Timeline

Location:​ Pierce County, WA 
Posting Date: ​December 9, 2024 
Closing Date: ​December 23, 2024 
Anticipated Start Date: ​January 6, 2025

Summary

Washington Conservation Action (WCA) is looking for a stewardship forester to provide technical assistance, forest planning assistance, outreach and engagement services, and cost-share enrollment support to small forest landowners in Pierce County. This position will support a 5-year project focused on developing climate-smart wood supply chains in Pierce County, Washington.

Organizational Overview

WCA is a statewide environmental advocacy organization that advances environmental policies and pushes for actions that equitably address climate pollution, restore Puget Sound, sustain our state’s forests, and protect our democracy. We develop, advocate, and defend policies that ensure environmental progress and justice by centering and amplifying the voices of the most impacted communities.

Background

In 2023, Washington Conservation Action (WCA) and seven partners were awarded a 5-year, $25 million USDA Climate Smart Commodities grant to develop a climate smart wood economy in the Pacific Northwest. This project supports two pressing needs: a growing demand for climate-smart wood from the architecture, engineering, and construction community, as well as the increased recognition of climate-smart forestry as a powerful tool to mitigate climate change.

WCA is advancing this effort specifically in Pierce County by supporting the growth of a countywide climate-smart wood supply chain using several complimentary approaches:

  • Incentivize landowners to implement climate-smart forest management practices through a cost-share program.
  • Support supply chain connections and market creation for climate-smart wood by contracting with local sawmills.

The cost share program will support 35-45 landowners through April, 2028 to help defray the costs of implementing climate-smart practices. Eligible practices include forest management planning, first-entry commercial thinning, brush management, prescribed burning, climate-adapted species planting, tribal first foods habitat restoration, and improved slash management, among others. All practices correspond to a Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) practice code, and landowners must enroll in the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to be eligible for funding.

The market development component of this work, not included in the scope of this RFP, includes contracting with 2-3 sawmills over the course of the project to increase transparency and traceability of wood products through the local supply chain. Transparency on wood origins and management practices is necessary to connect responsibly sourced wood products to end users seeking those products, thereby driving market payments toward climate-smart forestry. In addition to providing incentive payments for increased transparency, we are also providing price premiums to both landowners and sawmills for climate-smart wood transactions. These premiums are designed to connect climate smart wood to markets and recognize the value of this wood.

Required Qualifications

  • 5 years of combined team experience administering cost-share programs and supporting landowner enrollment in cost-share programs.   
  • Existing relationships with small forest landowners in Pierce County. 
  • 5 years of combined team experience writing forest stewardship plans for small forest landowners in Pierce County.   
  • Existing institutional role in public engagement with small forest landowners in Pierce County.   
  • Existing institutional experience promoting the sustainable use, conservation and restoration of natural resources in Pierce County.   
  • Experience conducting wildfire risk assessments and integrating prescribed burns into forest management planning to improve wildfire resilience.  

Scope of Work

There are two areas of work the contractor would lead on, in collaboration with WCA.

Provide technical assistance to forest landowners in Pierce County from enrollment through completion of the program. Currently, the grant expires in April, 2028, which means we anticipate enrolling our final landowners in Q4 of 2027. Our goal is to enroll 35-45 landowners over the course of the project. Key activities in this category include: 

  • Identify and engage with small forest landowners in Pierce County, particularly BIPOC and other historically underserved landowners who may be interested in our cost-share program.    
  • Ensure landowners meet eligibility requirements before facilitating the enrollment process. Support those who are not already enrolled by connecting them with their local FSA office.  All landowners must be enrolled in the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to participate in the program.  
  • Conduct site visits and provide technical planning services to landowners including writing forest management plans.    
  • Provide ongoing support and advisory services to landowners throughout the project.    
  • Connect landowners to contractors, consultants, or other work crews who are able to complete implementation of climate-smart management practices.    
  • Work with WCA to ensure we have all necessary documentation to meet USDA reporting requirements.  

Conduct outreach and engagement to socialize the program and recruit landowners to participate. We have already created some outreach materials but need support figuring out the most effective ways to disseminate these materials and recruit landowners to the program.   

  • Create an outreach and engagement plan.   
  • Engage with landowners at local events (tabling, short presentations, etc.).  
  • Prioritize engaging with BIPOC and historically underserved landowners.   

There are two additional areas of work that WCA would lead but would seek collaboration with contractor. 

Evaluate incentive program effectiveness through ongoing data collection and an end of program analysis. WCA already has a framework to guide this work. We envision collaborating with the contractor to capture lessons learned throughout the project with an eye toward future replication of this program.  

Support connections with local sawmills. A large part of this project is focused on working with sawmills to increase transparency in the wood supply chain and connect them to landowners producing more sustainable wood. If the contractor has connections to specific log buyers or others in the local wood products industry, we would appreciate support in building connections and involving these downstream actors in this project. 

Deliverables

The deliverables for this project are broken down into five categories: Outreach & Engagement, Technical Assistance, Program Evaluation, Market Development, and Other. Each category contains specific activities and an estimated timeline for completion. Please see the deliverables table for a detailed overview of the expected work.

Budget

Funding for this work is supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under agreement number NR233A750004G042. 

Applicants must submit a completed budget spreadsheet using the template provided below. Suggested budget items include personnel, travel, overhead, and equipment. Total budget not to exceed $372,500.  

Application Process

This RFP represents the requirements for an open and competitive process. Proposals will be accepted until 5:00 pm (PST) on December 23, 2024. Any proposals received after this date and time will not be considered. To apply, applicants must complete the following:  

Here is a deliverables table for your review, if it is helpful. Proposals (containing the Application and Budget) should be provided in Microsoft Word format and attached to an email to Ava Stone at ava@waconservationaction.org. The subject line should read Response to Climate-Smart Forestry RFP. 

Final contractor terms and conditions will be negotiated upon selection of the winning bidder for this project. All contractual terms and conditions will be included in a Master Services Agreement and will include scope of work, budget, schedule, and other necessary items pertaining to the project.  

Applicants are invited to submit questions requesting clarifications or explanations of the information contained in this RFP. Please direct all proposal or contract-related questions to Ava Stone at ava@waconservationaction.org.  

Scoring Criteria

Projects will be scored on the following criteria. A total of 25 points are available. 

Criteria Points 
Successfully demonstrate that required qualifications are met (1 pt per qualification).  6 
Demonstrates at least 5 years of combined experience providing technical assistance to forest landowners in Western Washington including writing forest management plans and conducting site visits. 5 
Demonstrates applied experience conducting outreach and engagement to educate and support small forest landowners. Includes at least one recommendation for a specific workshop or event.  5 
Proposal demonstrates a qualified team that has the capacity to support 35-45 landowners in Pierce County from January 2025, through April, 2028. If the team history on comparable work is limited, describe how the team plans to be successful, despite significant applied experience. 4 
Proposed budget demonstrates a commitment to fair compensation and efficient use of funds. 5 

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