SCOPE BACKGROUND PROJECT OBJECTIVE

Transcription

1 A SCOPE The TAC Environment Council is undertaking a project that will be carried out in two phases and will ultimately lead to the development of national-level guidance on compliance with the Migratory Birds. B BACKGROUND Over the past decade, various approaches to applying the provisions of the Migratory Bird were considered by the federal government. In 2010, it was determined that new permitting provisions in regulation to allow limited take of migratory birds in certain circumstances would not be further considered at this time. Permitting was being considered where avoidance guidelines had been followed and where permit conditions supported migratory bird conservation. Environment Canada (Canadian Wildlife Services) has since sought to encourage proponents responsible for infrastructure and other sectors where a risk of incidental take exists, to develop beneficial management plans (best management practices) in consultation with the Canadian Wildlife Service. C PROJECT OBJECTIVE The purpose of the first phase is to produce a synthesis of best management practices for compliance with the Migratory Birds from a wide range of sectors (transportation, utilities, oil and gas, etc.) that would be aligned with direction from the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS). The synthesis is expected to provide the foundation for carrying out the second phase in the project which will involve the development of a nationallevel transportation sector specific guidance on compliance with the Migratory Birds Convention Act and Regulations. Production of the guide is not within the scope of this project. The objectives of the first phase are: To perform research on current and acceptable approaches to meet the intent of the Migratory Bird used in various jurisdictions in Canada and in the United States as the co-signatory to the Convention;

2 To gather information on common activities across related sectors that affect migratory birds, their eggs and nests and reasonable mitigation measures currently used or considered for future use; To consult with the Canadian Wildlife Service to receive feedback on the proposed practices; To prepare a synthesis of best management practices currently in use in transportation and other operations including rail, forestry, electricity, gas and oil. To develop a national-level approach for implementation of best management plans for dealing with migratory birds, nests and eggs. Testing of the approach by development of a best management plan for one of the following areas of interest: o Structural maintenance and rehabilitation o Land clearing, forestry and vegetation management D METHODOLOGY The consultant shall present the approach and methodology on how to best achieve the project objectives. The consultant shall also demonstrate their understanding of the project goal and objectives, and soundness of the approach/methodology to be followed to satisfy the project objectives. The consultant shall provide details of tasks to be undertaken to accomplish the project, and to achieve the project objectives and deliverables. The consultant shall present a detailed work plan for various tasks and a milestone for each task. The consultant shall describe, with justification, the work/activities to be undertaken and the level of effort to be put on each task. The consultant shall also demonstrate that all the project tasks can realistically be accomplished within the constraints of available budget and time. 2

3 E PROJECT DELIVERABLES The final major project deliverable will be the synthesis of best management practices for compliance with the Migratory Birds and, shall include an executive summary, table of contents, detailed results of the project work, and references. Additional project deliverables will be: Status reports and presentations regarding work in progress to the project steering committee. It is expected that a Consultant team member will attend in person all project meetings scheduled in conjunction with TAC s spring and fall technical meetings. Attendance at all other project meetings will be by teleconference. Consultation and presentations to TAC committees with operational interest in the topic such as the TAC Structures Standing Committee (SSC) and the TAC Maintenance and Construction Standing Committee (MCSC). Presentation of project results and an overview of the final synthesis of practices to the Environment Council when the project is completed. It is expected that a Consultant team member will attend in person to provide those presentations. A final PowerPoint presentation describing the project work and synthesis of best management practices. A brief description of the proponent s vision for carrying out the second phase in the project which will involve the development of a national-level transportation sector specific guidance on compliance with the Migratory Birds Convention Act and Regulations, to be carried out upon completion of the first phase. The proponent should include a brief demonstration of the methodology, timeline, and estimated budget required to complete the second phase. The project deliverables shall be provided as follows: Electronic files of all text, tables and figures and all other supporting material shall be delivered to TAC as part of the contract. All final products become the property of TAC. Electronic version of all deliverables in Microsoft Word. Electronic version of the complete final report (text, graphics, appendices, etc.) in Adobe PDF. Electronic version of the document in Adobe InDesign is requested. Electronic files for all graphics and images (e.g. tables, figures, charts, road signs, photos, etc.) used in the report must be provided to TAC with the final document. Text within a graphic or figure must be able to be accessed by TAC, to facilitate translation. o Acceptable graphic formats are Adobe Illustrator or Adobe Photoshop. Embedded graphics in Word documents are not acceptable. 3

4 o Spreadsheets must be created using Microsoft Excel. Three or four colour photographs in TIF, JPG or EPS format, and with a resolution no less than 300 dpi, must be submitted for possible use on the publication cover. Credits should be included with each photo. Rights for use of the photos, if required, must be obtained in advance of submission by the Consultant. Furthermore, deliverables must adhere to the guidelines outlined in the TAC Project Handbook. The handbook contains an electronic template, pre-set with TAC standards for fonts, headers and footers, the TAC logo, reference format, etc. Consultants are asked to maintain integrity with the standards provided in the template. Requests for variations from these standards must be discussed with the TAC project manager. The handbook can be found online at: ( ). 4

5 F PROJECT SCHEDULE The consultant should propose a project schedule that will deliver a high-quality, comprehensive best practices synthesis in a reasonable timeframe. It is expected that a contract will be signed and work will begin in April 2015 and that final deliverables will be submitted to the project steering committee no later than early March A presentation of the project results would then be scheduled for TAC s Environment Council as part of the spring meetings in Milestone Date Proposal due March 12, 2015 Contract Award Late March, 2015 Consultant Initial Meeting with PSC (Ottawa) April 15, 2015 Development of the Project April 2015 May % Draft Documents August15, 2015 Consultant Fall Meeting with PSC (Charlottetown) September, 2015 Submission of 100% Draft Document January 15, 2016 Submission of Updated 100% Draft March 3, 2016 Document Presentation of the Final Document to April, 2016 PSC, and EC during the TAC 2016 Spring Meetings (Ottawa) Final Document Submission May, 2016 It is expected that a consultant team member will be present in room for the spring and fall project meetings to discuss the progress. The consultant team is responsible to give the final presentation by a consultant team member in person to the listed committees. The Project Steering Committee may require several reviews as the document is being drafted. A minimum of three weeks should be allocated for this review prior to any meeting or teleconference. Proponents should give allowance for this time when planning their study completion schedule. The Project Steering Committee wishes to be an active participant in the 5

6 study development, and therefore, will be interested in the Project Steering Committee/consultant interaction proposed. The Project Steering Committee will review each draft document, and the consultant shall address all comments. G LEVEL OF EFFORT A maximum budget of $60,000 plus applicable taxes is available for this project. A project cost breakdown will be requested at the beginning of the project. Invoices will be permitted on completed and approved items. An amount equal to 10% of each invoice will be retained until the final deliverables have been completed and accepted by the Project Steering Committee and approved by the Environment Council. H PROPOSALS To be considered for this project, proponents must submit a proposal to be received no later than 13:00 EST on March 12 th, One (1) hard copy of the proposal as well as an electronic version in Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat format shall be delivered to the undersigned with the below bulleted information following the Evaluation Criteria specified in Appendix A. A hard copy version of the proposal can be received by mail after the deadline, as long as the electronic version is received by the deadline. Scope and objectives The proponent is to demonstrate a clear understanding of the project s objective/scope and is to describe the challenges that might be encountered in its execution. Methodology The proponent is to describe the approach to be used to accomplish all components of the project. The proponent is to identify major tasks to be undertaken, all resources to be used, including sources of information and data, consultation with CWS, analyses and testing that are planned, and means to be used to make recommendations. Sample Deliverable The proponent is to include a sample of how the guide may be presented and delivered. From the tasks listed in Section C; the proponent is to demonstrate, in principle, the content to be included to present the findings from a review, the level of scientific detail and practical information to be described, the adopted format, and the graphics to be presented. This sample is to provide a basis for evaluating the proponent s ability to deliver the material requested in a practical manner. The proponent is to limit the sample deliverable to a maximum of two (2) pages. Work plan The proponent is to show the time budgeted for the various components of the project; is to include deadlines for approvals through the various stages, and is to show that adequate time and resources are devoted to all aspects of the project. 6

7 Project team The proponent is to identify the project leader and team members (including sub-consultants) and is to include resumes with examples of similar projects that have been worked on. The proponent is to show the role of each team member and the expected amount of time devoted by each individual to all aspects of the project. References The proponent is to name three organizations for which they have completed substantial projects of a related nature. The proponent is to include the organization s address and the name and telephone number of an individual familiar with the project. Fees breakdown The proponent is to include a total project cost, a detailed fees breakdown of the various components of the job, an itemized professional fees list for each member of the team, and administrative, travel and other expenses and disbursements per stage. Professional fees per team member should be matched for each component of the job to show hours assigned by each team member per component. Conflict of Interest Declaration The proponent is to include in the proposal a disclosure, including information on possible sources of significant financial or organizational conflict of interest in conducting the research. For example, under certain conditions, ownership of the proposing agency, other organizational relationships, or proprietary rights and interests could be perceived as jeopardizing an objective approach to the research effort, and proponents are asked to disclose any such circumstances and to explain how they will be accounted for in the study. Proposals will be evaluated based on the methodology described and presented by candidates (evaluation criteria are presented in Appendix A). Team qualifications, the expertise that will be brought to the project, and the time that will be invested will also be considered in the evaluation. The main body of the proposal shall be no more than ten (10) pages (single sided). The cover letter, detailed pricing form, project schedule chart, organizational diagram and résumés should not be included in the page count. Proposals shall make use of a twelve (12) point font, single spaced, with one (1) inch margins for the ten (10) pages of the main body of the proposal. The Project Steering Committee reserves the right to interview selected candidates prior to selecting a Consultant team. 7

8 I PROJECT ADMINISTRATION A project manager will act as a liaison between the project steering committee and the Consultant for this project. All administrative and technical inquiries should be addressed to the undersigned. The Project Steering Committee will be responsible for reviewing project deliverables and ensuring that the work of the Consultant successfully accomplishes the objectives set out herein. A contract for consulting services must be established with the Consultant before work can begin. TAC will administer a SharePoint site for collaboration and documentation transfer for this project. The working language for this project is English. For more information, contact: Luay Mustafa, Project Manager 2323 St. Laurent Blvd Ottawa, Ontario K1G 4J8 Tel: x 231 Fax: (613) lmustafa@tac-atc.ca 8

9 Appendix A: Evaluation Criteria for Project Proposals Evaluation Criteria Weight Understanding of project s scope and endproduct requirements 20 Approach and methodology toward development of the best management practices Adequacy of work plan to meet required timeframes Qualifications and experience of Consultant team and project coordinator and their proven competence in relevant related work Understanding of TAC Pooled Fund Project Framework and Guidelines TOTAL 100 Proposals that do not satisfy a minimum of 50 % of the weight set for each category and a minimum of 70% of the overall total evaluation weight will not be considered for the project. 9