Donated Conservation Easement Protects Boise Foothills Property

Boise County property important for elk and other wildlife

Boise County, Idaho — July 22, 2009 — A Boise County property owned by Agnes and the late Dr. Maurice Burkholder will be protected through a conservation easement the family donated to The Nature Conservancy.

The 136-acre Boise County property is located near Highway 21 between the City of Boise and Idaho City. It is used as a calving ground by elk, and provides habitat for mule deer, badgers, raptors and other wildlife.

The Burkholders and their six children all agreed that the property should be protected through a conservation easement. A conservation easement is a voluntary agreement between a private landowner and a conservation organization that keeps land in private hands and preserves traditional land uses, such as family farming and ranching.

Maurice Burkholder, a Boise physician, purchased the property in 1958 for $40 an acre and continued its small farm use while developing it into a retreat for his family. At the time, many Boise County residents were moving out of the area. Over the years, his daughter Amy—who currently lives next door to the property--remembers him annually planting hundreds of trees, raising assorted farm animals and enjoying the local wildlife.

“We spent tons of time up here,” she says. “This has always been where my heart is; this is home to me. My dad didn’t want this land to be developed and the whole family agreed.”

Maurice was interested in conservation at an early age, working in the Civilian Conservation Corps in Idaho City and in blister rust camps in northern Idaho as a young man.

He was a beloved physician with a private practice in Boise for 40 years. Dr. Burkholder founded the Mountain States Tumor Institute and the Mountain States Medical Research Institute, and was affiliated with three area hospitals. He was known for a wide range of intellectual interests, including an in-depth knowledge of Western history and antique tools.

Maurice and his wife Agnes approached The Nature Conservancy about donating an easement that would protect the wildlife habitat on the property in perpetuity. Unfortunately, he passed away in January before the easement was finalized.

“We’re all extremely pleased and proud that this legacy of my dad’s will live on,” says Amy Burkholder. “My dad’s first love was really the land. We’re very happy that this place will remain a refuge for wildlife in the Boise Foothills.”

“We are so grateful for the Burkholder family’s gift,” says Susanna Danner of The Nature Conservancy. “Because of Dr. Burkholder’s vision, wildlife from songbirds to elk will always find refuge on the Burkholder Ranch.”

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.