The past two years have been an extremely low point for farming in Central Saanich. Several farms have stopped producing due to retirement, losses from geese and deer, low prices and lack of support from local elected politicians. These are a few of the other factors.
The decisions of the mayor and council have been nothing short of the absurd. The recent proposal to take Maber Flats out of production and create a water retention lake and a bird sanctuary is one more of those short sighted and self serving solutions council is becoming so good at. Local farmers are already doing more than enough to maintain wildlife in the district. Goose and deer populations increase every year and farmers are criticized for trying to control numbers with traditional practices such as hunting and noise-makers, only to have bird sanctuaries created to add more bird population to the farmer’s problems.
There has been nothing but talk from local politicians and now they take acres of highly productive land and use it for a water problem the politicians themselves created by not giving any thought to where the highly contaminated water from the surrounding housing developments and Keating Industrial Park would settle. For years this problem has been discussed but no help.
It makes you wonder when Lake Maber and Lake Martindale will be renamed after one of the local decision makers.
I would suggest that all of the residents of Central Saanich not worry as much about their views being obstructed by ugly buildings, farm odours from modern agriculture or farm vehicles on narrow roads, but ask the question: How do we save a farmer ?
Christine Duffield
Central Saanich