Let’s get greenwashing out of municipal politics

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) and 35 partner organizations issued a statement calling for the elimination of fossil fuel sponsorship and advertising in British Columbia's municipal politics, specifically targeting the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) Convention.

• CAPE and its partners are urging municipal leaders to support resolution NR97, proposed by the City of Vernon, to stop fossil fuel companies from sponsoring the UBCM Convention. The authors argue that corporate sponsorship influences decision-making and compare the situation to the historical necessity of removing tobacco company influence from medical conferences.
• The document links fossil fuel air pollution to 8.1 million deaths annually worldwide, noting that 1 in 7 premature deaths in Canada are attributed to this pollution. It states that meeting Paris commitments of 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels could prevent over 5,000 premature deaths per year in Canada from air pollution between 2030 and 2100.
• British Columbia municipalities have faced severe climate-related impacts, including the 2021 heat dome which caused 619 deaths in BC, and the 2021 atmospheric river and flooding, which cost over $450 million. The text highlights specific local impacts: the town of Lytton was almost entirely destroyed in 2021, and the Prince George Fire District had 61 evacuation orders and 91 evacuation alerts in 2023.
• The authors criticize 'greenwashing'—the use of misleading or false environmental claims—by fossil fuel companies to influence consumers and politicians. They note that while 29 BC communities, including Nanaimo, Nelson, and the Township of Langley, are ending fossil gas hookups in new buildings, the city of Vancouver recently proposed reversing its prohibition on fossil fuel heating in new homes.
• CAPE and its signatories demand four specific actions: ending fossil fuel sponsorship of the UBCM convention, creating regulations against misleading environmental claims by lobbyists to municipal governments, ending fossil fuel sponsorship of all BC municipal events, and enacting a comprehensive ban on fossil fuel advertising and internal combustion engine vehicles in all BC municipalities.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2024). Let’s get greenwashing out of municipal politics. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Concerning-fossil-fuel-sponsorship-in-BC-municipal-politics.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Let’s get greenwashing out of municipal politics. 2024. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Concerning-fossil-fuel-sponsorship-in-BC-municipal-politics.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Let’s get greenwashing out of municipal politics |date=12 September 2024 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Concerning-fossil-fuel-sponsorship-in-BC-municipal-politics.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2024lets, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Let’s get greenwashing out of municipal politics}}, publisher = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2024}, month = sep, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Concerning-fossil-fuel-sponsorship-in-BC-municipal-politics.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }