After months of reports that such a bill was forthcoming, the British Columbia government has introduced a proposal that would make certain types of development easier on Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR)-controlled farmland, in the Peace Region as well as other parts of the province.
The move would effectively divide the province into two zones. Zone 1 would comprise much of the Lower Mainland, and in those more developed areas, the ALR would operate effectively the same as it does now.
Zone 2 would compromise the Kootenays, the North, and the Interior. This zone would have new rules that would allow greater "flexibility" to consider non-agricultural, home-based businesses.
Other amendments to be considered will be to allow new, limited, value-added farming activities, like food processing, on farmland.
However, the ultimate specifics of what could be developed under these new regulations is still very much up in the air.
When asked if a person could be allowed to lease out part of his property to a third-party interest, B.C. Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Steve Thomson said that "those are the specifics that need to be developed in terms of the policies and approaches, to locate those opportunities for producers."
What would not be allowed for discussion, Thomson said, is uses for things that would "negatively impact the core principles of preservation of agricultural land." Thomson announced the bill on behalf of Minister of Agriculture Pat Pimm, who is still on medical leave.
"What will be discussed with the organizations and the groups is what kinds of opportunities can we look for that would help support their farm operations, keep their families on the land and provide income and support for those farm operations while maintaining the core principles," Thomson said.
The minister added that municipalities would not be allowed to have greater flexibility to decide what gets taken out of the ALR and what doesn't.
He also said that in his view, the new rules "won't change" the restrictions faced by the oil and gas industry.
"We believe that there are opportunities for ranchers in those areas to help support oil and gas activities ... and there may be opportunities for them to support their farm operations without impacting agricultural values on their operations," Thomson said. "It may provide them opportunities."
Those decisions and policies that would help enable those opportunities would be developed through consultation and work with various stakeholders.
In the past year, residents of the Peace Region have expressed issues with the Agricultural Land Commission.
In perhaps the most notable case, Fort St. John resident Terry McLeod began building rodeo grounds despite not having the approval of the ALC. He was eventually issued a stop-work order, but a petition has arisen in support of McLeod's work.
Other residents in the South Peace have expressed desire to allow industrial equipment to park on certain portions of their land.
Meanwhile, others have expressed worries that the ALC is attempting to loosen regulations to allow for easier oil and gas drilling within the area. When asked about whether these types of situations would be included for discussion, Thomson said that those decisions would have to be made by the regional panels.
"We would consult with the organizations around developing the policies and approaches for that," he said. "The legislation will provide for those economic and social considerations to be considered. The ultimate decision lies with the commission and the panels."
Other issues would also have to be resolved by local governments, such as zoning or licensing requirements. Thomson stressed that despite the changes, the ALC would remain an independent tribunal, and that its purpose to protect farmland would not change, either.
"We're making these improvements to respond to concerns from farmers," he said. "With Zone 2, what we're looking at is giving recognition of regional differences in the industry…we believe there are opportunities that would allow activities on the land that would enhance and support their farm operations."
According to information presented by the government, the northern part of the six parts of the ALR – which includes the Peace River Regional District – has about 50% of ALR land, but only produces about 8% of the farming cash revenue for the province.
"What we wanted to do was draw the separation between the critical areas of the province where 85% of our farm cash revenues come from, and the balance of the province," Thomson added. "In some cases, we may need to have more flexibility."
Some farm groups praised the move. "We are encouraged that the Minister understands that the ALC must remain an independent decision-making commission whose purpose is to protect agricultural lands and the stakeholders who make their living producing food from this land," said David Haywood-Farmer, president of the B.C. Cattlemen's Association. "Our goal is to see the improvement of the ALR for the present generation of ranching families who are responsible for the stewardship of these lands and for future generations who need to see that there is hope for a sustainable future on these lands."
"We are pleased that our Agriculture Minister Pat Pimm has responded to the concerns of the Agriculture sector to modernize the BC Agricultural Land Commission," said BC Grain Producers committee chair Garnet Berge. "We support the proposed changes and are looking forward to working with our BC Government and Agricultural Minister to draft new regulations and the forming of administrative panels in our region."
However, in a statement, the B.C. NDP denounced the move.
"Breaking apart the Agricultural Land Reserve is breaking trust with British Columbians, who overwhelmingly support the protection of farmland for today and for the future,' said Nicholas Simons, the NDP agriculture critic.
Kevin Knoblauch, a Peace Region farmer, also said he was skeptical of the proposed legislation.
"If all that separation of zones is going to do is give further licence and ability of the gas industry to have unfettered access to more farmland, then I don't see the benefit to our northern region."
He also wished that the proposed legislation had more specifics as to what changes would be made to the ALC now that the northern portions were designated as Zone 2.
"If they're going to put their money where their mouth is, they should come right to the specifics ... if the new proposed zoning can encompass some measure of protection for the alluvial floodplains that are remaining in the Peace Region, then of course that would be something that would be viewed as a positive," he said. "I don't see where that is mentioned anywhere so far in the changes that they're proposing."
He viewed the loss of these types of floodplains would cause a greater loss in horticultural abundance in the North overall.
"One of the things that (the provincial government) is doing wrong ... they are destroying the very best in class of the landbase resource that is a prerequisite for horticultural field production under irrigation in the Peace River region."
