Working with Islanders to find made-in-PEI solutions.
For Islanders, questions of land ownership and land use are essential parts of our culture. Our land and communities are intimately connected, in a way that is unique to our island.
Purpose
In Prince Edward Island, the Lands Protection Act and the Planning Act govern land ownership and use. Now we have the chance to modernize the province’s land-related legislation and policy to meet current and future needs of the province.
Approach
Modernizing land-related legislation requires a collaborative and comprehensive approach to finding solutions and an openness to new ideas and policy design.
Tackling the challenges
This comprehensive review of land-related legislation will bring together public service employees, individuals and stakeholders to develop made-in-PEI land solutions. An evidence-guided process will include Indigenous communities of PEI, local residents, communities, industry groups, as well as subject-matter experts. This will include examining the findings and recommendations of these previously commissioned land-related reports:
- New Foundations Report of the Commission on Land and Local Governance (2009)
- The Gift of Jurisdiction: Our Island Province (2013)
- Report of the Task Force on Land Use Policy (2014)
A step-by-step plan
We will examine land policy and legislation in a five-step process.
-Phase One: Issue Identification and Advisory Committee
The Land Matters website was launched to collect public feedback, and the Land Matters Advisory Committee will be established. Islanders were invited to apply through Engage PEI to become an advisory committee member. Two (2) Co-Chairs and eleven (11) Members were chosen. This committee advised government and guided the process.
-Phase Two: Legislation/Policy Formulation
The Land Matters Advisory Committee hosted presentations from stakeholder groups, informed by feedback received through phase one. The Land Matters Advisory Committee released its Final Report, with recommendations for land-related legislation and policy. Additionally, a "What We've Heard" Survey Report was released that is based on feedback received through the website.
-Phase Three: Legislation/Policy Adoption
Stakeholder engagement with respect to phase two findings.
-Phase Four: Legislation/Policy Implementation
Preparation of amendments to land-related legislation.
-Phase Five: Legislation/Policy Evaluation
The Department of Agriculture and Land will develop an implementation plan for confirmed changes, based on report recommendations, along with the plan to monitor performance, relevance and impact of land-related legislation.