Our lands face new threat

Richmond - The Editor, I am writing to advise Richmondites that our farmland and particularly the Garden City Lands (GCL) is under threat by actions of the B.C. government. Bill Bennett, Minister responsible for the B.C. government's Core Review said recently, "We're going to look at some sacrosanct things, like certain agencies. We're going to look at the Agricultural Land Reserve and the Agricultural Land Commission. I'm going to look at things that politicians have been nervous about looking at over the years and ask to better understand how they make their decisions and why they make their decisions and determine whether they're structured to help achieve the goals of our provincial government."After fighting so hard to save the GCL from development, it would be a real shame if the provincial government overruled the City of Richmond and declared there would be no more Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR). We Richmondites have big plans for the GCL. The city heard loud and clear that we want public open spaces, community gardens, test plots for new farmers, and natural parkland accessible to all.Where would Richmond be without the ALR? I could see wall to wall highrises instead of beautiful vistas of the mountains; pavement and concrete instead of rich, productive land growing us food and giving us clean air.As is evidenced by the planned expansion of PMV and Deltaport, it appears provincial and federal governments are bent on destroying our natural environment in order to ship in food and manufactured goods. But once the oil is gone and the ships stop coming, we'll need to provide for ourselves.I would urge everyone who cares about the Garden City Lands and farmland in Richmond to write a short note to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Facilities at: [email protected]. The deadline for submissions is Oct. 16.De WhalenRichmond