Paper: State to impose strict limitations on use of agricultural land
As business paper Äripäev wrote on Friday, the state is planning to introduce stricter rules for the use of agricultural land. The measure is aimed at making sure that Estonia's best farmland does not disappear under housing developments, the paper wrote.
According to Äripäev, the state's plans have a lot of potential to cause conflict, as they are pitting land owners against local government and are likely to involve the Chancellor of Justice as well.
The bill has been in preparation for six years, going back to the time the government was led by Andrus Ansip's Reform Party. It seeks to ban real estate construction on any plot of agricultural land found to be "valuable farmland" and will require owners to apply for special permits with the Agricultural Board.
The same bill would also make afforestation without a permit illegal, implying the requirement for land owners to regularly cut grass and cut back vegetation on the plots in question.
The changes proposed by the bill would affect some 90,000 land owners.
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Editor: Dario Cavegn