BCCA is concerned that recent ad hoc regulations applied by the Provincial Agricultural Land commission (ALC) that restrict cannabis crops to open field or greenhouse settings but disallow concrete floor or footings, or other conventional construction methods used in any other type of agricultural structure (such as dairy, poultry, other plants) are being discriminatorily applied and resulting in loss of jobs in the construction sector, and placing an undue burden to contractors who have already begun work.

Regarding our outreach to the Ministry of Agriculture on the use of ALR lands and inconsistencies in building requirements for cannabis crops, we received a written response from the Assistant Deputy Minister. The key points from the note are:

• This is local issue
• The provincial government does not plan any changes to the regulations
• We have an option to reach out to the CEO of the ALC

BCCA will pursue a meeting with the ALC CEO Kim Grout. It will be extremely helpful if the regions can provide specific examples from their members as to the projects that have been halted and the impact on jobs, revenue, and taxes. Also, for projects that have been relocated, where have they been relocated to?