Habitat Restoration
One of Coal Oil Point Reserve’s (COPR) guiding initiatives is stewardship, from managing the beach for the Snowy Plover to restoring native habitats. Johnny Alonzo, COPR’s Restoration Manager and a former UCSB alum, is leading efforts to restore land damaged by decades of oil extraction.
Restoring s’o’hil xus
The Ellwood Marine Terminal (EMT) was decommissioned and abandoned, leaving structures and degraded land that needed to be removed and restored to its pre-development state. With a background in environmental science and the use of historical records, Johnny selected the appropriate plant species, collected seeds, and propagated them — carefully choosing which species should be planted in each microhabitat. He enlists students and volunteers to help with weeding and planting, and assisted with community events centered around the stewardship of s’o’hil xus (pronounced “s-oh-heel hoos”), formerly called the Ellwood Marine Terminal, in May 2026.
Hands-on restoration training
COPR offers a wide range of internships, including a habitat restoration ecology internship led by Johnny. While many interns come from academic backgrounds in environmental science, geography, or ecology, all students are encouraged to apply. Interns are placed directly in the field, learning plant identification, ecology, and restoration techniques such as flame weeding — an effective method for exterminating densely concentrated non-native grasses that store their energy above ground and won’t grow back once burned.
“As long as you’re interested in being outdoors and willing to learn.”Johnny Alonzo, COPR Restoration Manager
When asked about his favorite part of the job, Johnny pointed to seeing the animals use the habitat he helped create. In 2025, a bear and a deer were independently spotted on the reserve — notable, since the last record of a deer at COPR was in 1970.