Land Use Designations

Regional land use designations are an important tool to achieving the five goals set out in Metro 2050. They establish a long-term regional land use framework and provide the basis for defining land use matters of regional significance. It strikes a balance between setting out the regional land use interest and providing municipalities the flexibility to meet local land use objectives.

Contextual performance measure

Metro 2050 establishes the performance measure as the total and cumulative change in hectares of land in each of the six regional land use designations.

Progress

This contextual measure provides information about the relationship and tradeoffs between the General Urban, Industrial, Employment, Agricultural, Rural, and Conservation and Recreation regional land use designations. View the list of current and completed regional growth strategy amendments.

Agricultural

Conservation and Recreation

General Urban

Industrial

Employment

Rural

Designation by area

Designation by percentage

Urban land use designations

Industrial	Industrial	<div class="ExternalClass9CA1A9931857498D93DD528C6C3F37F1"><p>Industrial lands are intended for heavy and light industrial activities, including such uses as: distribution, warehousing, repair, construction yards, infrastructure, outdoor storage, wholesale, manufacturing, trade, e-commerce, emerging technology-driven forms of industry, and appropriately related and scaled accessory uses. Limited industrial-serving commercial uses that support the primary industrial functions are appropriate. Residential uses are not intended.<br></p></div>
Employment	Employment	<div class="ExternalClassCEDFA1B209304DB9BF1C9966ACF3344B"><p>Employment lands are intended for light industrial, commercial, and other employment-related uses to help meet the needs of local and regional economic activities.</p><br></div>
General Urban	General Urban	<div class="ExternalClassA486943E956644A59D9AAD101D7384D4"><p>General Urban lands are intended for residential neighbourhoods and centres that are supported by shopping, services, institutions, recreational facilities, and parks. Within General Urban lands, commercial, employment, and residential developed should be focused in Urban Centres (UCs) and Frequent Transit Development Areas (FTDAs).<br></p></div>

Non-urban land use designations

Rural	Rural	<div class="ExternalClass9B87B2BC08124882A759BA3819402EA4"><p>Rural lands are intended to protect the existing character, landscapes, and environmental qualities of rural communities outside the Urban Containment Boundary. Land uses in these areas include low-density forms of residential, agricultural, and small-scale commercial, industrial, or institutional uses, that do not require the provision of urban services such as regional sewerage services or transit. Rural lands are not intended as future urban development areas.</p><br></div>
Agricultural	Agricultural	<div class="ExternalClassE03810D3063F4343921E314CE1C12692"><div><p>Agricultural lands are intended for agricultural production and agriculture-related uses that are compatible with farming operations and that directly support the local agricultural industry. Agricultural lands reinforce the provincial Agricultural Land Reserve and local land use plans that protect the region's agricultural land base.<br></p></div></div>
Conservation and Recreation	Conservation and Recreation	<div class="ExternalClass5EF7DF19D56A41E2A8C326AC0E417766"><p>Conservation and Recreation lands are intended to protect significant ecological and recreation assets including such uses as: drinking water supply areas, environmental conservation areas, wildlife management areas and ecological reserves, forests, wetlands, riparian areas, major parks and outdoor recreation areas, and other ecosystems that may be vulnerable to climate change and natural hazard impacts.<br></p></div>

Designation amendments

Source
This information is from the Metro Vancouver, Regional Planning and Housing Services internal database.

Data

Explore and download the GIS data through the Metro Vancouver Open Data Portal.
Current regional land use designation amendments under consideration.

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