Project News

The county will hold an in-person workshop to provide information on the agricultural lands study and gather feedback from community members, farmers, neighbors, and anyone interested in agriculture and land use in Clark County, as follows:

Date: Tuesday, September 30
Time: 5:30 - 8:00 P.M.
Location: Battle Ground Community Center, located at 912 E Main St, Battle Ground, WA 98604

Registration for the workshop is encouraged via this link.

View workshop materials here.

Project Overview

In early 2025, as part of the 2025 Comprehensive Plan Update, the Clark County Council directed staff to complete a county-wide agricultural resource lands study. 

Clark County has not performed a comprehensive agricultural resource lands study since the initial adoption of the county’s first comprehensive plan under the Growth Management Act (GMA) in 1994. It was during the adoption of the initial plan in the mid-1990’s that the bulk of agriculture lands designations in place today were evaluated. 

Since then, the region has experienced significant changes such as the development of new housing and infrastructure and changes in farming operations and regional markets. These shifts raise important questions about whether existing designations still reflect the current realities on the ground and whether there are other lands that now qualify for agricultural designation. 

The county, with help from consultants, will complete an evaluation of land within the unincorporated areas, outside of the current urban growth areas. 

The general purpose of the study is to:

• Help inform the county’s decisions regarding the comprehensive plan update.
• Ensure that the county’s agricultural resource lands designations comply with applicable county code and state statutes, specifically the Growth Management Act (GMA).

The study will include both currently designated agricultural resource lands and recommendations for inclusion of any lands that should qualify for such designation but are not currently designated.

Related Work

The county also recently formed the Agricultural Advisory Commission. Find out more about the commission and their work here.