TreePeopleKevin Gaston serves as the Executive Director of TreePeople Land Trust. He holds a BS in Environmental Science and Resource Management from CSU Channel Islands where he regularly guest lectures and provides career guidance to current students. Prior to working with TreePeople, Kevin served in various roles for the State Parks and National Park Service in the Santa Monica Mountains. He joined the Land Trust in 2015 as a specialist in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), vegetation monitoring, and fluvial geomorphology. Kevin now directs his focus to Land Trust administration, wildfire resiliency education, and the acquisition and restoration of degraded landscapes to increase equitable access to open space.
Tuna Canyon Restoration 84 volunteers showed up for our post-fire oak restoration at Tuna Canyon Park and we couldn’t be more grateful. Together, the crew put in the hard work of getting every plant in the ground, and we’re thrilled to share that the project is now fully planted. Of course, the work doesn’t stop…
2022 was a busy year for TreePeople Land Trust. In addition to our usual maintenance and monitoring of over 3,000 acres in the Santa Monica Mountains, we’re excited about a few new projects that are underway: Post-fire Restoration in La Sierra The La Sierra Preserve’s unique geography hosts a healthy mix of native plant communities,…
We are thrilled to announce that the appeals court has upheld a ruling that our conservation easement over 400 acres of pristine coastal habitat in Tuna Canyon remains valid. In 2017, a luxury real estate developer filed a quiet title action against TreePeople Land Trust and our co-defendants, thereby seeking to extinguish restrictions related to…
The Cold Creek Preserve, located in the central Santa Monica Mountains, features some of the most intact native habitats in the region. With minimal development, a freshwater wetland spring, and decades of protection by TreePeople Land Trust and our partners, the watershed is a premier location for students to experience the natural environment of LA….
A critical strategy in land conservation is acquiring new properties that are directly adjacent to existing protected lands. This not only ensures that wildlife within these protected areas have greater mobility and buffer from threats, but it also helps land managers, such as TreePeople Land Trust, cohesively manage a series of parcels as a single,…
An update from the TreePeople Land Trust It finally happened. After a record-breaking 212 days without rain, the skies above Sacramento roiled with dark clouds as an atmospheric river emptied 5.4 inches of rain onto the thirsty landscape–breaking yet another record for the city. The dichotomy between these extremes, drought and downpour, results in a host of…
Spring and early summer are typically the best time of year to experience the incredible beauty of our local mountains. From the charismatic Humboldt lily to the humble larkspur, the rugged lands surrounding the LA Basin teem with unique and brilliant life – but this year was different. The weather station at Van Nuys Airport…