Agricultural Land. Commission poster MFRE speaker
 
Event ZOOM Link
About the Speaker

Kim is the CEO of the Provincial Agricultural Land Commission (ALC), an independent administrative tribunal dedicated to preserving agricultural land and encouraging farming in British Columbia. Kim is a registered professional Agrologist with the BC Institute of Agrologists and a registered professional planner with the Planning Institute of BC and Canadian Institute of Planners. Prior to her appointment with the ALC in December 2015, Kim spent over 17 years working for local government in numerous roles, including chief administrative officer (CAO), deputy CAO, director of operations and development services, and manager of development and environmental services.  Kim has also worked for several environmental NGO groups.

In response to public concerns regarding the loss of prime agricultural land in BC, the provincial government responded by introducing BC's Land Commission Act on April 18, 1973. The Act designated Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) boundaries based on biophysical information related to the natural characteristics of the land and its climate, rather than on the market and other socio-economic conditions. To administer the ALR, the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) was created as an independent administrative tribunal. Regional governments submitted ALR plans to the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) based on their guidelines and on maps provided by the BC Department of Agriculture, which identified lands that have the soil/climate combination to support agriculture and that were not already urbanized or irreversibly alienated. Although the ALC has been controversial since its establishment, it continues to receive public support as it has responded to several amendments to the original Act to address public concerns and emergent issues. Although successful, challenges continue.

Readings: