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PROJECTS
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DECL submission to the
NE Farmlands Debate November 12, 2008
Development
November 12, 2008 - 7 p.m.
Hon. Mayor Mandel and Councillors,
The concern about these precious agricultural lands speaks to the core of what it means to BE local citizens and
our collective need and desire to live a more sustainable lifestyle. There is a reason that market gardens and
food crops are grown in this area year-after-year, known for its fertile land and micro-climate. The lands at stake
are some of the most productive agricultural lands in the province and have been a significant part of our cultural
heritage.
As a downtown resident, our future food security and ability to contribute to the sustainability of our city is
partly dependent on being able to obtain local sources of food. As President of our community league, I am acutely
aware of how losing this land will affect my fellow residents' access to local food choices, and how this will
have a negative impact on some of the sustainable goals outlines in Edmonton's New Downtown Plan Draft. This plan
encourages energy reduction and supporting local economies, both which directly relate to this issue.
As a supporter and patron of the City Farmer's Market on 104 Street, we would be losing a significant source of
local food and wares if this land was lost as farmland, and the ability for downtown residents and Edmontonians
alike to support local food businesses and restaurants that rely on their ability to market their food as locally
produced. In a time where more people are thinking and choosing to buy and live "local", we are close
to taking a significant step in the wrong direction and against the flow of common sense and restricting sustainable
choices.
Being and living local means prioritizing our existing and future resources, looking at what you've got and what
you've got to lose. I believe that we stand to lose a great source of local food security, as well as a cultural
resource people cherish and have come to identify with what it means to live in the Edmonton area. Just to give
an example of the tenuousness of our food system, Most North American urban centres only stock 3-4 days worth of
food in groceries stores at any given time. If our transportation system was to stop momentarily, we would have
to look at local, productive sources for our food.
I implore you to look at the larger picture on this issue and engage the citizens of greater Edmonton in a discussion
on the future of these lands that includes a significant and possibly greater role in securing our food from this
area. This would be a significant step in giving Edmontonians the message that the City of Edmonton is serious
about a sustainable future, and preserving our food heritage which I believe must include these lands.
How this issue is connected to various City of Edmonton plans, specifically supporting keeping much of this land
as farmland:
- Municipal Development Plan Draft will be interpreted to support a sustainable approach to development, which
means leaving some or most of our NE farmland intact:
- Protect River Valley and Watershed, Improve Air Quality.
- Working within Region - feeding our regional population using our logical, historical, and common sense approach
- protecting existing agricultural lands (Support of local food economies).
- Edmonton's New Downtown Plan Draft - specifically addresses the food security issue through the support of the
farmer's market, and includes an entire chapter on sustainability.
- Smart Choices - addressing the issue of urban sprawl includes protecting agricultural lands. We can not deal
with the issue without first protecting our most productive, local agricultural assets.
Sincerely,
Chris Buyze, President
Downtown Edmonton Community League
421, 10113 - 104 Street
Edmonton AB T5J 0Z9
Telephone 425-1432
**Food grown locally costs less to transport, uses less fossil fuels; and keeps more money in the hands of local
producers. It is safe to assume food grown in productive soil and transported for less time retains more nutrient
value and is therefore healthier.
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