News Release Archive
AGRICULTURE/MARKETING--FARM LAND IDENTIFICATION PROJECT LAUNCHED
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A new program that will help identify farm land in Nova Scotia
was announced today by Guy Brown, minister of agriculture and
marketing, and Jim Smith, minister of housing and municipal
affairs.
The Agricultural Land Identification Project has been developed
to create an inventory of Nova Scotia's farm land and to monitor
changes in agricultural land use. The inventory will be used in
developing policies for better use and preservation of
agricultural land.
"We are committed to preserving our agricultural land because it
is a limited resource," said Mr. Brown. "The data that we put
together will provide an inventory of the acreage and location of
land actively used by farmers.
"Policies must be developed to ensure that the agrifood industry
has the resource base it needs so it can continue to grow in the
years ahead for the benefit of all Nova Scotians."
The departments of Agriculture and Marketing and Housing and
Municipal Affairs will share their land information expertise and
databases to create the inventory.
Mr. Brown has asked for the co-operation of municipal units in
collecting information. Those taking part in the project will
receive financial assistance based on the total farm acreage
reported in municipal assessment records. About $400,000 has been
set aside to identify farm land through this project.
The project will begin this summer and carried out over the next
year. The Department of Agriculture and Marketing will
co-ordinate the data collection from the municipal units through
the Resource Stewardship Branch.
In addition to this land inventory project, a special conference
will take place July 9-12 at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College
in Truro. The Rural Resources Rural Development Conference, the
first of its kind in the province, will look at rural and land
issues.
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Contact: Mike Langman
Agriculture and Marketing
902-893-6557
trp June 6, 1997 - 10:25 a.m.
