Agricultural Land Reserve
[1][2]: 16 The ALR was established by the British Columbia New Democratic Party government of Dave Barrett in 1973 to preserve the province's limited farmland from urbanization.
[2]: 73 [4] There are six ALR administrative regions: South Coast, Interior, Island, Kootenay, North, and Okanagan.
[2]: 18 Before 1973, an estimated 4000 to 6000 hectares of prime agricultural land was lost each year to urbanization in British Columbia.
)[3]: 1, 12 [6] Starting with CLI maps, and obtaining input from local governments and public hearings, the ALC identified 4.7 million hectares to be included in the ALR.
[5]: 5 [20][21] A Kwantlen Polytechnic University study notes this tax exemption encourages ownership but not farming of ALR land.
[5]: 6 Since these properties are not used for farming, the study recommends removal of the exemption so as to maintain equity across residential land owners inside and outside of the ALR.
[5]: 3 Structures and farm-related commercial and industrial uses are restricted, but permitted in the ALR to provide agriculture-related economic opportunities for farmers.
[23][24] A 2020 report prepared for the BC government recommended setting aside up to a maximum of one quarter of one percent of the province's ALR land to create a new category of agricultural-industrial farmland.
[25][26] To counter concerns about allowing structures on arable farmland, converted land would be of low soil quality, ill-suited for farming (CLI Classes 4-7).
[25]: 12, 73, 74 [26] In 2022, ALR regulations were amended to promote the agricultural-technology industry by allowing crops grown on vertically-stacked shelves.
The change aimed to cut energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions, improve farm efficiency, and help with labour shortages.
"[31] So-called "monster homes" were being built on Richmond's ALR land, where the average house size surged to 12,087 square feet in 2015, compared with 7,329 in 2010.
Farmland Owners Association opposed the law saying the government did not consult them adequately, and that a limit of 500 square meters would not allow enough space for what are often family-owned businesses.
[33] The study found significant differences between market prices and the provincial assessments for 122 properties examined.
[33] There has been criticism of inconsistency in how farm policies are applied, in terms of special treatment for producers of wine and other alcohol products.
