CAL FIRE and USFS State and Private are funding the development of multi-agency, interdisciplinary Emergency Forest Restoration Teams (EFRTs) to assist private forest landowners impacted by wildfires. EFRTs provide rapid assessments, technical and financial assistance to restore private forest lands and help prevent further damage to life, property, and natural resources. Reforestation and other actions on private lands will be bundled together for more efficient project completion. Grant funding has been issued to local and regional partners to assemble the EFRTs developed to date. In the long-term, funding would be available annually for immediate deployment of the EFRT during and after a specific wildfire. In late 2021, a second pilot EFRT for the Dixie Fire in Plumas County was established resulting from leadership by University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE), Feather River RCD (FRRCD), and Plumas County. Funding of $8.3M CAL FIRE and $2.5 Million from USFS will secure resources for the first several years of work. Tasks within the scope of work of the EFRT include conducting field assessments/ground truthing of impacts and opportunities, which can be in coordination with other entities and researchers for project effects and reporting and educating landowners on post fire recovery needs and options.
Under the Post-fire Forest Resilience Education Initiative for Non-Industrial Private Forest Landowners (Post-Fire Forest Resilience Program), UCCE is developing an integrated program for forest landowners and land managers that includes conducting post-fire education and outreach, assistance with post-fire forest management planning, and assessment and evaluation of current post-fire assistance efforts, including the EFRT at FRRCD. A key strategy within the Post-Fire Program, is to help forestry assistance agencies better understand and target post-fire assistance and prioritize restoration actions. As well as monitoring and documenting lessons learned from these assistance programs and building broad awareness of post-fire restoration strategies and practices.
Scope of Monitoring Protocol:
This protocol includes specifications for study design and methods of data collection to monitor the effectiveness of the reforestation efforts on small non-industrial private forest landowners through the Emergency Forest Restoration Team.
Effectiveness Monitoring Questions:
The purpose of this monitoring program is to assess the effectiveness of the FRRCS’s EFRT post-fire restoration and reforestation efforts. This protocol is designed to evaluate:
- Planted tree seedling survival, growth, and vigor
- Understory shrub cover development, composition, and continuity
- Surface fuels loads following site-preparation treatments for reforestation
These monitoring questions are centered around evaluating the ecological development and interaction of planted seedlings within the post-fire environment. Following wildfire, the potential initial dominance of shrubs and herbaceous vegetation may influence the survival and growth of planted seedlings. Furthermore, the fuel loading following site preparation treatments may impact future fire severity and reburn potential where planted seedlings are being established.