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Request For Proposals for Technical Support Contractor(s) To Support The Walker Basin Conservancy

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Nevada, United States
Non-Profit
RFP

Requesting Organization: Walker Basin Conservancy, 615 Riverside Drive, Suite C, Reno, NV 89503 Contact: Amy Gladding, Senior HR and Operations Manager, 775-463-9887 x116f amy.gladding@walkerbasin.org.

1.OVERVIEW

The Walker Basin Conservancy (Conservancy) invites interested not-for-profit and for-profit individuals and organizations to submit proposals for technical support services to support the Conservancy's land and water acquisition strategy in the Walker River Basin in Nevada and California. Multiple contractors may be selected from this RFP and executed contracts will be for up to three (3) years.
2.ORGANIZATION AND PROGRAM BACKGROUND

The Walker Basin Conservancy (Conservancy) is leading the effort to restore and maintain Walker Lake while protecting agricultural, environmental, and recreational interests in the Walker River Basin. The Conservancy manages thousands of acres of land in the Basin and oversees revegetation activities, habitat enhancement and ongoing research. The Conservancy acquires, protects and monitors acquired water resources to ensure that they are used as intended for riparian and watershed stewardship and to increase stream flows to Walker Lake.
The Conservancy is responsible for implementation of the Walker Basin Restoration Program, created by Public Law 111-85 (2009) with the primary purpose of restoring and maintaining Walker Lake.
For more information about the Conservancy, please visit our website at www.walkerbasin.org.

3.SCOPE OF WORK

Applicants may respond to the following Scope of Work, in whole or in part. Consideration will be given to all submittalsf applicants who respond in whole will not be favored over applicants who respond in part. Contracts will be awarded to the respondent whose proposal is most advantageous to the Conservancy with price and other factors considered. If responding in part, please include the number and title from the Scope of Work for the services being proposed.

Technical Support Scope of Work
Qualifications and Knowledge Required:
Experience with complex Excel modeling
Knowledge of general water law in the West and Nevada-specific preferred
Knowledge of agriculture water rights, management, usage, and valuation of those rights
Knowledge and ability to track and build databases for varying uses including ongoing tracking of assets
Knowledge and ability to develop and implement detailed monitoring programs for instream rights

1.Water Asset Management
a.Contractor(s) will provide support to the Conservancy staff and other contractors to track and manage Program-acquired water assets (natural flow, storage water and groundwater), ensure assets are kept in good standing and assist in the development of disposition strategies of assets.
b.Assist with development of various activities related to Program-acquired storage water including the development of short and long-term lease opportunities.

2.Hydrological Research, Monitoring and Evaluation
a.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy and other partners by utilizing existing water and hydrologic modeling programs to inform future Conservancy operations.
b.Once legal protection for instream flows has been secured. Contractor(s) will utilize existing models and develop protocols and support systems to track Program-acquired water through the Walker River system down to Walker Lake.
c.Update and amend the existing model for the restoration of Walker Lake (Walker Lake Restoration Model) with new data and revised scenario parameters with regard to instream flows and overall lake volume. Produce written updates summarizing the revised forecast for restored flows and Walker Lake salinity levels.

3.Water Acquisitions and Transaction Support: Acquisitions Preparation and Transactions Support.
a.Contractor(s) will work with the Conservancy staff and other consultants to gather, organize and analyze information about existing and potential transactions as part of deal development, due diligence, and valuation, including, assembling information on water right values and yield.
b.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy on an as needed basis with advice and guidance on planning, operations, and monitoring of decree and storage water administration and management.

4. Appraisal Reports
a.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy's contract appraiser in completion of a individual and programmatic land and water rights appraisals. The contractor's primary role will be to assist appraisers in the development of information and analysis to support the appraisals. Contractor(s) will also complete property-specific valuation reports to support the development of purchase offers and to document values for closed agreements upon request by the Conservancy.

5.Title Review
a.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy is Nevada State Engineer (NSE) water right file research, chain of title and conveyance of title research for water rights acquisitions, including preparation of written report for each.
b.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservation in preparation and filing of Reports of Conveyance and affidavits as required to confirm title.

6.Change Application Support
a.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy in the preparation and filing of water change applications with NSE, including water right mapping, and other filings with NSE to maintain water rights in good standing.
b.Contractor will provide support to the Conservancy in the change application process including defense of protested water right change applications or related matters.

7.Strategic Planning and Reporting
a.Contractor(s) will assist the Conservancy with strategic planning including attending strategy meetings, carrying out data collection and modeling, preparation of memos, and contributions to the Conservancy strategy and business plan.
b.Assistance in evaluation of alternatives for management, use, or disposal of acquired assets.
c.Assistance on assessment of management and operation with regard to irrigation diversions, districts, ditch companies and other entities.

8.Meetings, Coordination, and Travel
a.Contractor(s) will participate in meetings and conference calls as requested by the Conservancy in order to promote communication and coordination with regard to the Conservancy among the Conservancy staff and other consultants.
b.Contractor(s) will travel to Reno and the Walker Basin when necessary to meet with the Conservancy staff and other partners.

9.Contract(s) may be amended to add additional activities associated with pending and future obligations of the Conservancy.


4.CRITERIA FOR COMPETITIVE APPLICATIONS

Application Instructions
1. Address each item in the "Application Outline" below.
2. Limit your application to a maximum of six (6) pages and minimize supplementary materials (we will follow-up as needed).
3. Email a Word or PDF version of your application to amy.gladding@walkerbasin.orgf in the subject line, please indicate Response to RFP for Technical Support - [name of respondent].
4. Applications must be emailed no later than 5:00 pm PDT on August 19, 2021.
Application Outline
Your description (in no more than six (6) pages) of your and/or your organization's qualifications should include the following elements:
1. Contact information: Please provide a Primary Contact Person, Entity Name, Address, Phone, Email, Website, and EIN or SSN.
2. Organizational mission and profile: Please describe your and/or your organization's mission, expertise, and experience. Please include geographic service area, number of clients, how long you have been in business, and your annual budget. If you have an annual report, please include as an attachment. If you have a website or Facebook page, please provide that information as well.
3. Key staff: Please provide names and brief biographies of key staff. You may attach resumes of key staff as appropriate.
4. Past experience: Please detail your experience in providing contractual services similar to those required by the Conservancy. List recent (last two to five years) accomplishments, events and previous services related to the expertise you will be offering.
5. Method of evaluation: Describe how you currently evaluate the effectiveness of the services you provide to other clients/partners and how you will evaluate the effectiveness of the services you provide through this Program.
6. Fee structure: Estimate the program/service fees and describe the fee structure for each of the services you provide including a breakdown of travel expenses. Please highlight any non-profit discounts on the services you provide.
7. References: Please include contact information of three references (clients or partners) who have benefited from your services as described above.
Selection Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated and scored on the following criteria:

1. Knowledge and track record: Applicants must demonstrate expertise and experience in those areas described in the RFP.
2. Experience in Nevada region: Preference will be given to providers who have experience working in or are otherwise familiar with the Walker River Basin.
3. Capacity and flexibility to deliver services: Providers must demonstrate that they have a degree of flexibility in how and where services are delivered and that they have the ability to tailor content and delivery methods to meet the specific needs of the Conservancy.
5.ELIGIBLE OFFERORS/CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Eligible applicants are individuals, institutions of higher education, other nonprofits, commercial organizations, international organizations, and local, state, and Indian tribal governments. If multiple institutions are involved, they should be handled through sub-contracts.
Offerors must notify the Conservancy in writing with this submission of any apparent or actual conflicts of interest, including organizational conflicts of interest, that are known at the time of this submission or that may arise during the life of this award, in the event an award is made. Conflicts of interest include any relationship or matter which might place the Contractor, the Contractor's employees, or the Contractor's subcontractors in a position of conflict, real or apparent, between their responsibilities under the award and any other outside interests, or otherwise. Conflicts of interest may also include, but are not limited to, direct or indirect financial interests, close personal relationships, positions of trust in outside organizations, consideration of future employment arrangements with a different organization, or decision-making affecting the award that would cause a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts to question the impartiality of the Offeror, the Offeror's employees, or the Offeror's future subcontractors in the matter. Upon receipt of such a notice, the Conservancy will determine if a conflict of interest exists and, if so, if there are any possible actions to be taken by the Offeror to reduce or resolve the conflict. Failure to resolve conflicts of interest in a manner that satisfies the Conservancy may result in the proposal not being selected for award.
By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, the Offeror warrants and represents that it is eligible for award of a Contract resulting from this solicitation and that it is not subject to any of the below circumstances:
Has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an Contract with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Governmentf or
Was convicted (or had an officer or agent of such corporation acting on behalf of the corporation convicted) of a felony criminal violation under any Federal or State law within the preceding 24 months, where the awarding agency is aware of the conviction, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and has determined that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Governmentf or
Is listed on the General Services Administration's, government-wide System for Award Management Exclusions (SAM Exclusions), in accordance with the OMB guidelines at 2 C.F.R Part 180 that implement E.O.s 12549 (3 C.F.R., 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 C.F.R., 1989 Comp., p. 235), "Debarment and Suspension, " or intends to enter into any subaward, contract or other Contract using funds provided by the Conservancy with any party listed on the SAM Exclusions in accordance with Executive Orders 12549 and 12689. The SAM Exclusions can be found at https:zwww.sam.gov/portal/public/SAMd


REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND RFP DEADLINES

August 19, 2021 Proposals must be received electronically as an email attachment by Amy Gladding (amy.gladding@walkerbasin.org) by 5:00 PM PST.

Proposals must be provided in Word format or searchable PDF.

August 26, 2021 The Conservancy will notify all RFP applicants of their status (acceptance or rejection).

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