British Columbians are dying from fossil fuel pollution: Will BC’s Attorney General take on Big Oil?

A statement by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) and West Coast Environmental Law calling on the British Columbia government to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for healthcare costs associated with climate change and pollution.

• The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) and West Coast Environmental Law are urging the BC Attorney General, Niki Sharma, to target the fossil fuel industry for recovering healthcare expenses, drawing parallels to BC's previous legal actions against manufacturers of tobacco, opioids, and PFAS.
• Climate-related healthcare costs in British Columbia are significant, including over $12 million in estimated costs from the 2021 heat dome, which resulted in more than 600 deaths and 5,000 or more serious injuries.
• Wildfire smoke and climate emergencies impose heavy financial and health burdens on BC; for instance, the 2017 wildfires forced the Interior Health Authority to evacuate 880 patients and 700 staff from 19 sites at a cost of nearly $3 million.
• Fossil fuel pollution is linked to severe health outcomes in Canada, with Harvard research indicating it leads to 34,000 premature deaths annually, and other data suggesting one in seven premature deaths in Canada are caused by such pollution.
• The document highlights that while the BC government seeks to hold 'wrongdoers' accountable for healthcare costs, it simultaneously continues to provide subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.

APA

CAPE (2025). British Columbians are dying from fossil fuel pollution: Will BC’s Attorney General take on Big Oil? Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. https://cape.ca/british-columbians-are-dying-from-fossil-fuel-pollution-will-bcs-attorney-general-take-on-big-oil/

Chicago

CAPE. British Columbians are dying from fossil fuel pollution: Will BC’s Attorney General take on Big Oil? Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, 2025. https://cape.ca/british-columbians-are-dying-from-fossil-fuel-pollution-will-bcs-attorney-general-take-on-big-oil/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=CAPE |title=British Columbians are dying from fossil fuel pollution: Will BC’s Attorney General take on Big Oil? |publisher=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |date=7 April 2025 |url=https://cape.ca/british-columbians-are-dying-from-fossil-fuel-pollution-will-bcs-attorney-general-take-on-big-oil/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{cape2025british, author = {CAPE}, title = {{British Columbians are dying from fossil fuel pollution: Will BC’s Attorney General take on Big Oil?}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2025}, month = apr, url = {https://cape.ca/british-columbians-are-dying-from-fossil-fuel-pollution-will-bcs-attorney-general-take-on-big-oil/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }