Chevron donates land near Guadalupe and Nipomo for wildlife refuge

October 8, 2025

By KAREN VELIE

Following decades of cleanup and restoration, Chevron is donating approximately 2,700 acres of land north of Guadalupe for wildlife habitat and preservation. The oil company’s donation will more than double the size of the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge.

Oil exploration and production began at the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes in the late 1940s. At that time, a refined hydrocarbon similar to kerosene was used as a diluent to reduce the viscosity of the heavy crude in oil wells.

The diluent contaminated the area and seeped into the ocean leading to the closure of the oil fields in 2002. For more than 20 years, remediation work has continued.

Chevron is now donating the land to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge. Environmentalists will continue the restoration of the area through the removal of nonnative plants, the planting of native vegetation and the reintroduction of native wildlife.

With a goal of preserving threatened and endangered species and habitats, the current 2,553-acre refuge was established in 2000. At the time, it was promoted as an economic engine for the Central Coast.

However, that plan failed. And again, those in favor of expanding the preserve are touting the economic benefits.

“It’s going to be a great benefit to the community and the entire region,” Erika Weber, executive director for the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center, told KSBY. “I can honestly envision a time when it becomes a real tourist destination for people from all over the country to visit this national wildlife refuge.”