Correspondence from BC Food Systems Network re: ALR changes
A letter and informational sheet expressing concern over potential legislative changes to the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR).
March 3, 2014
Greetings,
I'm taking the liberty of contacting you because of a serious concern we have about legislative changes we believe are coming soon for the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) and the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC). This may reach you after a phone call or this may be our first direct communication with you.
The BC Food Systems Network was formed in 1999. We work with over 20 organizations and hundreds of British Columbians interested in sustainable food systems. One of the most important prerequisites for sustainable food is agricultural land.
BC has had an Agricultural Land Reserve since 1973 but we may not have one much longer. Both from information leaked to the Globe and Mail in November 2013 and from remarks subsequently made in the media by the Premier and Ministers responsible, we are concerned that the coming legislative changes may involve such measures as: division of the province into different areas with different kinds of protection regimes; alteration of the ALC's mandate; an increase in the decision making role of the Oil and Gas Commission over the ALC; an increase in the decision-making role of local governments.
The ALR and ALC were comprehensively reviewed in 2010 and a direction was set to strengthen the ALC and make it more proactive. The direction after May 2013 appears quite different. The provincial government has not openly consulted with local or regional governments about its intentions.
We hope you will agree with us that the Province should:
- Retain the ALR as one zone for the whole province
- Retain the ALC as a province-wide, independent administrative body with judicial powers (as it has now)
- If changes are to be considered beyond those outlined by the Auditor General and the ALC in 2010, conduct a province-wide consultation process with the ALC and those affected by its decisions
I have attached an update of a piece we wrote for local governments in November. We hope you find it useful. If you have already expressed your views to the Province by way of a resolution or letter, thank you. We would welcome a copy.
If you have any questions, please feel free to call.
Thank you.
Kathleen Gibson on behalf of the BC Food Systems Network Email: gbhgroup@shaw.ca Tel: 250.598.4280 Cell: 250.216.9736 Fax: 250.598.4288 Skype: kathleen.gibson.659
BC Food Systems Network ALR Team
Website: www.bcfsn.org Facebook: ALR Watch https://www.facebook.com/alrwatch Twitter: @ALRWatch https://twitter.com/ALRWatch
More responsibilities for local government with no consultation or support?
The BC government promises changes to the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) and the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC)
The Fraser Institute says dismantle it.ⁱ The Premier seems to think it isn't working for BC. The Minister of Agriculture has been directed to examine it closely and "propose any changes necessary," and the Minister Responsible for the Core Review has announced that changes to the ALR and ALC are a top priority for the current provincial government.ⁱⁱ
Change is coming for the ALR and the ALC.
This represents a major shift in policy since the May 2013 election. The 2013-14 Ministry of Agriculture Service Plan identifies work under way at the ALC to make the Commission more effective and to better define ALR boundaries. According to a 4 October report from the ALC Chair, this work, which was endorsed by the Province and supported by a 3-year budget increase, was progressing well.ⁱⁱⁱ
Then, in November 2013, the Globe and Mail released leaked Cabinet documents proposing changes to the ALR. What will be tabled in the Legislature in February 2014 will likely include:
- Division of the ALR into two areas, weakening the protection for lands north and east of the Okanagan (i.e., 89% of the ALR's current 4.6 million hectares) — greater protection for Class 1-3 soils and lesser for Classes 4-6
- Putting economic development in the ALC's mandate and increasing the decision-making powers of the Oil and Gas Commission
- Giving local governments more say on what can happen on farmland
What do such changes mean?
- Any of these changes will destroy the integrity and function of BC's farmland protection system as we know it
- The soil class rationale will not meet farmers' and ranchers' needs, nor will it address BC needs for food sustainability related to the diversity of our agricultural production
- Local governments will be exposed to much greater development pressures
Have you been consulted about changes to the ALR that will affect you?
Local governments, Regional Districts, farmers, ranchers, the ALC itself, and farm and food organizations have not been fairly consulted.
What happens to the ALR and the ALC directly affects you and your constituents. The ALR is a major provincial zone, tied to your government's interpretation of agricultural zoning and its related bylaws and land use plans. Any changes to the ALC's authorities and powers imply changes for local governments' authorities and powers, affecting your ability to plan for your region. Not just what the Province intends to do, but how it intends to do it — and who it expects to fund the changes — are central questions for your Council and Regional District.
For further information: www.fooddemocracy.org Brent Mansfield, Co-Chair, ph: 604.837.7667 / email: brentmansfield@gmail.com Linda Geggie, Policy Working Group Chair, ph: 250.896.7004 / email: lgeggie@telus.net
The ALR is important for British Columbia.
The ALR is intended to preserve agricultural land, encourage farming and assist local governments and First Nations in planning for agriculture in their regions. The principle on which the ALR rests is that a productive, secure agricultural land base is vital to BC's ability to maintain agriculture as a viable industry and to secure our food supply. The ALR provides a means for protecting that capability and ensuring BC's agricultural businesses and farm families are supported over the long term.
If the ALR did not already exist, now would be the time to invent it. Economic, environmental and social instability and pressures on the province's farmland are many times greater now than they were when the ALR was created.ⁱᵛ
BC has 40 years of ALR study and experience to discuss.
There are strong arguments for the benefits of the ALR. Economic studies suggest that the ALR has been successful in containing urban sprawl and mitigating rising farmland values, helping to ensure that land remains available and affordable for BC's farm families and farming businesses. Research has also shown that agriculture contributes strongly to regional economies, and that converting agricultural lands to other uses often costs more in services than it produces in municipal tax revenues.ᵛ
According to SmartGrowth BC, "the ALR has been successful in mitigating [the] constant threat of incremental urban encroachment onto agricultural land by maintaining decision making at the provincial rather than the local level... this is in direct contrast to virtually all other jurisdictions in North America where decisions on agricultural land use have been made at the local level and thus have been much more susceptible to development pressure."ᵛⁱ
After forty years' shared experience of farmland protection in BC, local governments deserve the opportunity to discuss any proposed changes to the ALR with the Province and the ALC. There can be productive examination of long-standing issues, such as non-farm use and farm succession, without compromising the integrity of the provincial system.
Act TODAY to make your concerns known.
- Contact your MLA, the Premier, and Ministers Bill Bennett and Pat Pimm to ask for an opportunity to discuss changes to the ALR and ALC beyond those already approved by government as outlined in the ALC Chair's report. Copy the rest of Cabinet and the UBCM on your letters or emails.
- Discuss this matter with your Council or Regional District and pass a resolution expressing your views. As for item 1 above, copy the UBCM, the Premier and the Ministers on your resolution.
What other local governments are saying:
As of January 2014, 12 local governments, 3 Regional Districts and the Islands Trust have passed resolutions supporting the ALR. You can find a list and additional information on our ALR web page under Local and Regional Government at www.bcfsn.org
Additional resources
On our home page under the "Take Action" link, you will find a kit to assist public discussion in your community about the ALR. It contains ALR resource materials which you are welcome and encouraged to view or use.
ⁱ The BC Agricultural Land Reserve: A Critical Assessment, Diane Katz, October 2009. http://www.icba.bc.ca/news_media/news_releases/documents/FraserInstitutereportALRExecsummary.pdf ⁱⁱ Core Review terms of reference: http://www2.news.gov.bc.ca/news_releases_2013-2017/2013MEM0014-001465.htm ⁱⁱⁱ ALC Chair's report: https://www.google.ca/#q=agricultural+land+commission ⁱᵛ BCFSN submission to Finance and Government Services Committee: http://fooddemocracy.org/what-we-do/protecting-the-agriculture-land-reserve/ ᵛ Cost of community services studies, American Farmland Trust www.farmland.org ᵛⁱ SmartGrowth BC, Position on the ALR: http://www.smartgrowth.bc.ca/Portals/0/Downloads/SGBCALRposition.PDF
For further information: www.bcfsn.org Brent Mansfield, Co-Chair, ph: 604.837.7667 / email: brentmansfield@gmail.com Linda Geggie, Policy Working Group Chair, ph: 250.896.7004 / email: lgeggie@telus.net
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