The rocky path towards Climate Accountability in BC
Join us for a webinar on why we took the B.C. government to court hosted by Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice.
Join us for a webinar on why we took the B.C. government to court hosted by Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 17, 2023
VANCOUVER/UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH) AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES – Today, the B.C. Supreme Court ruled on a landmark 2022 climate case brought by Ecojustice on behalf of Sierra Club BC. In the case, Sierra Club BC alleged that the B.C. government failed to adequately report on its progress to reach its climate targets, as required by the province’s climate law.
In a first-of-its-kind victory for climate accountability in Canada, the court ruled that the reporting requirements of B.C.’s climate law, including the provision to report on plans to reach climate targets, are enforceable by the court. This sets an important legal precedent not only for B.C., but also across Canada, as it means that climate change accountability legislation can be interpreted and enforced by courts when governments fail to meet reporting requirements.
The Court also agreed that B.C.’s progress to date on meeting its climate targets has been “disappointing” and that the province has a “consistent history of missing its targets”. However, this court found that the legislation does not require the government to tell the people of B.C. whether it is on track to achieve our climate targets. Sierra Club BC has 30 days to decide whether to appeal this decision and will continue to strongly advocate for true climate accountability in British Columbia.
The Court’s ruling today puts the B.C. government and others across Canada on notice that legal commitments to act big on climate must be followed by real and meaningful action.
Alan Andrews, Climate Program Director at Ecojustice said:
“Today’s decision doesn’t change the fact that B.C. is not on track to meet its 2025 and 2030 climate targets and has several gaping holes in its climate plan. This law was supposed to put an end to the province’s dismal track record of missed targets by requiring the government to tell British Columbians if B.C. is on track so that the public can hold them to account. This is an opportunity for Premier David Eby to show real leadership by urgently coming forward with a credible plan that gets B.C on track to meeting its climate targets – the urgency of the climate crisis demands it, even if the courts don’t.”
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner and Science Advisor at Sierra Club BC said:
“Today’s ruling contains good news, bad news and an inconvenient truth. The good news is that the court agreed with us that people in B.C. have a right to hold their government accountable to follow its climate law. The bad news is that the Court finds the B.C. government’s reporting to be sufficient to meet the law’s requirements, even though that reporting does not tell us whether B.C. is actually on track to meet all of its climate targets. The inconvenient truth is that without greater transparency and stronger action plans, people in B.C. cannot trust that this province will meet its climate targets and prevent even more catastrophic climate impacts.”
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Background
About:
Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions and law and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Halifax.
Sierra Club BC is an environmental non-profit working to support people stewarding abundant ecosystems and a stable climate, while building resilient, equitable communities. The organization strives to do this by upholding Indigenous rights and title, reconnecting children and youth with nature, supporting grassroots-led climate action, and advocating for old-growth protection.
Media contacts:
Eric Wright, Communications Manager | Ecojustice
ewright@ecojustice.ca.
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner | Sierra Club BC
jens@sierraclub.bc.ca
The report is also missing information about how the province plans to meet its longer-term targets, as well as those tied to emissions in the oil & gas sector
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 28, 2022
VANCOUVER/UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH) AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES – On Wednesday Nov. 23, the B.C. government released its 2022 climate change accountability report, revealing that the province is on course to miss two near-term climate targets in 2025 and 2030. The government projects that B.C. will miss its 2025 overall emissions target by 15 percent and its 2030 target in the building and communities sector by at least 35 percent.
In a time of climate crisis, when people in British Columbia are facing unprecedented and deadly heat waves, floods, and droughts, it is unacceptable that the government has failed to plan to meet its near-term climate targets. This failure will worsen the climate crisis and put people in B.C. at risk.
The 2022 report also contains major information gaps. It fails to explain how the province intends to achieve its longer-term climate targets due in 2040 and 2050. And, when it comes to a crucial target in the oil & gas sector due in 2030, the government continues to rely on a “plan to make a plan” — that is, policies that have not been articulated and do not yet exist.
The report also fails to explain the major role of fracking in undermining B.C.’s climate action. LNG Canada, a fracked gas export facility in Kitimat, B.C., is expected to start operations in 2025, leading to millions more tonnes of carbon pollution in that target year and for decades to come. Worse, plans to expand the facility (already approved by B.C.) would make it virtually impossible for B.C. to meet its longer-term targets and commitment to reach net zero by 2050. B.C. simply cannot square its promotion of fracked gas and LNG projects with its climate targets.
These reports have been a sore spot for the government. In March 2022, Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice launched a lawsuit alleging that the government’s 2021 report failed to include plans to make progress towards B.C.’s 2025, 2040, and 2050 climate targets as well as the critical 2030 target for the oil & gas sector. A decision by the court is expected soon.
New premier David Eby has an opportunity to reset B.C.’s approach to climate action and accountability. By acting immediately, Eby can ensure B.C. meets all its climate targets. It is critical that B.C. ban new LNG facilities and commit to phasing out fracked gas in line with climate science.
As we wait for a court decision on whether B.C. is complying with its own climate law, Ecojustice and Sierra Club BC will continue to hold the government to account for getting on track towards its climate targets and staying there in the years to come.
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner and Science Advisor at Sierra Club BC said:
“The 2022 report shines some light on the steps that will lead to reducing emissions in several sectors. But it leaves us in the dark about major gaps and threats on the uncharted path to our 2025 to 2050 targets. A path that will lead us into climate chaos if big polluters like B.C. continue to fail. The biggest elephant in the room is new fracking infrastructure like LNG Canada and the Coastal GasLink Pipeline. Unless stopped, these projects will make it impossible to meet our targets. Ignoring the threat of new LNG projects in these reports won’t make it go away.”
Alan Andrews, Climate Program Director at Ecojustice said:
“This law was meant to deliver a new era of transparency and accountability on climate action. But it took being dragged to court for the Government to admit that they are on course to miss their next climate target.”
“In the middle of a climate emergency, we can’t afford any more missed targets. David Eby must act immediately to get B.C. back on track and show real climate leadership.”
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About:
Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions and law and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Halifax.
Sierra Club BC is an environmental non-profit working to support people stewarding abundant ecosystems and a stable climate, while building resilient, equitable communities. The organization strives to do this by upholding Indigenous rights and title, reconnecting children and youth with nature, supporting grassroots-led climate action, and advocating for old-growth protection.
Media contacts:
Eric Wright, Communications Manager | Ecojustice
604-685-5618 ext. 525, ewright@ecojustice.ca.
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner | Sierra Club BC
jens@sierraclub.bc.ca, (604) 354-5312
Members of the public will rally in support of the case on the Vancouver law courts steps prior to the hearing
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 4, 2022
VANCOUVER/UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH) AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES – Sierra Club BC, represented by Ecojustice lawyers, is before the B.C. Supreme Court today, suing the B.C. government for failing to report on whether its climate plans will achieve several of the province’s key greenhouse gas emissions targets.
The province’s 2019 Climate Change Accountability Act requires the B.C. government to publish an annual accountability report that describes plans for continuing progress toward B.C.’s emissions targets. Sierra Club BC is arguing that this requires the government to be fully transparent and report without gaps about how far these plans will move B.C. towards reaching each of its emissions targets. If the plans only get us part of the way there, B.C.’s accountability report has to be clear in telling us that.
This information is critical for the public to hold the government accountable to develop climate plans that are adequate to meet all of the emissions targets it has set in law.
Under its climate accountability legislation, B.C. has province-wide emissions targets for 2025, 2030, 2040, and 2050 and targets in 2030 for four sectors of the economy: oil and gas, industry, transportation, and buildings and communities.
B.C.’s 2021 Climate Change Accountability Report failed to explain how far the government’s plans will move the province toward achieving its 2025, 2040 and 2050 targets, as well as the crucial oil and gas sector target in 2030.
The B.C. government is not complying with its own climate accountability legislation at a time when the province’s emissions are too high, and the climate emergency is having an increasingly direct and damaging impact on the lives of people in B.C. Recently, people living in B.C. have been battered by extreme weather events tied to climate change, with 2021 being particularly devastating.
In June 2021, a deadly “heat dome” led to a devastating wildfire that destroyed much of the community of Lytton and caused approximately 600 heat-related deaths across B.C. In November 2021, record-breaking rainfall and flooding destroyed critical infrastructure and threatened thousands of people’s livelihoods in the Fraser Valley.
The Climate Change Accountability Act was meant to improve transparency and accountability, but the government has failed to explain if the province is on track to meet most of its emissions targets. Without this information, the public will not know if B.C. is blowing past its emissions targets until it is too late.
Alan Andrews, Ecojustice climate program director, said:
“B.C. was a leader in setting emissions targets in law, but what’s the use of having these targets if we don’t know if B.C’s plans will actually achieve them?
“The public has the right to expect their government to follow the letter of the laws that they author. And if they don’t, they should expect the public to take them to court.”
Jens Wieting, Sierra Club BC senior forest and climate campaigner, said:
“Relentless, escalating climate disasters around the world are reminding us every day about the deadly consequences of missing our emissions targets. We need nothing short of full transparency to understand whether provincial climate plans are fit for the task at hand or not.
A collective last-ditch effort to stabilize our climate requires solid emission reduction pathways for every target and every sector on the path to 2050, as called for in provincial law. Leadership on climate requires acknowledging and tackling any gaps in our plans without further delay.”
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Background
About:
Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions and law and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Halifax.
Sierra Club BC is an environmental non-profit working to support people stewarding abundant ecosystems and a stable climate, while building resilient, equitable communities. The organization strives to do this by upholding Indigenous rights and title, reconnecting children and youth with nature, supporting grassroots-led climate action, and advocating for old-growth protection.
Media contacts:
Eric Wright, Communications Manager | Ecojustice
604-685-5618 ext. 525, ewright@ecojustice.ca.
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner | Sierra Club BC
jens@sierraclub.bc.ca, (604) 354-5312
Sierra Club BC offers the following statement following the B.C. government’s response to SCBC’s legal challenge over its climate plan.
May 4, 2022
The B.C. government has responded to Sierra Club BC’s climate accountability lawsuit we filed with the help of charity law firm Ecojustice. Sadly, instead of accepting responsibility and beginning the urgent work to address the blind spots we have identified, the province is alleging that we are going to court just to get the plans we want. The reality, however, is that several plans for key climate targets laid out in B.C.’s 2019 law simply don’t exist in the province’s 2021 accountability report.
We’re holding them to account in accordance with the letter of the law, as it’s written. There is no doubt from our perspective that B.C.’s climate accountability legislation requires the government to publish plans to make progress towards all of B.C.’s climate targets, but they have failed to produce these plans for 2025, 2040 and 2050. Also non-existent is the crucial plan for the oil and gas industry that shows how B.C. can possibly meet its ambitious 2030 target for this sector, while at the same time continuing to support and subsidize new LNG terminals and more fracking (for more background see our March 31 media release here).
The B.C. government argues that the public cannot hold them accountable in the courts if they fail to meet the requirements of their climate accountability law. But laws written by governments in Canada are routinely subject to public scrutiny in the courts. It’s a cornerstone of our democracy and the rule of law that the public should access the judicial system to demand fairness, transparency, and accountability. Why would B.C.’s climate legislation not be subject to scrutiny by the public through the courts? The disappointing response from the province shows the importance of the courts in ensuring climate accountability.
The latest IPCC reports showed unequivocally that time is running out to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis, that further global warming can only be stopped once we have achieved net zero emissions, and pollution must be cut as quickly as possible. We are calling on the B.C. government to come forward with a plan for every target and every sector of the economy, including oil and gas.
We are in a climate emergency and it’s not too late for the B.C. government to deliver on their promise and address the crucial blind spots. Stay tuned as we continue to report updates on the progress of this lawsuit.
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For more information on why Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice are going to court over blind spots in B.C.’s climate plans go to our joint March 2022 media release:
https://sierraclub.bc.ca/environmental-groups-sue-b-c-government-over-missing-in-action-climate-plans/
Read more about the provincial response in this article: https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/highlights/bcs-climate-laws-should-not-be-overseen-by-courts-claim-court-documents-5322790
IPCC media release: https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/
Media contact:
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner/Science Advisor, Sierra Club BC
604-354 5312, jens@sierraclub.bc.ca
April 4, 2022
Sierra Club BC’s Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner and Science Advisor Jens Wieting is available to comment on key findings of today’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report and why Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice are taking the B.C. government to court over missing action plans for several critical targets required by law in B.C.’s climate accountability report.
The third part of the 6th IPCC assessment report is of particular importance because it offers more detail on what actions all parts of the world, particularly the richest countries and biggest polluters, have to take to address the climate crisis, with a particular focus on reductions needed by 2030.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said about the report “The jury has reached a verdict. And it is damning. This report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is a litany of broken climate promises. It is a file of shame, cataloguing the empty pledges that put us firmly on track towards an unlivable world. We are on a fast track to climate disaster.”
Key findings include that global emissions must peak before 2025 and be reduced by 43 percent by 2030 if we are to have a chance of keeping warming below 1.5 degrees, the threshold considered crucial to maintaining a livable climate.
Canada is among the top ten polluters and like Canada, B.C. has failed to meet emission reduction targets for over a decade. The province’s emissions have increased every year during the last five years data is available for (2015-2019) and have remained higher than 2007 levels, B.C.’s baseline year.
The B.C. government claims to have a “continent leading CleanBC plan” but it continues to support and subsidize the expansion of fracking wells and new LNG terminals. Once built, the full emissions enabled by the LNG Canada terminal in Kitimat alone would make it nearly impossible to meet B.C. targets.
Several Canadian provinces (New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and Quebec) and U.S. states (Vermont, New York state, Maryland and Washington) have banned fracking. New research released by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in March showed that rich countries like Canada must end oil and gas production by 2034 to keep the world on track for 1.5°C (the new IPCC report only considered findings available by last October.
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IPCC media release: https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3/
For more information on why Sierra Club BC and Ecojustice are going to court over blind spots in B.C.’s climate plans last week go to our joint media release: https://sierraclub.bc.ca/environmental-groups-sue-b-c-government-over-missing-in-action-climate-plans/
Media contact:
Jens Wieting, Senior Forest and Climate Campaigner/Science Advisor, Sierra Club BC
604-354 5312, jens@sierraclub.bc.ca
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