|
|
GSA SCHEDULE CONTRACTS SERVE AS VEHICLES FOR LAND-USE PLANNING AND
OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL WORK
Article from Environmental
Business Journal Volume XVII No.3/4 2004
As contractors working in the land-use planning
field note, much of the work in developing resource management plans
(RMPs) for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has been awarded through
contracting vehicles established by the General Services Administration
(GSA), the federal agency that is primarily responsible for providing
products and services to the federal government. Through its contracting
“schedules,” GSA provides a wide variety of products and services
related to the environment not only to the land management agencies
but to all federal departments, agencies, and bureaus.
The principal GSA contracting vehicle for environmental services is
Schedule 899, which has several subparts. It also helps not to think
of the literal meaning of the word “schedule” when referring to these
vehicles.
“In services, we set up a contract on a one-time basis, and the agencies
look into the inventory of contracts and contractors to see what will
be available to them, and then they deal directly with the contractors,”
explains Tom Daily, a GSA program analyst. “We refer to that as a
‘schedule.’ That’s the word that was chosen, for whatever reason.”
RMP development services go through Schedule 899-1. “Through that
vehicle, qualified experts are under contract for the agency’s study
and evaluation needs, as they pertain to endangered species, wetlands,
and other natural resource management issues, as well as archeological,
historical, and other cultural resource management plans,” Daily relates.
“We establish the contracts, and it is up to the agencies, depending
on what their needs are, to find out who offers what.”
On the environmental services side, Daily estimates that the contracting
dollar volume going through GSA schedules totaled about $300 million
over the past 12 months. “I’m sure it’s probably growing; over the
years, it has continued to increase.” He hastens to add that GSA went
“non-mandatory” in the mid-1990s, which essentially means that federal
agencies have the option of going directly to the private sector rather
than through GSA. In other words, “we are competitive with the marketplace,”
Daily emphasizes. “This move to be self-sustaining causes us to operate
in a more business-like manner. If we don’t offer a good enough deal,
the agencies can contract on their own. But under the President’s
Management Agenda, we are trying to get the best value for the taxpayer.
We think we do a better job.”
On the product side, GSA has several initiatives to buy recycled goods
or other products that offer reduced environmental impacts. Daily
notes that these purchasing directives are qualified with respect
to price, availability, and performance. However, “I think it is fair
to say that our product and service offering is getting greener,”
Daily declares.
An example of the slow an steady progress towards “green” is copier
paper. Whereas buying paper made from virgin materials was once the
fallback position for federal agencies, Executive Order 13101 now
requires agencies that can’t procure paper with 30% post-consumer
recycled content to use paper with 20% post-consumer recycled content.
“There’s no justification for an agency to buy anything else, because
it’s widely available,” Daily remarks.
“Rome wasn’t built in a day,” he concludes. “Screwing up the environment
has been several years in the making, and it’s going to take several
years to clean up, but we’re moving in the right direction. The government
has been exemplary in that area, and GSA has been exemplary within
the federal government.”
GSA Environmental Service Schedules
899-1 Environmental Planning Services & Documentation:
Services include but are not limited to: EAs and EISs under
NEPA; endangered species, wetlands, watersheds and other natural
resource management plans; archeological and/or cultural resource
management plans; environmental program management and environmental
regulation development; economic, technical and/or risk analysis,
and other environmentally related studies and/or consultations;
homeland security issues including vulnerability assessments,
biochemical protection, identification of threats and protective
measures to mitigate the threats, and Crime Prevention Through
Environmental Design (CPTED) surveys.
899-2 Environmental Compliance Services: Services include
but are not limited to: environmental compliance audits; compliance
management and/or contingency planning; permitting; spill prevention/control
and countermeasure plans; pollution prevention surveys; ISO
14000/environmental management systems (EMS); and EPCRA reporting.
899-3 Environmental Occupational Training Services: Training
to include standard (off-the-shelf), customized, and/or computer-based
interactive courses, as well as converting existing courses
to electronic media.
899-4 Waste Management Services and Software: Operational
services, advice, or guidance in support of agencies environmental
compliance programs. Services may include but are not limited
to: data collection, feasibility or risk analysis, source reduction,
RCRA/CERCLA site investigation, hazard and/or non hazard exposure
assessments, waste characterization studies, review and recommendation
of waste tracking or handling systems, waste management plans
and/or surveys, review of technologies and processes impacting
waste management; furnishing or inventory of Material Safety
Data via CD, Internet, facsimile, mail or other media; reporting
and compliance software; development of emergency response plans;
Hazardous/Non Hazardous Materials Tracking software; creation
and maintenance of HAZMAT Tracking Systems.
899-5 Reclamation, Recycling and Disposal Services: Establishment
and/or operation of waste management and/or recycling systems
to include waste collection, reuse assessments, inventory, destruction,
inventory transfer and/or disposal after compliance with GSA
Office of Personal Property Management requirements outlined
in FMRs 101-42, 102-36 and 102-37 (as applicable).
899-6 Remote Advisory Services: Provide remotely delivered
advisory services in support of agency’s environmental programs.
Services include but are not limited to: assistance concerning
hazardous material spills, poisons, MSDSs, and environmental
regulations that may be provided via a variety of means including
information hotlines, websites, fax or e-mail.
899-7 Geographic Information Systems (GIS): Provide services,
advice, or guidance in support of agencies environmental programs
using GIS. Services include but are not limited to: mapping
and cartography, natural resource planning, migration pattern
analysis, pollution analysis, site selection, and emergency
preparedness planning. Provide services to support geologic
logs, topographic data, 3D/4D interactive visualization packages,
and data interpretation.
899-8 Remediation Services: Remediation services include
but are not limited to excavation, removal, transportation,
storage, treatment, and/or disposal of hazardous waste; also, preparation,
characterization, field investigation, conservation and site
closures; wetland restoration, emergency response, UST/AST removal,
air monitoring, soil vapor extraction, stabilization/solidification,
bio-venting, carbon absorption, reactive walls, containment,
monitoring and/or reduction of hazardous waste sites as well
as ordnance removal and support.
Source: General Services Administration
|
• • •
Back to Sample Articles | Back
to Environmental Business Journal
|
|
