Written by my wife Jodi, her account didn’t make the migration for some reason.

I meant to write a follow up to my post on the 2010 agricultural report, but I’ve been distracted by writing to my provincial government instead. There is a big rezoning issue going on in my area right now, and since it’s important farmland at stake, I wanted to get involved.

Here is the letter that I wrote to add my voice

Dear _____ ,

On February 1st, Councillors voted 6 to 5 in favour of rezoning 380 acres of Greenwich farmland. I believe this was a short-sighted decision and a result of the lack of a coherent policy regarding food in our province. This is a complicated and nuanced issue. It is for this reason that I believe the Provincial Government should step in and take action.

Rezoning of agricultural land takes away opportunity for young people like myself who are interested in and care about the industry’s survival. It is already difficult to find suitable, affordable land for farming in Kings County. As the majority of Nova Scotian farmers reach retirement age, it is increasingly obvious that there is no one to replace them. This is why young farmers need to be encouraged and given every opportunity to participate, so when the time comes, we have experienced farmers to take over. Greenwich is located between the university town of Wolfville and the shopping center of the Valley, New Minas. This is a perfect location for agriculture, situated where young farmers can take interest without leaving town. This also makes obtaining fresh produce easy for all locals, which is vitally important for good health. Those without transportation of their own are unable to go far from town to buy directly from the farmers. Keeping land in Greenwich for agricultural use facilitates the availability of fresh produce at local markets (which operate along the public transit route). It also ensures that Greenwich will continue to be a successful agri-tourism center for Kings County, bringing in tourists specifically for the appeal of small country farms.

Recent commercial growth in and around New Minas has been exceptional, and it is understandable that further growth is desired. Taking away fertile farmland to do this, however, when such land is so scarce, is unnecessary and ill-conceived. Commercial and residential developers should first look to land that is not suited for agriculture. There are other areas outside New Minas and Kentville that could offer development opportunities but which would require years to work the soil into condition for farming.

It is also understandable that the owners of this land may wish to sell to residential or commercial developers in order to achieve financial stability. It is well known that many farms in Nova Scotia have shut down or may do so soon because of financial decline. However, if all of these farmers sell their land for commercial development, our province will be forced to rely solely on unsustainable imported foods. Should the world continue to see the severe weather and drought conditions predicted under global climate change or speculation leading to higher food prices, both of which have been observed in the last few years, access to our own agricultural land could quickly become a security issue for the province.

This is why farmland in Nova Scotia must be kept for agricultural purposes. We rely on this land to produce fresh food for our local people and to create opportunities for young farmers. The situation surrounding the decision to rezone this land in Greenwich – the financial crisis of the Agricultural Sector – must be addressed by the provincial government. A solution must be found to allow farmers to keep their land as farmland without being subjected to a guaranteed lifetime of debt.

To start, the provincial government of Nova Scotia should establish an effective Food Policy. One that fosters growth in the Agricultural Sector by supporting locally-grown food. There are many innovative ideas put forth in the 2010 report ‘Opportunities and Challenges in Atlantic Agriculture’, some of which are being used in other provinces already.

The Agricultural Land Review Committee recommends that Nova Scotia establish a Farmland Preservation policy, and I urge the provincial government to do so. Start by rejecting the Greenwich rezoning amendments and send a clear message to Nova Scotians that you care about their farmland and the survival of the agricultural industry.

Sincerely,

Jodi Thibeault
March 1, 2011

It was sent off to the following list of representatives with the hope of adding more pressure to the provincial government to do something.

Premier Darrell Dexter
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) Office of the Premier, P.O. Box 726, Halifax N.S. B3J 2T3

Minister John MacDonell, Dept of Agriculture and Municipal Affairs
(email) [email protected] and [email protected]
(mailing) P.O. Box 2223, Halifax, N.S. B3J 3C4

Deputy Minister Richard Williams, Office of Policy & Priorities
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) 1700 Granville Street, 3rd Floor, One Government Place, Halifax, N.S. B3J 1X5

Minister Stirling Belliveau, Department of Environment
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) P.O. Box 442, Halifax, N.S. B3J 2P8

Minister Percy Paris, Dept. of Economic & Rural Development and Tourism
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) Centennial Building, 1660 Hollis Street, P.O. Box 2311, Halifax, N.S. B3J 3C8

Minister Charlie Parker, Department of Natural Resources
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) 3rd Floor, Founder’s Square, 1701 Hollis Street, Halifax, N.S. B3J 2T9

Beth Densmore, President of N.S. Federation of Agriculture
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) 332 Willow Street, Truro, N.S. B2N 5A5

Ramona Jennex, Kings South
(email) [email protected]
(mailing) 8985 Commercial Street, New Minas, N.S. B4N 3E3

So far I have received three notices of confirmation that the letter has been received by Minister John MacDonell, Minister Percy Paris, and Minister Stirling Belliveau. It seems the latter two are both seeking information from and/or forwarding to Minister MacDonell as this matter is handled primarily by the Department of Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations. I still haven’t heard back from my local MLA or the Premier.

I have also received a very lovely thank you letter from one of the local farmers involved. He is hopeful that a solution can be found. He suggested that the three key figures to contact are Premier Dexter, Minister MacDonell, and my MLA Ramona Jennex.

If anyone would like to lend their support, please feel free to copy this letter. Add your contact information and state that you support me and what I wrote. I don’t know how much influence people from outside the province can have, but I would suggest that Premier Dexter might be the appropriate contact point.

This is my first foray into local activism so I appreciate any support or advice 🙂