Permissive growth policies may encourage speculative investment in farmland

Agricultural land is at risk in much of California, especially near the boundaries of rapidly growing communities. A study of five cities in Ventura County, which is roughly 60 miles east of Los Angeles, strongly suggests that traditional policies for protecting farmland may be ineffective. These policies exist in tension with tremendous growth pressure generated both by local economic development policies and by urban expansion from the Los Angeles region. Development interests tend to bid on farmland in areas anticipated to be most susceptible to changes in land-use regulations.