A Sooke land owner says he’ll put in a pig feedlot on his property if he can’t resolve an ongoing dispute with the Agricultural Land Reserve.
Sooke Mayor Maja Tait and her council heard from the fed-up owner at a meeting on Monday.
She said he requested support in removing a parcel of land on his property from the ALR.
If that doesn’t happen, the land owner says neighbours will have to prepare for a feedlot filled with pigs roaming next to their homes, and across the street from the town’s largest hotel.
“The land owner is in a position where if it has to stay in the ALR, he has to find a means of farming it. It’s as simple as that,” said his representative, Stephanie Davison. “It’s not a threat. It’s not a bullying tactic. It’s the position he’s in.”
The land is owned by an Alberta oil worker who has family ties to the area.
He says the ALR title should be stripped from the property because the soil is no longer farmable and hasn’t been for decades.
Tait says residents are concerned about how a feedlot would impact their properties – and the animals.
“There’s concern over animal welfare, but there’s also concern out of a food security perspective,” she said.
“Seems like a game to me, kind of pushing and shoving,” said Kathy Collings, who lives near the property. “I don’t’ think this fellow really wants pigs or cows.”
The owner won’t say what his plans for the land would be if its removed from the ALR, but adds the threat of pigs isn’t politics – it’s reality.
“I have an allocation of funds to put livestock on that land,” said Davison.
The first step to remove it from the ALR is a recommendation from the city – something that council says it’s not willing to give.
The ALR, which comprises five per cent of all B.C. land, is province-protected land that is designated for agricultural use only.
