File consists of a speech given by Gary Runka entitled "The Importance of Agriculture to BC and the Creston Valley" Creston Valley Agricultural Society.
Commentary on this speech by Barry Smith of the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands:
"The speech begins with a number of recent urban newspaper headlines illustrating the level of awareness and the stress on agriculture.
The paper is broken into several major topics:
(I) The Options - in which two perspectives are outlined - one positive that agriculture has social value and is vitally important to the province and second, that agriculture is ultimately doomed.
(II) The Agricultural Land (Water) Base - 11 different land use planning issues are reviewed from an agricultural perspective. It is stressed that agriculture must become a more integrated part of the overall planning process.
(III) The Economic and Social Well Being of the Farming Community. It is noted that there are strong feelings in rural communities that government bureaucrats impose planning and resource management decisions on them rather than plan with or for them. Thus, if agriculture is to thrive it must, once again, become a more integrated part of the overall planning process and the agricultural land base must be assured.
(IV) The Ecological and Economic Sustainability of Agriculture - A key agricultural land conservation measure will be the redirection of regional and local urban growth to available and suitable lands outside the ALR. Provincial and local zoning is seen as a first step framework for managing competition for agricultural land.
Betterment Recapture - this (possibly Henry George inspired) comment reflects the need to recapture a portion of the appreciated value when agricultural land is converted to urban uses as a hedge against speculative forces.
The paper ends by encouraging farm areas like the Creston Valley to take pride in their agricultural community because the opportunity exists for a vibrant, healthy sustainable future."
