plateau Trail that you identified. Contractor will mail all invoices to Columbia plateau Trail State Park within two (2) weeks of project completion.

NOTE: The Washington State Parks reserves the right to award the contract by county or all to low bidder depending what is the most beneficial pricing to the State of Washington.

ADAMS COUNTY

This area is approximately 43 miles long from the Franklin County/Adams County line, approximately 2 miles south of Washtucna, to the Adams County/Whitman County line located about 3.5 miles south of the town of Lamont, Washington. State Parks own approximately 917 acres in this stretch. Contractor is required to contact the Columbia Plateau Trail Area Manager and Adams County Noxious Weed Control Board before applying pesticides to discuss present requirements and recommendations. The anticipated start date will be August 1, 2014 and completed by August 15, 2014. Start dates may fluctuate annually due to weather consideration (moisture, temperature, wind, etc.) and stage of noxious weed growth.

County Weed Board contacts:
Sue Sackmann

Adams County Noxious Weed Control Board

201 W. Broadway

Ritzville, Washington 99169

509-659-1806