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29/04/13 - Farm Net - Task Force on Land Use Policy to begin consultations
The Task Force on Land Use Policy, established late last year, will begin this week to consult Islanders on one of the thorniest issues in Prince Edward Island. The establishment of the task force was one of the key recommendation of the Commission on Land and Local Governance. It is to hold consultations around the land use question and make recommendation on land use policies to the provincial government this fall.
The members of the task force are chair John Handrahan, Tignish, Janice Harper, Charlottetown, Carol Horne, Charlottetown, Paul Gallant, Souris West and Marvyn Webster, Kelvin Grove.
Since its establishment, it has prepared draft provincial land use policies for public discussion and feedback before making its recommendations. A consultation document has been developed.
Land use policies and plans are tools to guide development over land use. Land use policy sets priorities for land to be preserved or developed to protect the environment, support economic development and efficient delivery of services and enhance the quality of life. It looks at the social, economic and environmental impacts of change. Land use planing is a way for people to envisage the kind of community and province in which they would like to live.
Despite the importance of sound land use planning, there are no comprehensive land use policies that apply to all of the province. Land use plans cover only 10 percent of the Island, and the remaining 90 percent is covered by a patchwork of rules. The rules are not connected to a provincial policy because there is none.
As the Commission pointed out, “All Islanders concerned about the future need to question what our guardianship of the province’s environment and resources will provide for those who come after us, if we do nothing to change our current direction.”
Ultimately, land use planing is striking a balance between individual property rights and the public interest.
Some of the critical issues affecting the agriculture industry are protecting prime agricultural land, preserving the rural landscape, protecting groundwater, preventing soil erosion and reducing the potential for land use conflicts. Many of these issues were also raised during the recent round of consultations on the Lands Protection Act.
A series of information meetings will be held beginning this week at the Charlottetown Rural High School, Thursday, May 2. They will continue the following weeks at the Vanier Community Centre in Wellington, Tuesday, May 7; the Cavendish Farms Wellness Centre in Montague, Thursday, May 16; the Loyalist Inn in Summerside, Tuesday, May 21; and the Westisle Composite High School in Elmsdale, Thursday, May 30; and Access PEI in Souris, Tuesday, June 4. Each meeting will begin with an open house from 6:30 p.m. and a presentation at 7:00 p.m.
Comments and suggestions are also welcome by email, letter or telephone.
For more information on the task force, go to http://www.gov.pe.ca/landandlocalgovernance
For More Information
Wayne MacKinnon
Email: wemackinnon@gov.pe.ca
