#farmers4ALR fight changes to Agricultural Land Reserve
Dozens of B.C. farmers are taking 'farm selfies' and posting them to social media to protest proposed changes to the Agricultural Land Reserve.
Last month, the provincial government proposed dividing B.C. into two agricultural land zones.
While prime farmland in the Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island and Okanagan would see little change, under the new rules farmland in much of B.C.'s Interior would see restrictions loosened to allow for more non-farming activities like oil and gas development.
Courtenay farmer Arzeena Hamir, whose hashtag #farmers4ALR is quickly gaining momentum on Twitter and Facebook, says the 'farm selfie' or 'felfie', is becoming the new form of protest against the changes.
"I think I started it and then it just ballooned from there," says Hamir
She fears the legislation will allow some farmers to sub-divide their land, and that could drive up prices.
Windermeer farmer Lin Eagen posted a photo of her family members standing on their organic vegetable farm holding a sign that reads, "We love the ALR. Please stop Bill 24."
"One of the really interesting things I notice is it's both young and old farmers and everyone's standing with their land in the background and I think its wonderful to be part of this movement," says Eagen.
Eagen says she fears if the bill goes through, land prices will rise to levels out of reach for young farmers.
