Intent to Sole Source Rodenticide and Rodenticide Supplies

NOTICE TO SOLE SOURCE Pursuant to FAR 13.106-1(b)(1), USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), intends to issue a sole source firm fixed price purchase order to Bell Laboratories, Inc (UEI:NMMDQM8LMC74) for Rodenticide and Rodenticide Supplies. This is a Notice of Intent to Sole Source announcement only. This is not a request for formal proposals or quotes. Interested sources who submit data are responsible for appropriately marking information if it is proprietary in nature. The Government will not reimburse participants for information they provide. This is a notice of intent to sole source with fair opportunity for all responsible sources to see the notice and respond if capable. Information provided is strictly voluntary. Please email responses to Kim Yen Tu at [email protected] no later than the time indicated below. Telephonic inquiries will not be honored. Closing date for submission is 08/28/2023, at 10:00 a.m. central time. _______________________________________________ United States Department of Agriculture Sole Source (Including Brand Name) Justification under Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items (FAR 13.5) 1. Identification of the agency and the contracting activity. Requesting Agency: USDA APHIS WS National Wildlife Research Center 4101 LaPorte Ave. Fort Collins, CO 80526 Contracting Activity: USDA, APHIS, MRPBS, ASD Minneapolis Procurement Branch Butler Square, Fifth Floor 100 North 6th Street Minneapolis, MN 55403 2. The nature and/or description of the action being approved. Wildlife Services (WS) has entered into an Interagency Agreement with the U.S. Air Force 611 Civil Engineer Squadron, Installation Management Flight (CES/CEI) to eradicate the Pacific rat (Rattus exulans) and White-toothed woodrat (Neotoma leucodon) from Wake Island Airfield (WIA) and the entirety of Wake Atoll. WS and Island Conservation (IC) will deliver the rodenticide Brodifacoum-25W Conservation (hereafter, called “B-25W”; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Registration Number 56228-36) by helicopter, hand broadcast, bait stations, and spot baiting. This project is collectively known as the Wake Atoll Rat Eradication Project (WAREP). WS seeks to procure B-25W, Zinc Phosphide Tracking Powder, Protecta Bait Stations, and the Conex containers for shipping these supplies. These rodenticides and bait stations are the primary means of eradicating these two species. 3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs (including the estimated value). 220,800 pounds of Brodifacoum-25W Conservation (EPA Reg. No. 56228-36): • B-25W is a pelleted pressed grain cereal rodenticide containing 0.0025% Brodifacoum that is registered by APHIS with EPA under EPA Reg. No. 56228-36 as required under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). B-25W is only manufactured by Bell Laboratories in Madison, WI. Bell Laboratories is the only EPA-approved (legal) producer of this registered pesticide and Bell Laboratories manufactures the products as required by the EPA-approved Confidential Statement of Formula for EPA Reg. No. 56228-36. B-25W is the only registered pelleted pesticide product that is registered by EPA for island conservation use patterns and is designed for wet, tropical, or subtropical environmental conditions. Furthermore, B-25W is the only pelleted rodenticide with a supplemental label registered by EPA specifically for an expanded set of uses on Wake Atoll that are required for this project. For this project, the B-25W be packed in 800-pound bailer bags and loaded into an OxBox with a plastic liner. Each OxBox must contain two bailer bags and three one-pound desiccant bags. Each pallet must be closed with pallet straps and palletized on heat-treated debarked pallets. The OxBox capacity must be maximized for optimal packing in a 20-foot Conex container. The outside of each OxBox must be labeled with English-language toxic labels and stamped with a batch reference code. 5,000 grams of ZP® Tracking Powder (EPA Reg. No. 12455-16): • ZP® Tracking Powder is a rodenticide tracking powder registered by Bell Laboratories with EPA that contains 10% Zinc Phosphide (EPA Reg. No. 12455-16). ZP® Tracking Powder must be manufactured in accordance with the EPA-approved Confidential Statement of Formula by Bell Laboratories. ZP® Tracking Powder is also the only rodenticide tracking powder containing zinc phosphide with an EPA-approved supplemental label for use on Wake Atoll. This supplemental label allows use in dry areas where rats will likely pick up the powder on their feet or fur, including areas along walls, by gnawed openings, in corners and concealed places, in places between floors, and between floors, walls, and in structural voids and spaces. 2,000 Protecta Bait Stations that meet the following specifications: • Measures 11 1/2" x 12" x 6 1/2" • Must meet supplemental label requirements for Brodifacoum-25W Conservation • Made of injection-molded plastic to withstand the most demanding indoor and outdoor baiting situations • Features a durable hinge that opens and closes over 10,000 times without fracturing • Is tamper-resistant and keeps the bait away from livestock, pets, and other animals • Locks with a locking screw and unlocks with an Allen key wrench • Large enough to accommodate six rats • Can hold 450g of rodenticide • Protects from dust, dirt, and moisture, so the rodenticides stay fresh longer 10 20-foot Conex Containers that meet the following specifications: • Must have a seaworthiness certificate • Must be pressure washed and dried before loading • Must be kept closed to prevent cross-contamination when not being loaded • Must be sprayed with Ortho Home Defense Insect Killer before shipping • Four glue boards will be placed inside each container, two in the front and two in the back, one high and one low • SDS and labels must accompany shipping documentation Estimated Total: $746,872 4. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition. 41 U.S.C. § 1903 - Special emergency procurement authority, up to $15 million for contingency operations as authorized by FAR 13.500(c) and implemented by FAR 13.501(a). 5. A statement demonstrating the unique qualifications of the proposed contractor or the nature of the action requiring the use of the authority. The federal pesticide law (FIFRA) requires that pesticide products are registered with EPA prior to use and that production, labeling, sale, and use of these products follows all EPA requirements. For this project on Wake Atoll, there is only one legal manufacturing source of the two proprietary pesticide products required and of the associated shipping and application equipment purchases. The first, B-25W, is only manufactured by Bell Laboratories in Madison, WI. Bell Laboratories is the only EPA-approved (legal) producer of this registered pesticide and Bell Laboratories manufactures the products as required by the EPA-approved Confidential Statement of Formula for EPA Reg. No. 56228-36. B-25W is the only registered pelleted pesticide product that is registered by EPA for island conservation use patterns and is designed for wet, tropical, or subtropical environmental conditions. Furthermore, B-25W is the only pelleted rodenticide with a supplemental label registered by EPA specifically for an expanded set of uses on Wake Atoll that are required for this project. The second, ZP® Tracking Powder, is a rodenticide tracking powder registered by Bell Laboratories with EPA that contains 10% Zinc Phosphide (EPA Reg. No. 12455-16). ZP® Tracking Powder must be manufactured in accordance with the EPA-approved Confidential Statement of Formula by Bell Laboratories. ZP® Tracking Powder is also the only rodenticide tracking powder containing zinc phosphide with an EPA-approved supplemental label for use on Wake Atoll. The other application and shipping equipment included in this procurement are also manufactured exclusively by Bell Laboratories and need to be shipped along with the two registered pesticides described above. Bell Laboratories produces B-25 Conservation for the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service which is the EPA registration holder for B-25W. B-25W is only approved for the control or eradication of invasive rodents on Islands or vessels for conservation purposes and is only for retail sale to employees of federal agencies responsible for wildlife management. Bell Laboratories does not sell the B-25W or the ZP® Tracking Powder with the EPA-approved supplemental label to distributors or other parties for resale. They are the only vendor that can provide these products. 6. A description of efforts made to ensure offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable. No other offers were solicited because Bell Laboratories, Inc is the only (sole) manufacturer of these rodenticides registered with EPA and these products are Bell Laboratories’ proprietary formulations. FAR 5.202-2 Unusual or completing urgency. A delay in the acquisition process would harm the government’s ability to ship the product on the only barge that goes to Wake in the early spring of 2024 therefore jeopardizing the Wake Atoll Rat Eradication Project. 7. A determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable. The supplied quote to the government from Bell Laboratories is fair and reasonable based on researched prices from manufacturers of other rodenticides. Bell Laboratories provides these pesticide products “at cost” for these island conservation projects and do not make a profit. 8. A description of the market research conducted and the results or a statement of the reason Market Research was not conducted. No market research was conducted because Bell Laboratories, Inc is the sole manufacturer of these rodenticides. 9. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition. The statutes that authorize the use of a rodenticide for atoll-wide eradication of rat species are strict. Per the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, the USDA needed to send an application to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a supplemental label to register a rodenticide for its use on Wake. The USDA sent in an application for B-25W, which the EPA has accepted, registering this rodenticide for its use on Wake. Furthermore, the USDA needed to complete an Environmental Assessment (EA) analyzing the impacts of rodenticides on Wake per the National Environmental Policy Act. The EA concluded that B-25W would mitigate any non-target impacts. This EA has been accepted, meaning WAREP must use B-25W for its eradication.