The efficacy and politics of farmland preservation through land use regulation: Changes in southwest British Columbia’s Agricultural Land Reserve

British Columbia’s (BC) Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) is one of the earliest international examples of legislated agricultural land preservation through land use regulation. This article reports on an analysis of the efficacy of the reserve in southwestern BC, the most densely populated area in the province, since its inception over forty years ago. The results indicate that the ALR has been relatively successful in protecting farmland, though a concerning five-percent of the original reserve has been lost in the study area. A discussion of existing explanations of ALR loss and an alternative explanation are provided. It is argued that competing perspectives on private and collective interests are central to understanding the successes and failures of the ALR reserve system. Some policy recommendations are provided.