As humans evolve and adapt into different societies, land tenure evolves with it. Throughout history, the way in which land has been divided and used depends on the goals of society at any given time. During the Roman empire, expansion was the main focus of society. In order to keep control of the growing land mass and to keep expanding, certain land tenure policies needed to be implemented to ensure the empires survival. One of these policies involved giving a parcel of farmable land to the Roman army veterans after 25 years of service (Wills, S., 2014). This resulted in a strong incentive for young Romans to join the army as they would be guaranteed land at the end of their military service. This also helped to disperse the Romans conquered lands to ensure that it was maintained and kept under Roman control. Another example of land tenure changing over time with changing social values is the development of Canada’s Western provinces. In 1867 the government wanted to develop and populate the Canadian West in order to exploit its economic value (Gagnon, E.). To entice immigration, land grants and other laws were implemented to ensure that the land was properly developed and used. One of these laws was the law of adverse possession, which is still relevant in some Canadian provinces today. The fundamental rule of the law of adverse possession is “if a person occupies land for the required period of time as set out in provincial limitation acts and, during that time, no legal action is taken to evict or trespass, the ownership in the land goes from the legal owner to the squatter” (Duhaime, L., 2012). The goal of the law when it was created was to ensure that land was being used to its full extent, so if someone else is using your land without you taking action to remove them after a certain period of time, then they gain the rights to the land since they are putting it to better use. This creates an incentive for landowners to properly maintain their land and know their boundary’s. Unfortunately, in places like Alberta where the law is still in effect, improperly placed fence lines lead to farmers losing portions of their land to the adverse possession law. In recent years, the law has been criticized and may eventually be scrapped due to the backing of the current government (CBC News, 2019). This provides a modern-day scenario of how land tenure is constantly changing with changing social values. It also brings up questions as to what the future may hold for land tenure and what surveying may look like. As populations continue to rise this will most likely cause stress on how land is dispersed in the coming years. More people leads to more settlement areas, it also leads to a higher consumption of products and food. The ratio of farmland to housing will need to be monitored constantly, as both are important to ensure that a higher population will be supported. Since the Canadian climate is colder the more North you travel, the southern areas of Canada may need to be reserved for farm use where crops are able to grow longer. Humans on the other hand can live in colder weather, so the next mass migration in Canada may be heading North. Only the future will tell, but the next formation of western land tenure could be based on the aspect of northern migration.
References:
Wills, S. (2014, June). Lessons from the Late Roman Army. CIMSEC. Retrieved from http://cimsec.org/lessons-late-roman-army/11667
Duhaime, L. (2012, August). Adverse Possession. Duhaime.org. Retrieved from http://www.duhaime.org/LegalResources/RealEstateTenancy/LawArticle-69/Adverse-Possession-The-Law-Behind-Land-Squatters.aspx
Gagnon, E. (Date Published Unknown). Settling the West: Immigration to the Prairies from 1867 to 1914. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. Retrieved from https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/settling-the-west-immigration-to-the-prairies-from-1867-to-1914
CBC News. (2019, August). Report recommends Alberta scrap ‘squatters rights’ legislation. Edmonton, AB, CAN: CBC News. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/adverse-possession-alberta-law-reform-institute-land-property-owners-1.5244670
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