Heritage Survey at Rabbit Ears Manganese Mine

The Pre-CERCLA Screening Checklist/Decision Document for the Rabbit Ears Manganese site in Jackson County, Colorado, details a 2025 assessment by EPA Region 8 and the Colorado Mixed-Ownership Team. The site, an abandoned USFS hard rock mine, exhibits three waste areas with heavy metal contamination, including elevated manganese and arsenic in soil samples exceeding EPA Residential Screening Levels (RSLs) and background levels. Surface water in the lower retention pond also showed elevated manganese. The site is heavily used for recreation (hiking, biking, camping), with waste areas easily accessible and no institutional controls. Despite contamination, the EPA recommends against adding the site to the Superfund active site inventory, instead referring it to the USFS for institutional controls like warning signs or physical barriers to limit recreational exposure.

The document,

The Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland (USFS) is soliciting a Class III cultural resource inventory and recordation/National Register evaluation for the Rabbit Ears Pass Manganese Site Remediation Project in Jackson County, Colorado. The project aims to remediate historic mining contamination (Arsenic, Manganese) from the 1950s Rabbit Ears Manganese Mine, which currently sees heavy recreational use. The contractor will conduct a pedestrian inventory of approximately 22 acres, record all mine features for boundary determination and historical research, and evaluate the site's eligibility for the National Register. Deliverables include GIS shapefiles, a draft report, and a final report with site forms and photographic logs. The project has a 60-day fieldwork completion timeline from June 1, 2026, with staggered payments upon fieldwork completion, draft report submission, and final report acceptance. Contractors must adhere to specific data collection standards (NAD83, UTM Zone) and provide their own Health and Safety Plan.

This amendment to solicitation 1284LM26Q4001, dated 05/06/2026, extends the offer due date to May 22, 2026, at 5 PM MST. The purpose of this amendment is to provide a revised statement of work that includes additional safety information, a pre-CERCLA report, and a detailed map. The period of performance for the contract is from June 1, 2026, to November 30, 2026. Offerors must acknowledge receipt of this amendment by completing items 8 and 15 and returning one copy to the issuing office, or by other specified methods, to avoid rejection of their offer. The USDA Forest Service is the issuing agency.

The document is a project location map for the Rabbit Ears Pass Manganese Site Remediation within the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland, specifically the Hahns Peak/Bears Ears Ranger District. Dated April 15, 2026, the map details the project's location in Rabbit Ears Peak, Colorado, using the USGS 7.5' Quadrangle Map and NAD 1983 UTM Zone 13N. It includes a legend showing APE (Area of Potential Effect), roads, trails, and the forest boundary, along with scale information and sources for the GIS data. The document also contains a crucial disclaimer stating that Forest Service cultural resource information is confidential and cannot be reproduced without permission from a MBRTB Heritage Staff Officer, and that GIS data accuracy may vary, advising against using the products for unintended purposes.

The Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland (USFS) is soliciting a Class III cultural resource inventory for the Rabbit Ears Pass Manganese Site Remediation project in Jackson County, Colorado. The project aims to remediate contaminated materials from a 1950s manganese mine, which has three disturbed areas and retention ponds with heavy metal contamination. The contractor will conduct an intensive pedestrian survey of approximately 16.6 acres, record new and existing archaeological sites according to CO OAHP Standards, and research the mine's history for eligibility determination for the National Register of Historic Places. Key deliverables include GIS shapefiles, a draft report, and a final report with site forms, GPS data, and photographic logs, all to be submitted within a 60-day timeframe from June 1, 2026. Payment will be made in three installments upon completion of fieldwork, delivery of the draft report, and acceptance of the final report.

The Land Management Integrated Resources BPA Call outlines a Request for Quotation (RFQ) for a cultural heritage survey and recordation at the Rabbit Ears Pass Manganese Site in Colorado. The project requires a Class III intensive pedestrian cultural resource inventory of 16.6 acres and recordation/National Register Evaluation of the mine site. The call is set aside for small businesses and targets current BPA Award Holders. Key aspects include a period of performance from June 1 to November 30, 2026, and a single award call order. Evaluation criteria emphasize technical capability and past performance (pass/fail), with the award going to the lowest-priced, acceptable quote. The document also details inspection and acceptance procedures, a mandatory post-award conference, and significant FAR and AGAR clause deviations to comply with recent Executive Orders and policy updates, notably addressing DEI discrimination and unenforceable supplier terms. The USDA Ombudsman Program for Agency Protests is also detailed for dispute resolution.

The USDA Forest Service's Experience Questionnaire is a comprehensive document designed to assess the capabilities and qualifications of contractors for federal government solicitations. The questionnaire requires detailed information about a contractor's business structure, years of experience as a prime or sub-contractor, and a list of completed projects within the last three years, including contract amounts, project types, and contact information for owners. It also asks about current contractual commitments, including dollar amounts, completion percentages, and dates. The document probes past performance regarding project completion failures or performance bond issues and requires information on employees (minimum and maximum numbers, regular payroll status), available equipment, and estimated progress rates. Furthermore, it seeks details on the experience of principal individuals involved in the contract, including their positions, years of experience, and the magnitude and type of work performed. The questionnaire concludes with a certification section for the certifying official's name, title, signature, and date, emphasizing the importance of providing complete and accurate information to evaluate the contractor's ability to successfully complete the project.