Chevron sues to block hikers from Ventura nature preserve
The oil giant says public access on Hall Canyon Road interferes with its easement, in a fight over the Ventura Hills Nature Preserve.
In news from up the coast, access to hiking trails just up the hill from Ventura may be blocked by the Chevron oil corporation.
Chevron has filed a lawsuit to block hikers from walking into the Ventura Hills Nature Preserve. That's the area just overlooking the downtown area. It's been an unofficial trail for years, but now Chevron USA is objecting to safety improvements that the Ventura Land Trust has made along the dirt road that accesses the hill top.
Chevron claims it has an easement to use Hall Canyon Road, and public access to the recently opened preserve interferes with those rights. The land trust says all they have done is put up speed limit signs and speed bumps, and they are not trying to keep oil company trucks off the road.
Oil company officials said they support efforts to preserve open space and public trails, but safety is their top priority, and they worry about pedestrians using Hall Canyon Road in its current state.
It's just the latest thumb in the eye of California from Chevron, which has attacked the state over smog rules, gas content rules, coastal rules and politics. Chevron has just moved its headquarters to Texas.