Sustainable development compromise[d] in the planning of Metro Vancouver’s agricultural lands: The Jackson Farm Case

Loss of farmland to urban sprawl presents challenges to achieving sustainable development in Metro Vancouver. Finite petroleum supplies foreshadow a potential future need for locally attained foodstuffs to maintain regional food security, and it is therefore critical that local farmland protection be amongst the top priorities for policymakers. With losses to Metro Vancouver’s farmland still occurring, albeit in lower quantities than previously experienced, it is prudent to investigate potential improvements to existing policy successes in order to strengthen the region’s farmland protection initiatives that are administered by an intergovernmental framework of farmland guardianship. Recent trends in sustainability policy making and implementation have suggested an acceptance of “win-win” solutions by policymakers, resulting in sustainable development compromises. The recent Jackson Farm case suggests such sustainable development compromises can compromise sustainability principles, and additionally contains lessons that provide insight into potential policy improvements that could build upon Metro Vancouver’s farmland protection policy successes.