|
Sources of Information
Contacts
Commission Planners
The Policy and Planning section participates in land use planning and provides policy and legislation services. A major function is to review plans and bylaws and to work with local governments on issues affecting agriculture and forestry. Each planner is responsible for specific regions of the province so that they can become familiar with local areas and issues. See Contacts for a list of Planners and the regions they are responsible for.
Commission Panels
As part of its ongoing commitment to working closely with local governments, the Commission has established Regional Panels. This enables each Panel to become more involved in the planning process and provides for greater collaboration with local governments. As the Panels will be able to visit their regions more frequently, there will be opportunities to conduct site inspections where beneficial to the process and understanding of the issues. For more information, see Commission Panels.
Agri-Teams
The purpose of agri-teams is to proactively assist municipalities and regional districts at an early stage in processes where planning studies, policy development and bylaw reviews are being considered that affect agriculture.
Agri-teams consist of the Commission Regional Planning Officer and regional and district Ministry of Agriculture and Lands personnel familiar with the local area. Other personnel may be drawn upon for technical advice on an as-needed basis. See the Agri-Team List for the members and the regions they are responsible for.
Agricultural Advisory Committees
As of November 2002, 19 local governments have found it beneficial to establish Agricultural Advisory Committees (AACs). The purpose of these committees is to provide advice to regional boards and municipal councils on issues affecting agriculture. It is more common for MAL staff to work in a supportive role with these committees but where necessary Commission staff can be involved as required.
Ministry of Agriculture and Lands (MAL) Staff
While the ministry continues to promote agricultural development, the enactment of the Farm Practices Protection (Right to Farm) Act, and amendments to the Local Government Act (formerly the Municipal Act) and the Land Title Act have resulted in a significant re-orientation of MAL resources to implement and service these legislative initiatives. Improved sharing of information and expertise between the ministry and local governments is being pursued and the agri-teams have been developed to provide support to local governments.
See the Ministry's web site for a list of MAL offices and additional information on its programs and services.
Publications
There are a number of useful publications that deal with local government planning and agricultural issues. See Publications for list of ALR topics. Of particular importance to local government land use planning are:
| 
