Youths Wanted for Trail-Clearing Jobs

A Ventura County youth employment organization is seeking youths ages 21 and younger to clear brush off trails in Los Padres National Forest surrounding the Ojai Valley.

Lanny Kaufer, assistant director of Concerned Resource and Environmental Workers, said county youths who have free mornings and afternoons are eligible for the September project. The undertaking--which will start Sept. 12 and last three weeks--pays $5 per hour, 40 hours per week.

CREW, Kaufer said, is a nonprofit organization geared toward creating employment opportunities for youths through projects that serve and protect the environment.

The group, based in Ojai, often completes work for the U.S. Forest Service in Los Padres National Forest, Kaufer said. With the start of the school year, many youths who completed a nine-week summer program have returned to school, Kaufer said. CREW is looking for 10 new workers for its September project.

“This project will create access for users of the national forest--at the same time it’s protecting the natural environment by reducing erosion on the trails and by making the trail accessible,” Kaufer said. “It keeps people on the trail and out of the more sensitive habitats.”

Kaufer said workers can expect to clear brush and restore trail surface for up to two miles of trail per day. He added that workers should be physically fit and available to start at 8 a.m. and finish about 4:30 p.m., five days a week.

Those interested in enrolling in the program should call CREW at 646-5085, Kaufer said.