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In This Volume

  • 26 (1) The commission may enter into an agreement with any of the following to enable a first nation government or an authority to exercise some or all of the commission’s power to decide use or subdivision applications:
  • (a) a first nation government, for applications made in respect of settlement lands within the jurisdiction of the first nation government;
  • (b) an agent of the government, a public officer or a public body other than a local government, for applications made in respect of land within the jurisdiction of the authority, if the agent, officer or body is prescribed by regulation.
  • (2) An agreement under subsection (1) between the commission and an authority may exempt a non-farm use in a specified area within the jurisdiction of the authority from the requirement of an application on the condition that the authority conducts audits and reports to the commission as required by the agreement.
  • (3) If an agreement is entered into under subsection (1), the first nation government or authority must, with respect to an application covered by the agreement,
  • (a) consider each application in the prescribed manner, and
  • (b) advise the commission in the prescribed manner of each application received and of the decision made on each application.
  • (4) A decision made under this section must be made as follows:
  • (a) in the case of a decision of a first nation government, by a law of the first nation government;
  • (b) in the case of a decision of an authority, by a resolution of the governing body of the authority.
  • (5) If, by an agreement entered into under subsection (1) of this section, the commission delegates its power to decide applications under section 25 to a first nation government or an authority,
  • (a) section 6 applies to the first nation government or the authority for the purposes of deciding use or subdivision applications, and
  • (b) the decision of the first nation government or the authority is a decision of the commission for the purposes of this Act.
  • (6) If an authority has the power to decide an application under an agreement entered into under subsection (1), an application that would otherwise be required to be submitted to the local government or first nation government under section 34.1 (1) must be made directly to the authority.
  • (7) If a first nation government or an authority has the power to decide an application under an agreement entered into under subsection (1),
  • (a) the first nation government or authority may retain the entire fee payable under section 35.1 with respect to the application,
  • (a.1) section 34.1 applies to the applicant with respect to the application, except that a reference to the commission in that section must be read as a reference to the local government, first nation government or authority, and
  • (b) sections 39 to 45 apply to the application as if the application were before the commission.
  • (8) If the commission enters into an agreement under subsection (1)(c) with a first nation government in relation to settlement lands, that agreement or another agreement under this Act must include a definition of “owner” for the purposes of paragraph (b)(i) of the definition of “owner” in section 1(1).
  • (9) The Financial Administration Act does not apply in relation to a fee collected under this section.

2002-36-26, effective November 1, 2002 (B.C. Reg. 171/2002); 2004-32-7, effective July 23, 2004 (B.C. Reg. 339/2004); 2007-36-7, effective April 3, 2009 (B.C. Reg. 55/2009); 2011-27-6; 2018-56-17, effective February 22, 2019 (B.C. Reg. 30/2019); 2019-32-17(a) to (c), (e) to (f), (g) (partial), and (h), effective March 12, 2020 (B.C. Reg. 57/2020); 2019-32-17(d) and (g) (partial), effective September 30, 2020 (B.C. Reg. 57/2020).

PRACTICE

Delegation to British Columbia Energy Regulator

Pursuant to the Agricultural Land Commission Act and regulations, the ALC has delegated to the British Columbia Energy Regulator (formerly known as the Oil and Gas Commission) the authority to approve certain non-farm uses of ALR lands that relate to energy resource activities in specified regions. Section 36 of the Agricultural Land Reserve General Regulation provides that the commissioner appointed under the Oil and Gas Activities Act, S.B.C. 2008, c. 36 (to be retitled the Energy Resource Activities Act, effective September 1, 2023, pursuant to the Energy Statutes Amendment Act, 2022, S.B.C. 2022, c. 42 (B.C. Reg. 187/2023)) is a public officer for the purposes of s. 26(1)(b) of the Agricultural Land Commission Act. The delegation agreement between the ALC and the British Columbia Energy Regulator can be accessed on the ALC’s website, www.alc.gov.bc.ca/assets/alc/assets/about-the-alc/working-with-other-ministries-and-agencies/alc_ogc_delegation_agreement_2017_update.pdf, and also on the British Columbia Energy Regulator’s website, www.bc-er.ca/files/application-manuals/Oil-and-Gas-Activity-Application-Manual/Supporting-Documents/alcogcdelegationagreement2017update.pdf.

Submissions

The British Columbia Energy Regulator, as part of its permit process for energy resource activities, is authorized to approve the non-farm uses in accordance with the delegation agreement prior to a surface lease under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 361 being submitted to the land title office. Form C Charge “Lease (S. 99(1)(J) LTA)” applications denote that the lease is a surface lease for well site or access roadway purposes under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Act. As it is evident that the lease application is for well site or access roadway purposes under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Act, the registrar will not require the applicant to provide express evidence of the British Columbia Energy Regulator’s approval of non-farm uses of ALR lands. The registrar presumes that the British Columbia Energy Regulator has approved the non-farm use at the time it approved the permit that the lease relates to.