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:
British Columbia’s New Democratic Party (BC NDP) was just re-elected in a campaign where they touted their climate leadership. Despite these reassuring words, Canadians concerned about climate change should pay close attention to what's happening. The province has turned into a climate laggard, with emissions stuck far above 1990 levels. And, perhaps shockingly, all the increase in climate pollution has happened while the BC NDP has been running the government.
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.
With her hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, her arms and legs covered with 20 tattoos, and her compact frame fitted out in athleisure, Crystal Smith, the elected chief of the Haisla people, looked more like the hometown basketball star she once was than the fossil fuel exporter she’s about to become.
Kelowna residents should be concerned with FortisBC’s plan to truck liquified methane gas from Metro Vancouver to Kelowna and storing it in tanks next to residences.
