Held Conservation Easements

The Ojai Valley Land Conservancy protects over 100 acres of natural habitat through conservation easements.  These easements are donated by private property owners who choose to conserve all or part of their property in perpetuity.  Property owners enjoy significant tax benefits along with the satisfaction of knowing that their land has been preserved for generations to come in return for giving up their ability to develop the land in the future. Conservation easements transfer with the property during a sale or other disposition, ensuring that the land will be preserved forever.

One example of an OVLC conservation easement is located adjacent to the Ventura River Confluence Preserve.  This land combined with the Ventura Confluence Preserve and a newly acquired 58 acre riverbed parcel provide permanent protection for over a mile of the 15 mile stretch of the Ventura River between the ocean and Matilija Dam.

This area of the Ventura River has become overgrown with dense swaths of Arundo Dornax, an invasive plant which, in order to restore native habitat will need to be removed from north of the Matilija Dam to the Ventura Rivermouth at the ocean.  OVLC looks forward to working with the County of Ventura and others in an effort to restore natural habitat to this stretch of river, which is home to a host of waterfowl, and along the migration path of the endangered Southern Steelhead Trout.