Engelberg Conservation Easement

For many years, Ed Zeerip’s in-laws leased a large parcel of land on Drummond Island for their annual deer camp. So in the 1980s, when the land became available for purchase, Ed and his friend Bud Roegge purchased 53 acres of the land to save for their own use and to pass on the family tradition of hunting and enjoying the rugged wilderness of the island.

As a realtor who has promoted conservation through his work, Ed worked with The Nature Conservancy and was familiar with the tool of a conservation easement. He and Bud decided a conservation easement was a logical choice for the land that they wanted to protect and use, primarily, for outdoor enjoyment.

“Bud recently retired and I will retire in a year,” said Zeerip. “We intend to build one hunting cabin on the reserved building envelope within the property so that we and our children and grandchildren can enjoy the land for many years.”

The protected land includes a quarter mile of frontage on Lake Huron. Its long-term quality will be further enhanced because the owners have enrolled the property in a Michigan Landowner Forest Stewardship Plan to manage the land for wildlife, recreation, and proper forest management.