Coveted oceanfront land in Ventura County will become a nature preserve with a $1.5-million donation from the Friends of the San Geronimo Trust.
The donation will help finance a wildlife area on land owned by the trust, which runs the Pacific Pines Campground in Oxnard.
To ensure that the project is a success, the Friends has created a public/private partnership with CalRecycle and the Ventura County Regional Recycling Council, which will manage the dumpster for the landfill. The dumpsters will be emptied each month at one of three locations in San Geronimo.
The Friends of the San Geronimo Trust is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the natural beauty of the San Geronimo Lagoon and protecting the San Geronimo Campground. They are also involved in the Lagoon Conservancy, the San Geronimo Land Trust and the San Geronimo Ranch Conservancy.
The Friends first joined forces with The Nature Conservancy in 2001 when it sold its original ranch land to the Conservancy. In 2003, the Friends purchased the land to protect the San Geronimo Lagoon. In 2004, the Friends joined with the Lagoon Conservancy in its acquisition of the San Geronimo Ranch. These organizations, along with the Ventura County Land Trust, have worked together to protect and restore the rich and diverse ecosystem of the Lagoon.
The new San Geronimo Conservation Area will protect more than 90,000 square feet of protected land in Ventura County. The Friends plans to develop a public boat launch into the protected preserve.
The Nature Conservancy also will continue to maintain The Nature Conservancy’s San Geronimo Lagoons Research Site. The site was acquired by the Nature Conservancy in 2008.
California A state law requires all of the coastline in the state of California to be open to recreation and conservation.
California, unlike most other states and counties, has no