Protecting Local Land & Culture
By Leif LeBaron
Denman and Hornby islands remain special places, even after already losing much of what distinguished them. Naturally, change is inevitable but the form it takes remains open to input, much as time inevitably wrinkles the skin but remains bound to reflect the way it was used. I’m writing here to raise awareness of one simple and direct way to protect land and culture in rural areas like our dear islands.
Sweden has similar small islands in an archipelago around Stockholm. Some of those islands are home to long-established rural communities, remarkably undisturbed by affluent development. While visiting one such island and recognising the similarity with our own, I asked my host how they resist the invasion of vacation homes, resorts, etc. The answer was simple: if you own land, you must live on it most of the year. Such laws do not apply on other islands where there were no such established communities, and some of those have indeed been developed for tourism and affluence.
This basic approach could be adapted to our local circumstance by giving concession to the established presence of modest vacation homes, perhaps by threshold considering building footprints, land area, etc. In any case, I encourage thought and discussion of how to protect these special islands we call home while we still can. Otherwise, as should be painfully obvious to everyone, it is merely a mater of time until all the land is owned by those with the most money. Time relentlessly imprints its wrinkles, and our choices inherently inform their pattern.
 and recognising the similarity with our own, I asked my host how they resist the invasion of vacation homes, resorts, etc. The answer was simple: if you own land, you must live on it most of the year.){kind=link}