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Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for River Restoration Services

Posted on April 30, 2008 | Filed Under Dam Removal, Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, Southeast

Serena McClain, Associate Director of River Renewal
River Renewal, Restoring Rivers

Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for River Restoration Services
Proposals due May 30, 2008

American Rivers seeks qualified vendors to provide services on projects within the eastern U.S. that restore rivers and streams. Our primary interest is in ecosystem-based riverine restoration, mainly using dam removal as a restoration tool. We may also pursue river and floodplain restoration through bypass channel fishways, rock ramp fishways, culvert replacement/retrofits, stream daylighting, natural channel design or other innovative methods to restore the ecological integrity and dynamic functions of rivers and enhance movement of fish, wildlife and other aquatic life.

River restoration services may include, but are not necessarily limited to:

Site reconnaissance/conceptual design
Feasibility studies
Engineering analysis/modeling
Engineering design
Permitting and regulatory coordination
Public education and outreach
Bid document preparation
Construction oversight
Restoration of riparian corridors
Pre- and post-project monitoring

This RFQ will result in Master Service Agreements (MSA) with up to ten (10) vendors or vendor teams. American Rivers will enter into MSAs with the selected vendors for a term of three (3) years. Projects will be allocated to the selected vendors based on a rotation with adjustments made for location, specific skills needed and quality of past work. In some cases, projects will be allocated based upon a Request for Proposals to be solicited from all or a subset of the vendors with MSAs established under this RFQ.

Download Complete Request for Qualifications

Important Dates

April 30, 2008 — RFQ Release

May 9, 2008 — Deadline for submittal of questions on RFQ (5:00pm ET)

May 14, 2008 — Deadline for subscribing to Q&A Digest (5:00pm ET)

May 16, 2008 — Q&A Digest emailed to respondents that have requested a copy. Q&A Digest posted on this website.

May 30, 2008 — Deadline for receipt of proposals to RFQ (5:00pm ET)

July 2, 2008 — Final selection. Begin development of MSAs

Questions?

American Rivers staff will not respond to telephone questions about the RFQ. Questions concerning this RFQ must be received in writing via email by 5:00pm ET on May 9, 2008 to slindloff@americanrivers.org. See complete RFQ for more detail. Questions via email should have the Subject Line: “RFQ Question.�? Respondents wishing to obtain a digest version of all questions and answers should send their email address to slindloff@americanrivers.org (Subject: “RFQ Digest Request�?) by May 14, 2008. American Rivers shall distribute the Q&A Digest via email and post it on this website by May 16, 2008.

If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water. — Loren Eiseley

Posted on April 30, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” — Loren Eiseley

* Did you know that the United States has more than 250,000 rivers? More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

River Cleanups Go Big with Supersized TrashCat

Posted on April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Cleanup, Technology

Chas Offutt, Director of Internet Strategy
Technology & Rivers

What happens when water pollution collides with an ex-NFL defensive tackle nicknamed “The Goose”? A TrashCat^TM.

Tony Siragusa, the former Baltimore Ravens pro bowl tackle, struts his stuff in a cool video that highlights United Marine International’s TrashCat^TM (watch more UMI videos). But what’s a TrashCat^TM? Good question and like WaterCrunch, I’ve never heard of such an animal (thanks for the heads up).

A TrashCat^TM, in it’s simplest form, is a giant trash eating monster that removes all sorts of floating debris from harbors, rivers and streams, marinas, recreational lakes and hydro dams and reservoirs. Kind of cool and what a National River Cleanup^TM dream!

Though a TrashCat^TM will never replace community participation during a planned river cleanup, I wonder if a fleet of these boats could aid folks like Chad Pregracke of Living Lands and Waters or even the keepers of our water, WaterKeeper.

When protected, rivers serve as visible symbols… — John Echeverria

Posted on April 29, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“When protected, rivers serve as visible symbols of the care we take as temporary inhabitants and full-time stewards of a living, profoundly beautiful heritage of nature.” — John Echeverria

*All rivers are threatened by global warming. You can help protect them by asking your Senators to strengthen and support the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S. 2191). More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

Two Outstanding Rivers You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

Posted on April 28, 2008 | Filed Under Northeast, River Heritage, Wild and Scenic

David Moryc, Director
River Heritage Campaign, Go Wild!

Last Wednesday Chris O’Shea of the Missisquoi River Basin Association testified before the U.S. House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands (I think we need a rivers and waters committee) on behalf of the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers in Vermont. U.S. Rep. Welch has introduced a bill that asks the National Park Service to study these rivers for Wild and Scenic status. We are hopeful we’ll se this happen this year as a part of our 40×40 Campaign. I hope to paddle and fish these rivers someday but until then I think Chris’ story about them in his testimony below is the next best thing.

“Good morning. On behalf of the deer, moose, ospreys, beavers, brown trout, loons, brown bears, bobcats, beavers, foxes, bald eagles, snapping turtles, fisher cats, porcupines, mink, ravens, muskrats, coyotes, geese, herons, owls, river otters, and the good people of the ten communities that lie along the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers, I thank you for hearing this testimony on why these two rivers are worthy of study by the National Park Service for possible inclusion in the Wild & Scenic program.”

“Where these rivers run there are no shopping malls, no big box stores, no multiplexes, no four-lane highways, no gated communities, no stoplights. What’s there, is open spaces of forests and fields, beautiful four-season open space that stretches from Lake Champlain to the Green Mountains and beyond. The defining factor in all that open space is the Missisquoi River, it’s broad flood plain lending itself to agriculture from the time of the Abenakis to the days of Agrimark. In summer it’s a ribbon of green, in winter a frozen white wonder. If you love to hunt or fish, skate or swim, paddle or pedal, you will love where these rivers run.”

“The Missisquoi, the name comes from the Abenaki term for crooked river, is one of the last watersheds remaining in the United States that is devoted almost entirely to family dairy farming. Even within the boundaries of the villages that the river flows through you will find family farms along its fertile banks. And while many will decry agriculture as a major cause of water pollution, it is the main reason the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers are worth the time and money to preserve them and the way of life family farming offers. Agriculture and clean water can co-exist where the people are willing and the necessary funding is available.”

“There is plenty of pollution, mostly in the form of excessive phosphorous, along these rivers, as our group has documented. Missisquoi Bay, where the river empties into Lake Champlain eighty miles from its headwaters, is impaired and the current object of an over $20 million federal Clean & Clear clean-up.”

“None of the ten villages along these two rivers has more than a thousand people living in it, and most have less than five hundred. Only three have the infra-structure necessary for further economic expansion, and this is another place where the Wild & Scenic program could aid those communities with both guidance and funding.”

“Why, you may ask, seek Wild & Scenic status for a place that is already wild and scenic? Because we want to keep it that way and without the ways and means to hold off the forces of urbanization, the greater Missisquoi Valley will eventually look just like everywhere else. As an old dairy farmer said to me recently: you know, we’re a place that can still pretty much feed it’s own, and I do believe that’s worth something to somebody.”

“Already we are seeing market forces eroding the family farms. Go big or get out is the mantra too often heard. Or go small and organic. The river flows to the sea, the milk to market, and the money to the agri-giants. If by preserving the river we can preserve the families living along it, then we will have made government that is truly of, by, and for the people.

It is these family farms that provide easy access to the river, whether you want to fish, swim, paddle, or ride your bike along the rail trail. Some of the best flatwater paddling in New England can be found on the upper reaches of the Missisquoi and the Trout is a place where a fly-fisherman can have a pool to him or herself on a Saturday morning. Big Falls will make you afraid of the river, Green River Farm will make you want to jump in it.”

“Why include the Trout River in this study? Although the Trout is much smaller, it should be included in the study as well because it is largely a microcosm of the greater Missisquoi, deep pools, shallow runs, open farm meadows, hard and softwood forests. If our studies reveal that the Missisquoi is not suitable for designation, we are quite certain that the Trout will be. And if both make the grade, as any brother and sister should, it’s a good day for the wild life.”

“Another unique factor in this designation is that the Missisquoi flows north into Quebec for fifteen miles and then turns back south into Vermont in the town of Richford. Already our Canadian friends have asked about what kind of possible joint venture this wild & scenic designation sets up between our two countries. In an era of growing fear and loathing along our borders, leave it to a great river to calm troubled waters.”

“As the river changes its flow with each new spring, so too must we change to keep it clean and healthy. We are not fighting change here, only trying to channel it in a direction that benefits the river and the living beings along its banks. It may not happen in my lifetime, but my childrens’ time a glass of clean water will become far more valuable than a barrel of crude oil. Please help us leave our children those healthy waters .”

“Thank you for your time.”

Chris O’Shea
Missisquoi River Basin Association

There is comfort in knowing… — Jeff Wallach

Posted on April 28, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“There is comfort in knowing that no matter what aspect my life takes on, this river will flow freely here, and that I might come to this place any time, in sadness or joy, alone or with someone I love. The waters will run smooth and fast, and though it will be a different river coming down out of the mountains it will also retain its constancy.” — Jeff Wallach

* Connecticut’s Eightmile River is well on its way to becoming a Wild and Scenic River. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

Toledo is Walleye Crazy!

Posted on April 27, 2008 | Filed Under Great Lakes

Katie Swartz, Conservation Associate
Healthy Waters Campaign, Great Lakes Region

It is official. Those of us in northwest Ohio have really taken our love of this fish to the next level. Yes…..we have named our minor league hockey team the Toledo Walleye.

What a great way to connect people to the Maumee River year round!

So, why would we vote walleye for a mascot? What is the significance?

Every year, during “walleye season” (late-March to mid-May), fisherman dust off their waders and head to the river near the Fort Meigs bridge, Side Cut Metropark, among other sites to catch their limit as these fish swim up the Maumee River from Lake Erie to spawn.

This yearly tradition is not only for the avid fisherman, but for those who just want to get outside and try something new. A Toledo Blade article by JC Reindl about Welcome Back Walleye Week speaks to the allure of the river and why people come to the river to fish every spring.

So, are we crazy or just proud? You decide.

A river does not just happen… — Andy Russell

Posted on April 25, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“A river does not just happen; it has a beginning and an end. Its story is written in rich earth, in ice, and in water-carved stone, and its story as the lifeblood of the land is filled with color, music and thunder.” — Andy Russell

* This week the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Copper Salmon Wilderness Act, a bill that would protect the pristine Elk River watershed, safeguarding wild salmon and old-growth forest. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

Who looks upon a river in a meditative hour… — Ralph Waldo Emerson

Posted on April 24, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“Who looks upon a river in a meditative hour, and is not reminded of the flux of things? Throw a stone into the stream, and the circles that propagate themselves are the beautiful type of all influence.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

* While gazing down at rivers on a flight from Texas, our Serena McClain, pondered the importance of our work to help communities adapt to global warming. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

There’s a river somewhere that flows through the lives of everyone. — Roberta Flack

Posted on April 23, 2008 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“There’s a river somewhere that flows through the lives of everyone.” — Roberta Flack

* Volunteering at a river cleanup is a great way for you and your family to get involved in efforts to restore your hometown river. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

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