The CAQ government launched a consultation last June with a view to reforming the protection of agricultural land. Its preservation is supposedly ensured by a law of 1978, which in 1996 became the Law on the Protection of Territory and Agricultural Activities.
However, the pressure of urbanization and economic development has never eased, particularly in the St. Lawrence Valley. Thus, exclusions have continually narrowed the perimeter of the agricultural zone, and the interior is undermined by the authorization of multiple non-agricultural uses. Moreover, governments have alternately blown hot and cold since 1978, leaving economic players and local decision-makers in permanent wait.
The recent text “Agricultural land, beyond virtue” published in the Opinion section of Duty points out the limited role of the Commission for the Protection of Agricultural Territory of Quebec (CPTAQ) and raises various issues plaguing agriculture. The protection of agricultural land is certainly an imperative, but it cannot guarantee agriculture that preserves soil health, facilitates access to the profession and energizes rural communities. These questions are more the responsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of Quebec (MAPAQ), whose actions have not been up to the challenges of recent decades.
The author Christophe Morency-Pichet also underlines the dominance of a globalized market presented as a fatal reality. Numerous studies have demonstrated that this system is harmful to local economies, biodiversity and the health of populations, not to mention the impact of disruptive phenomena: pandemics, wars, climate change. The recent United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) valued diversification and self-reliance. We must therefore seek to reduce our dependence on the world market through greater food autonomy (to be distinguished from food sovereignty) and appropriate agricultural policies.
Our collective, Citizen Voice, wanted to “feed” the MAPAQ consultation, by formulating various analyzes and reflections in ten columns supported by several co-signatories from civil society and distributed to numerous groups and organizations. They are accessible on the consultation website (grouped into two briefs). This consultation must give rise to a real debate with a view to substantial changes to agricultural policies, of which here are some ideas.
Strong positive impacts could result from a remodeling of support programs, by first targeting agricultural businesses regardless of their size, sector of activity and location, rather than emphasizing specific production and depending on volumes, as with ASRA [assurance stabilisation des revenus agricoles]which helps support production for export.
MAPAQ must become a catalyst for development in rural communities and around urban centers. It must be on the lookout for innovations and provide appropriate financial support.
The creation of a land bank, as provided for in the MAPAQ law, is necessary to facilitate the establishment of the next generation, starting with plots of 10 hectares or less.
We must expand the possibilities of compensation for the environmental services provided by agriculture with financial support incentives for promising initiatives.
And there is overall governance. Governments, the UPA, players in the biofood chain (other processors), research centers, civil society, all have, to varying degrees, “hands on the wheel”. But no one can, alone, give the necessary boost to help us face the future. Maybe we should hold a Pronovost 2.0 commission…
For the current government, the protection of agricultural land and the environment must not harm economic development, its absolute priority. With the objective of carbon neutrality using electricity, the manufacture of batteries will require various metals often present in agricultural areas. Mining claims are multiplying, and fear is already spreading in the countryside.
The Bécancour battery factory has led to a decree excluding the agricultural zone, and the establishment of Northvolt in Montérégie will bring 3,000 workers with families, which will create pressure on the surrounding (agricultural) environment: housing, infrastructure, services…
Since Quebec is in competition with Ontario, how far will the government go in deviating from the mechanisms for protecting agricultural land and the environment?
All in all, agricultural land is not an “empty calorie”, and its protection is far from being a simple question of virtue, as Christophe Morency-Pichet states. It is rather the basis of all agricultural policy: the soil resource is rare, non-renewable, subject to often irreversible decisions, and its potential is sometimes unknown.
Who could have predicted, 50 years ago, that Quebec would become the second largest producer of cranberries in the world, on soils long considered to have no potential?