As part of a Chevron-sponsored program, thousands of employees have volunteered for over a decade to restore Yosemite National Park's oak woodlands, meadows and lakes in the valley visited annually by 4 million people from around the world.
In 2000, the Yosemite Fund and National Park Service honored the company for distinguished service by employee volunteers who spent many weekends in restoring natural habitats. In presenting the award, Yosemite Fund President Bob Hansen emphasized the "tenacity that can be found in the human spirit," pointing out efforts to dig up asphalt, plant trees and dig postholes.
Chevron has donated more than $1.3 million in contributions since 1990, and 3,000 employees had devoted nearly 30,000 hours of volunteer time to restore the equivalent of 60 football fields in Yosemite Valley. The donations were made to the nonprofit Yosemite Fund, which has raised more than $12 million for park wilderness, wildlife and cultural preservation projects. The National Park Service directs the volunteers' efforts.
Over the years, employee volunteers have planted more than 100 oaks, removed asphin oak habitat, re-landscaped areas damaged by overuse, restored areas around famous Mirror Lake, reconfigured trails, constructed a handicap accessible interpretive trail and restored Cook's Meadow by removing non-native plants, artificial ditches and an abandoned roadway.