Anne Murray: Return it to the ALR? Delta’s Southlands controversy continues
The Southlands property in South Delta is making news again. This contentious parcel of agricultural land, originally the Spetifore Farm, became famous for the longest public hearing in Canadian history, which was kept going by passionate citizens for over three weeks in 1989. Pro-farmland activists and environmentalists even came from Vancouver to speak. That hearing was followed by a historic citizen’s plebiscite, organized, run, and overseen by community members, which resulted in a 98-percent vote against urban development of the farmland.
Other development plans have been proposed in the years since then, but now, in a surprise turn of events, Delta council has unanimously agreed to recommend the return of the Southlands to the Agricultural Land Reserve. The public hearing for this recommendation and for keeping the Southlands zoned agricultural in the new Tsawwassen Area Plan is this evening (March 1). It promises to be lively.
Whether the Southlands is put back in the ALR or not will ultimately depend on the provincial Agricultural Land Commission. The farm was removed from the ALR in 1981 by order-in-council of the Socred government of the day, against the wishes of the ALC. A request to rescind the order-in-council in 1992 was turned down by the NDP government, a decision supported by the local farmers’ institute, which claimed the land was not farmable.
Delta residents remain unevenly split between opposing views: the land can be farmed as an increasingly valuable, food-growing resource within the ALR, or it is a poor piece of land, expensive to irrigate and drain, and better used for development. The rapid disappearance of farmland in the Lower Mainland, covered over with highways, housing, and industrial developments, makes the decision to protect farmland in South Delta particularly critical.
One issue on which municipal and provincial politicians and the general public have so far been curiously silent is that of the environment. The future of the Southlands is not just a question of growing crops or building houses. The 538 acres are low-lying floodplain at the core of the Fraser delta ecosystem, part of the internationally significant bird habitat of Boundary Bay. Like all agricultural land in Delta, the Southlands can serve a double function providing not just food for humans but also seasonal habitat for migrating, wintering, and resident wildlife. Development for housing, on the other hand, would destroy the quality and quantity of habitat that maintains existing wildlife populations and increase already high disturbance. The natural environment was a prominent issue in the 1989 hearings, but seems to have been overlooked this time around.
The wealth of bird life makes the Fraser estuary one of the critical stops on the Pacific Flyway migration corridor, between North and South America, and the top-rated Important Bird Area in the whole of Canada. Tens of thousands of ducks and geese gather on Delta farmland during winter storms and high tides, and massive flocks of sandpipers and other shorebirds use damp, low-lying fields as resting and feeding places, especially during their spring and fall migrations. Great blue herons and birds of prey such as eagles, hawks, owls, and harriers, need the open spaces of the farmland to hunt, while songbirds abound in the hedgerows and field margins. The Southlands property is a microcosm of this delta ecosystem, adjacent to Boundary Bay and rich in wildlife. Canada, B.C., and Metro Vancouver municipalities have a special responsibility for these birds visiting our shores, and must ensure their survival during the time they spend with us. Our local farmland, if sensitively managed, can provide much of their necessary habitat, while still staying directly beneficial for humans in providing food security and affordability. This is true sustainability in action.
Richmond councillor and long-time farmland activist Harold Steves participated in drafting the Agricultural Land Reserve Act in 1973. He remembers that the original draft included protection of stream banks, greenbelt, and estuaries, a move well supported by conservationists and hunters at the time, but these were edited out to appease opponents of the act. If the ALR included the conservation of ecologically sensitive land within an integrated agricultural landscape, it would provide much clearer guidance for the role of the Southlands.
We have had decades of environmental knowledge to develop better ways of managing land, yet we seem to be going backwards. The deeply divisive nature of the land controversy in South Delta, the high stakes financial aspects, and the lack of an overall ecological and agricultural vision for the area demand some bold new thinking. An ideal solution, if the seller were willing, would be for the acquisition of the whole area by a land trust committed to sustainable agriculture and wildlife habitat protection within the ALR. Government and non-government agencies, and more particularly people with deep pockets and great generosity, would need to come forward, as the price would no doubt be high.
Anne Murray is a naturalist and the author of two books on Lower Mainland nature and ecological history—Tracing Our Past: A Heritage Guide to Boundary Bay and A Nature Guide to Boundary Bay.
Comments
45 Comments
RonS
Mar 1, 2011 at 6:45pm
Return it to the ALR? Should be a no-brainer as far as I'm concerned. To hell with developers. They'll always find fault with farmland because it is so easy to build on. Back to the ALR. You can put that to a Beatles song called "Back in the USSR".
Elaine
Mar 1, 2011 at 7:24pm
Murray makes some excellent points - preserving habitat for wildlife should remain as high priority as it was back in the 1970s. The bird species this land would help to protect are at much greater risk now than they were 40 years ago.
monty/that's me
Mar 1, 2011 at 7:27pm
Delta Council may well be playing a con game. The Agricultural Land Commitee members are all Liberal appointees. Not likely to favour food when profits from developing the lands will favour their friends. This Council is back by developers. Would they actually risk going against greedy developer Hodgins and perhaps losing their funding in the next election. Methinks, not. A shell game? Place your bets.....
Shepsil
Mar 2, 2011 at 2:30am
Monty is right.
This is a classic game of switch and bait, being played together by Delta Council and the developer, Century Group. Putting the land back in the ALR (the switch) is a cynical attempt by Council to garnish our municipal votes this coming fall election period. The main principal of Century Group, Sean Hodgins took out a <a href="http://deltafreepress.ca/201102271576/Opinion/Editorial/southlands-devel... page ad in our local rag</a>, where he calls all opponents of his Southlands development, "bullies" (the bait). In so doing, he is assuring strong support for our council in this coming fall elections.
Of course anyone who knows anything about the current state of the ALR, under the BC Liberals, knows full well that the ALR has no teeth and that the Agricultural Land Commision appointees are all Liberal hacks, who's only vested interest is in taking land out of the ALR.
Its the perfect win-win for Council. They are soon to be our heros for saving the Southlands from the evil Hodgins developer guy.
If Delta Council gets credit for putting the Southlands back in the ALR, then they will have a cakewalk in the fall. And the kicker will be that whatever happens after that is out of their purview, they will be immune to any criticism.
Delta Council needs to be called on their cowardly attempt to covertly manipulate us, everyone in Delta needs to see what is happening.
Erwin Braun
Mar 2, 2011 at 8:09am
If pepople are really concerned about farming and habitat, they need to more closely examine the effort put forward by the Century Group. The proposed development for the area included an estimated 1/3 parkland along with 1/3 viable organic agricultural farming. Furthermore, if in the ALR, farming the lands conventionally would certainly displace birds.
Eleanor Calderwood
Mar 2, 2011 at 9:52am
If this land goes back into the ALR we as citizens of Delta will lose all say as to how it is farmed. At least with Century we have someone who is a member of our community and has a stake in what goes there. If all these farm only people would actually look at the plan, it is designated 1/3 farms, 1/3 parks and 1/3 development - could be so nice. Seems to be a very well researched plan. That however, is not the issue at stake. Right now it is zoned agricultural, so no development. If the ALC accepts the land back into the ALR I am very worried we will end up with greenhouses or husbandry in the middle of town. We still need to live here!
MinDelta
Mar 2, 2011 at 10:47am
FIRST: Right or wrong, the Southlands is NOT currently part of the ALR. When Century aquired the property from TDL, it was NOT part of the ALR. They purchased this property and, presumably, paid a market price for it based on the fact that it was NOT in the ALR. By moving it back into the ALR, Delta and the province would be opening themselves up for litigation as this would result in a loss in the marketable value of the land. Delta council may well enjoy these types of political battles but, in the end, it simply costs taxpayers money.
SECOND: Tsawwassen needs sustainable growth. The Century proposal to develop the Southlands was well thought out and well planned. The balance between development and green space was more than generous. The idea of new housing options for first time homebuyers and downsizers alike should have been better received. Unfortunately the anti-development movement is so well organized in this community that those in favour of the plan are afraid to speak out for fear of reprisals. I live in an area not far from the proposed development and did have concerns about traffic patterns but Delta council, rather than trying to find solutions to the few obstacles, made the decision to view the proposal as a YES or NO only 'vote'. Typical short-sightedness by our mayor.
LAST (but not least): If this property is moved back into the ALR, what is to stop Century or another owner from covering the land with greenhouses? This would be a legitimate form of agriculture and, given the issues with the soil quality, a viable way to employ the land given its zoning. What will that do to the community ... ? What about a pig farm or something equally noxious? Do the nay-sayers really believe that this land will remain vacant and un-worked for their visual enjoyment.
nachum
Mar 2, 2011 at 11:41am
Monty & Shepsil are both right.
Leave the land the way it is. Its safe from development the way it is. The developer, Sean Hodgins of Century Group, last year tried to claim the land had no value as a farm due to poor soil. Then <a href="http://deltafreepress.ca/201102271576/Opinion/Editorial/southlands-devel... his ad in the Delta Leader, where he called us bullies</a>, for opposing his land development, he threatens us by saying he will impose industrial agriculture on this land with its' poor soil.
Who's the lying bully now!
TswResidentRob
Mar 2, 2011 at 2:21pm
I would like to know the average age of those against this development. I may not be the majority but being a young homeowner in Tsawwassen and lifelong resident I know we need growth in this town. Of course part of me wants this land to remain the way it is but as I look around at how this town is changing I can't argue with the fact that we need change and growth. This town is getting older and if you have raised your children here who are now in their 20's or 30's and looking for a place to start their own family you need to understand why they would not choose this town to raise their kids. We need more options and a new generation in this town before more schools are forced to close. This will only happen with new development and more options to shop and be entertained locally.
Delta Unrest
Mar 2, 2011 at 3:09pm
Why all these presumptions about what the land owner is up to, like this is some secretive special development. Look at the proposal on the website. His ideas along with those residents that chose to participate in the open planning sessions are all there for you to see. I laugh when people say protect the birds and the farms but don't build anything. The plan calls for all these wants to be taken care of and still build homes over a 20 year period. This is the classic case of Not In My Back Yard. All the rich land owners living in their single family houses around the Southlands do not want any new families to come life in their precious white suburbia.