Well, I have to say, waking up to the news that the bylaw on FAILed made for a very happy start to my day!
Doesn't mean the issue has gone away, the council is working on a bylaw and I'm sure it will come into being before the year is out. Here's hoping there is considerable stakeholder consultation.
Even in the few days between the announcement of the bylaw vote and the day of the vote, there was machinery sabotaged. So much passion on all sides.
I did think of a few more good bylaws that should be enacted to balance what is likely coming ... for example - nationally, for every acre of farmland gobbled up by developers for urban development, for gravel pits, for utility servicing, must be replaced by the agency removing the farmland from production - by returning into productive agricultural use, current marginal land. For example - the city wants to expand a suburb and takes over 100 acres of productive farmland. The city must in return, purchase 100 acres of land that is currently in marginal agricultural production (within the region or province), rehabilitate that land to bring it up to a similar productivity to what they took out of production. Further, they must maintain that property as a productive farm operation, in perpetuity, with the proceeds contributed to local foodbanks and social services.
If there truly is a concern for being able to feed the world, there would not be a single acre removed from production.
No way this would ever come to fruition. But it's kind of fun to be rebellious :)
Doesn't mean the issue has gone away, the council is working on a bylaw and I'm sure it will come into being before the year is out. Here's hoping there is considerable stakeholder consultation.
Even in the few days between the announcement of the bylaw vote and the day of the vote, there was machinery sabotaged. So much passion on all sides.
I did think of a few more good bylaws that should be enacted to balance what is likely coming ... for example - nationally, for every acre of farmland gobbled up by developers for urban development, for gravel pits, for utility servicing, must be replaced by the agency removing the farmland from production - by returning into productive agricultural use, current marginal land. For example - the city wants to expand a suburb and takes over 100 acres of productive farmland. The city must in return, purchase 100 acres of land that is currently in marginal agricultural production (within the region or province), rehabilitate that land to bring it up to a similar productivity to what they took out of production. Further, they must maintain that property as a productive farm operation, in perpetuity, with the proceeds contributed to local foodbanks and social services.
If there truly is a concern for being able to feed the world, there would not be a single acre removed from production.
No way this would ever come to fruition. But it's kind of fun to be rebellious :)