Agricultural Area Plan Implementation
The Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) created the Agricultural Area Plan (AAP) to support, preserve, and enhance viable agriculture and food production in the RDN. The plan was rooted in community engagement and involved input from local agricultural and aquaculture communities and people who are interested in local food. This planning process enabled local government, citizens, stakeholders and food producers to work together to create a shared vision for the future of agriculture and aquaculture.
What is the Agricultural Area Plan?
The AAP is a strategy and policy framework. It guides ongoing agricultural related decision making within the RDN. The AAP informs RDN bylaws and polices that aim to support local agriculture and aquaculture as viable and sustainable economic sectors in the region. Identified in the plan are key players in achieving the goals of the plan, including member municipalities, other government agencies, community groups and farm operators. The recommendations in the AAP guide the efforts of these key players, ensuring they collectively work towards the goals of the plan.
Agricultural Area Plan Goals
The RDN Agricultural Area Plan contains eight key goals, which are based on extensive community engagement:
- Protect and Enhance the Agricultural Land Base
- Strengthen the Local Agriculture and Aquaculture Economy
- Improve Training, Skills, and Labour Opportunities in the RDN
- Improve Opportunities for On-Farm Water Resource Management
- Address Environmental Sustainability, Wildlife, and Climate Change Challenges in the RDN
- Promote Awareness and Value of Local Agriculture and Aquaculture
- Support Agriculture and Aquaculture in Land Use Regulations and Policies
- Consider Agriculture in Emergency Planning Initiatives
Progress and Implementation
The AAP includes 128 recommended Action Items. Following the adoption of the AAP, the Agricultural Advisory Committee (AAC) reviewed the AAP’s 128 Action Items and identified 68 of them as the highest priority to consider within the first work plan. These priority action items were organized into projects and tasks identified in an Implementation Action Plan for the 2014-2016 work period.
Since then, the Implementation Action Plan has been reviewed and updated in 2016, 2020, and, most recently, in 2024/2025. While progress had been made on the Implementation Action Items between 2012 and 2024, some of the Action Items have not been completed.
To support the 2025-2027 Agricultural Area Plan Implementation Action Plan update, the Board passed several resolutions between 2023 and 2025. These resolutions provide funding to update the Implementation Plan and endorse the project. Following endorsement, staff worked closely with the AAC and agricultural consultants to update the plan to include a revised an updated list of high priority actions within the RDN's purview.