The mission of the Effectiveness Monitoring Committee (EMC) is to support robust scientific research to evaluate the efficacy of the California Forest Practice Rules and other regulations related to natural resource protection. This involves addressing issues such as watershed science, wildlife concerns, and wildfire hazard to ensure the statutes, laws, codes, and regulations effectively protect natural resources.
The EMC grant program is designed to fund projects that address critical monitoring questions organized under 12 primary research themes. These themes include aspects like Watercourse and Lake Protection Zone (WLPZ) riparian function, wildfire hazard, wildlife habitat, and the resilience of forests to climate and wildfires. Interested applicants must propose projects that tackle one or more of these research themes, with a focus on testing the effectiveness of the California Forest Practice Rules and associated regulations in protecting natural resources. The program specifically prioritizes projects that can impact California forestlands positively, targeting the most critical questions as decided by the EMC members annually.