Land prices
The cost of farmland is a major barrier for young people wanting to take up farming. Here鈥檚 the conundrum, as explained in a white paper called Protection is Not Enough, by researchers at Kwantlen Polytechnic鈥檚 Institute for Sustainable Food Systems: 鈥淲hile the assessed value of ALR land is relatively low, the market value of agricultural land is not based on its intended agricultural use or potential farm business income, but on its value for other uses such as country estates, industrial and residential development, speculation, or a relatively risk-free place to sequester and protect one鈥檚 wealth.鈥�
Cannabis
Under current legislation, cannabis is considered a crop that can be grown on protected agricultural land. However, many farmers are warning that arable land will be destroyed if cannabis producers with deep pockets are allowed to build concrete-base greenhouses. Cannabis and greenhouses are among the major issues that sa国际传媒 Agriculture Minister Lana Popham will consider this summer after an independent commission completes its review on how to revitalize the Agricultural Land Reserve.
Sustainable farming
Droughts in California and the threat of global warming have upped the pressure on Vancouver Island to lessen its reliance on food imports. To combat high land prices and to achieve sustainability, many farmers are seeking co-operative farm plots on publicly-owned land such as Haliburton Farm in Saanich or, in the future, the former Sandown racetrack. The 83-acre parcel has been purchased by the District of North Saanich with the goal of building a sustainable farming community focused on food production.
By the numbers
鈥� 1973: Year the Agricultural Land Reserve was established under the government of Dave Barrett
鈥� 600: The estimated hectares a year of farmland that is removed from the ALR
鈥� 4,000-6,000: the estimated hectares a year that would have been lost as farmland without the creation of the ALR
鈥� 50: the percentage of protected agricultural land that is actually being used for production
Source: Kwantlen Polytechnic鈥檚 Institute for Sustainable Food Systems