Agricultural Land Reserve

British Columbia's Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) is a collection of land where agriculture is designated as the priority use.[1] Farming is encouraged and non-agricultural uses are restricted.[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.[3]: 1–5  The ALR covers 4.6 million hectares (46 thousand square kilometers, equivalent to 18 thousand square miles), or about 4.9% of British Columbia's land base.[2]: 73 [4]

There are six ALR administrative regions: South Coast, Interior, Island, Kootenay, North, and Okanagan.[1]

Tax breaks are applicable to property in the ALR, and questions of equity among taxpayers have emerged.[5]

  1. ^ a b c "Agricultural Land Reserve Maps". Provincial Agricultural Land Commission. 8 February 2022.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference AR2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Smith was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "50 Years of the Provincial Agricultural Land Commission". Provincial Agricultural Land Commission, BC. 18 April 2023.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Metro was invoked but never defined (see the help page).