Pictou County has recently adopted its first-ever Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use Bylaw, bringing comprehensive land use planning to the municipality for the first time. Because past planning efforts faced strong opposition—particularly from the agricultural community—the new plans were intentionally designed with a “light touch.” However, the Province has since directed the Municipality to update these documents to better protect agricultural land and align with provincial policy, with changes required by Summer 2026.

This project focuses on developing those required updates in a way that both meets provincial requirements and reflects the realities of farming in Pictou County. During earlier engagement, farmers shared concerns that planning could make an already challenging industry more difficult. At the same time, many also expressed worries about residential development encroaching on farmland and saw value in planning as a way to protect agricultural operations from land use conflicts.

This work builds on those conversations and aims to create agricultural policies and regulations that support farmers rather than hinder them. Meaningful engagement with the residents of MOPC will be a crucial component of this project.