Sierra Club BC, West Coast Environmental Law, Ecojustice
Gaps in BC mandate letters threaten progress on climate and biodiversity commitments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 16, 2025
Sierra Club BC Director of Campaigns and Programs Shelley Luce offers the following statement in reaction to mandate letters sent to Cabinet ministers today by Premier Eby:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s climate-conscious government bought Canada an oil pipeline while ushering in significant environmental laws
Justin Trudeau will step down as Canada’s prime minister after the Liberal Party picks a new leader, ending a near-decade of the most climate-conscious federal government in modern history.
Vancouver City Council voted Wednesday night to reinstate a ban on natural gas in new buildings, reversing a decision it made in July.
After two days of deliberations and input from over 140 local residents, council members voted in favour of banning gas for space and water heating entirely, rather than allowing it with stricter energy efficiency requirements. The main motion, which took the form of a proposal to reverse the city’s 2020 ban on gas in new construction, was defeated on a tie vote.
BC Hydro has unveiled nine new wind projects to meet the growing demand for clean energy while keeping rates affordable for public and industrial users.
Adrian Dix, the new Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions, announced the projects alongside Premier David Eby on Monday. Dix said the projects will enhance B.C.’s clean energy supply, strengthen the economy and uphold the province’s commitment to affordable rates and reconciliation with Indigenous communities.
It wasn’t easy, and it was uncomfortably close. But late Wednesday evening, the gas industry’s effort to re-introduce fossil fuel heating in new homes and buildings in Vancouver was mercifully defeated.
Mobilizing to confront the climate emergency desperately requires forward momentum. Instead, thanks to the unrelenting persistence of the fossil gas industry, countless Vancouver-area climate activists and organizations just spent untold hours over the last four months re-prosecuting a fight they had already won.
