Erosion Management in the Boise Hillside to Hollow Reserve

In 2015 Boise voters approved a temporary tax that would raise about ten million dollars to preserve and protect Boise’s open space and clean water. Boiseans made it clear with the creation of the Boise Open Space and Clean Water Improvement plan that they are dedicated to ensuring future generations have the ability to enjoy open space and clean water in Boise. Our goal is to submit a proposal to the Boise Open Space and Clean Water Improvement Plan to improve the quality of the Hillside to Hollow Reserve. The study area for this project is the open space Hillside to Hollow reserve, which is within Boise residential areas. The Hillside to Hollow reserve allows visitors to use public trails that continue on to private land. Therefore, there are trails that are managed by the city and trails that are not managed at all. We studied how in which the management of the reserve trails differ from trails on private land and what that can mean for the erosion issue in this area. The main concerns for this reserve include (1) visitors stay on designated trails; (2) managing erosion in the area; (3) consistent management of the reserve. The primary research question was the difference in erosion intensity in public and publicly accessible private land. Our objectives and goals were to document and test the level of erosion on public land and publicly accessible private land. We collaborated with Boise State experts about soil sampling, testing, and properties. We documented levels of erosion on public land and publicly accessible private land and how different management techniques affects the area. The next steps would be to further research on public and publicly accessible private land within the Hillside to Hollow Reserve