The old saying about no more farmland being made may not be true in British Columbia.
The provincial government plans to sell forest areas to farmers this spring in a pilot project to see if the property where timber was destroyed by the mountain pine beetle can be successfully converted to farmland.
“We think there is big potential to bring new farmers on stream and enlarge existing operations,” said B.C. agriculture minister Pat Bell.
Six parcels of land near Vanderhoof, each 320 acres, will be sold to help expand the province’s farmland, especially in areas hard hit by the pine beetle, said Bell.
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It’s estimated about $50 billion worth of trees were lost in less than a decade to the pine beetle’s spread across the province.
Vanderhoof, about 100 kilometres west of Prince George, is the geographical centre of the province and one of the areas hardest hit by the insect.
Before the land is sold, the timber will be logged and turned into a “stump farm,” said Bell.
The government will provide a pool of money to help offset the cost of clearing the land. The new farmers would be expected to provide sweat equity to clear the land.
“I, for one, know exactly how difficult it is,” said Bell, who owned a logging company before becoming an MLA for the Prince George North area.
Bell said there has been a long history of agriculture in the Vanderhoof area. With good soil and a temperate climate, it is well suited to agriculture.
“We think that’s a good place to start the business.”
Bell said if the pilot project is successful the province would look at expanding it to Prince George and Quesnel over the coming year. Then, the Kamloops, Kootenay, Caribou and Chilcotan regions might be developed.
“As we see climate changing, who knows what the potential is for a variety of crops and livestock in the central interior?”
Bell said the success of the project would be measured by how quickly the parcels sold and how soon the land comes into production.
“What I’m not particularly interested in is selling large tracts of land and not develop it.”
