Yesterday evening in the BC Legislature - Cariboo-Chilcotin MLA Donna Barnett spoke on Bill 24 - Agriculture Land Commission Amendment Act, 2014.
Like MLA Barnett (and I suspect MLA Oakes too) - I feel strongly that these changes which includes establishing regional panels to bring ALR decision making closer to home and gives flexibility to use low class ALR Land (Class 6/7) for other purposes connected to farming/ranching is good overall for British Columbia, in my opinion
We know that young people, generally speaking, are not getting into ranching/farming so we need to find ways to assist those in these fields so they can remain successful
Yesterday, I wrote to MLA Barnett, via email, thanking her for her support of Bill 24 and I look forward to when Bill 24, with the proposed amendments, is adopted and given Royal Assent
~SF
Comments from MLA Donna Barnett on Bill 24:
Today I am pleased and honoured to be standing in this House to support Bill 24. Bill 24 will see the establishment of two zones — zone 1 for the Island, Okanagan and Lower Mainland and zone 2 for the Kootenay, Cariboo, the Interior and the north.
The existing ALR legislation is 40 years old. Changes have been asked for by local governments and landowners in my riding for years.
As a young child, I was raised in Richmond when it was true agricultural land and farms. I understand agricultural land. I understand the need for land to be in the ALR, but it must be land that is productive.
During my many years in local government I saw many applications from people to remove land from the ALR for purposes that would improve their quality of life, that would help the ranchers stay on the farm and help young people move forward. I saw these types of applications go to local governments, be approved by local governments and be rejected by the Agricultural Land Commission.
Soil, Nos. 6 and 7; no water; rock. You couldn't grow a weed on it. This is the type of land that we are talking about.
We are not talking about removing good agricultural land. The Agricultural Land Commission will continue to operate independently, whether the opposition believes it or not. Fertile lands will remain protected, and regional panels will play a key role.
We hear from time to time that "too often government sits in Victoria and makes decisions for all our ridings." This is an opportunity for people with agriculture experience, for people that care and understand the land in their regions to help make decisions — local people, local boards, with knowledge.
The opposition says no, but local people say yes. I am amazed at how consumers will say: "No change to ALR resource….
Consumers will say, "No change to the ALR" — those people that live on a quarter acre or less who don't understand the differences in land in this province, the differences in topography, the differences in geography. You try and grow
something at 3,500 feet above elevation on a piece of rock that you may have two months a year with no frost.
The members opposite do not understand that people are tired of doing things the same and expecting different results. And you know, fearmongering is not the answer for this bill. This is a good bill.
I am going to read you a letter from one of my constituents, and please listen carefully.
"We are writing this letter in support of Bill 24. We believe that restructuring the ALR into two provincial zones is an excellent idea, and we also agree with using local boards to assess applications. It makes far more sense to have people familiar with an area be part of the decision-making process.
"We are third-generation ranchers in the South Cariboo and remember very well when the agriculture minister, Dave Stupich, announced the agricultural land freeze in 1973. We were at the Kamloops Bull Sale banquet, and he was the guest speaker that night. Everyone there felt they had woke up that morning in a free enterprise system and by supper it had all changed to a socialist system. We were all furious. There was absolutely no consultation.
"We have said for years that our part of the province cannot be compared to the Fraser Valley, Okanagan or Vancouver Island. The land in the Cariboo-Chilcotin grows grass. We have a short growing season with limited frost-free days because of high elevations. Our land is best suited for grazing livestock and growing a crop of hay.
"Over the years much of the good croplands down in the Lower Mainland and in the Okanagan have been taken out of the reserve for developments, golf courses and such. But the ALC is always quick to point out that the agricultural land inventory of the province has been maintained. That is because marginal land located in high-elevation parts of province is being put into the ALR, while land located in the lower-elevation areas with the best soils and climates is to be taken out. It is just a smokescreen.
"The past several years have been tedious ones for beef producers. Many have given up and sold their herds. We have hung on, but it has not been easy. By being given the opportunity to subdivide off unusable or non-arable acres from holdings and perhaps build a business or sell some land, a producer could then stay on his place longer and make improvements to the land that has good agricultural potential. This could also help aging producers give their children a better chance to afford taking these ranches over.
"There is considerable investment on these ranches, and it really irritates us that there are people out there who keep insisting the agricultural land of B.C. belongs to the people of the province. It doesn't. It belongs to the producers and farmers who have paid the mortgage and have put their blood, sweat and tears into these places all their lives.
"We are sick to death that every person out there tells us what we can and cannot do on our property. Cattle seem to bring out the worst in people. If anything, we need some teeth put back into the Livestock Act and some loosening of other cumbersome rules and regulations to help us be able to continue.
"The areas of the province that the government has proposed as zone 2 have far different climates than the designated milder zone 1 areas. We are lucky in our area of the Cariboo if we get two consecutive months of frost-free days. By November it is dark shortly after 4 p.m.
"Those who think it makes sense that farming in the future may move to the northern part of the province because the land base in the Lower Mainland will continue to be under development pressure are living in a dream.
"Who is going to be able to afford heating and lighting greenhouses to grow tomatoes and other warm-weather vegetables in areas of high elevation where there are feet of snow and temperatures in the minus 20 to minus 40 range for months on end. Further, who will be able to buy that tomato? Everyone seems to have some elevation where there are feet of snow and temperatures in the minus 20 to minus 40 range for months on end. Further, who will be able to buy that tomato?
"Everyone seems to have some opinion on what those on the land should or shouldn't do. Most of those people have no expertise. They are caught up in the romanticism of the ALR and the idea of homegrown products. They want us to be held in a land freeze but don't want us to be able to make a decent living of it. They want to watch the grass grow, but they don't want anything to eat it. We have to be able to utilize our assets to make a living.
"We applaud the government for having the courage to recognize that some changes need to be made in parts of the province in order for those of us that are left on the land to survive. Thank you for consideration of our comments.
"Yours very truly,
"Norman and Diane Wood of Lac la Hache."
I have another one here that I'm going to read too. This is to the Minister of Agriculture.
"This is a letter of support for the recent changes to the ALR zones in B.C. My family ranch is located in 100 Mile House and is, in fact, the land the town was built on as my grandfather, the Marquess of Exeter, purchased the ranch, Bridge Creek Estate, in 1912. My father, Lord Martin Cecil, ran the ranch until his death in 1988. My brother and I took over the ranch and subsequently divided it into two in 1995.
"Currently I run my family ranch, 100 Mile Ranch Ltd., and find it is not always an easy task to make ends meet in the ranching haying business, let alone actually make some money. Over the years, 102 of them, we have tried to diversify and tried new business areas within the ALR restrictions and have found we could not pursue many of them.
"Believe me when I say a ranch, farm, must diversify if they are to make it in this day and age in the interior of B.C. Working with the ALC over various issues over the years has sometimes been a lesson in frustration.
"If anyone was to make a go of it on some parcels of land agriculturally, it would have been my family. But the fact is that some parcels are simply not productive agriculturally in any way. My family has many ideas of things we can do to keep my ranch in our family —maybe for another 100 years.
"So I support this bill and congratulate the minister for bringing it forward."
I would now like to read you a press release from the B.C. Agriculture Council:
"Reaction to controversial Bill 24 amendments" — and that's what it says — May 6.
"Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick revealed the results of his intensive….
"…although brief, provincewide agricultural land reserve consultation by announcing formal amendments to Bill 24 this afternoon.
"The British Columbia Ag Council chair reacted to the proposed amendments today, calling them a step forward, reflective of the new minister's recent efforts on behalf of agriculture. BCAC directors and membership played a key role in the consultation process that led up to today's announcement.
"'The BCAC-ALR steering committee was directly involved in the amendments made to Bill 24,' the chair said. 'Unfortunately, we didn't get everything we asked for.' BCAC remains firmly opposed to the ALR two zones. BCAC….
"BCAC supports a one-zone system that provides reasonable opportunities for regional representatives to consider community need. We put forth this request, but government is moving forward with the proposed two-zone system.
"In addition to securing amendments to Bill 24, the council representing approximately 14,000 B.C. farmers and ranchers negotiated two significant commitments from government. The Minister has committed to directly the council, representing approximately 14,000 B.C. farmers and ranchers, negotiated two significant commitments from government.
"'The Minister has committed to directly engage BCAC in the development of regulations and practices for Bill 24. He has also committed to formally engage a working group of B.C. farmers and ranchers to explore the feasibility and implications of adopting an overall net benefit to agriculture ALR policy,' the chair said.
"'BCAC has always been committed to preserving agricultural land, but we are also committed to preserving farmers. If enjoying locally grown and raised goods is truly important to British Columbians, we need to find ways to support economically sustainable farming and attract youth into agriculture,' concluded the chair."
Yes. Read the letter. You didn't read my lips when I was reading.
This is not something that we should be laughing about. This is something that is very serious to this side of the House and is very serious to myself and the people of the Cariboo-Chilcotin. We have been consulting for the last 40 years that I know of, trying to move forwardYou know, I find it very, very interesting that a member of the opposition, a few minutes ago, said we had to look to the future. This is exactly what this bill is about. It's looking to the future. It's protecting agricultural lands, and it's helping those on land that is not agricultural to survive and move forward — maybe a five-acre parcel for a young person off the corner of a ranch, so he can get a mortgage and help his mom and dad live on that ranch for the rest of their working days. There are opportunities that we've been asking for, for years.
I'll give you an example of a rejection that just happened from the Agricultural Land Commission in my riding. I have a rancher with 300 or 400 acres on this side of the road. There's the road, and he has ten acres on the other side with a house. He applied to take that out so that he could improve his ranching land on the other side of the road, build his wife a new house, sell back and stay there and have a good working ranch and make some money so that he could live there. Rejected.
This story goes on and on. People with gullies who would like to do something with it, but we can't do it because it is in the agricultural land reserve.
This is about moving forward, not moving backward. This is about protecting good agricultural land. This is about having local people on boards and panels making good, solid decisions for the betterment of the land and the people that own the land. Let's move forward. Let's get this job done and help both agriculture and the citizens of British Columbia.
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