Anyone from Calgary has no doubt seen the ubiquitous ‘I (heart) Canadian Oil & Gas’ bumper stickers and banners.But now the Advertising Standards council of Canada is calling the Calgary-based group behind the campaign to task for what it says are “misleading” claims the British Columbia LNG will reduce global emissions akin to tobacco advertising.In a ruling under the Canadian code of advertising standards released Tuesday, the regulatory body said in a unanimous decision that Canada Action did not provide “sufficient evidence” to support its claim that BC LNG will reduce global emissions. .In it, the council said the ads “distorted the true meaning of statements made by professionals or scientific authorities,” “promised a verified result without competent and reliable evidence” and created an “overall misleading impression… that BC LNG is good for the environment, amounting to greenwashing.”Members of the council also raised concerns about the ad’s bright green background “that was used to emphasize an environmental benefit that liquefied natural gas does not truly have.”The ruling comes after a group calling itself the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) in 2022 launched a campaign to to ban fossil fuel advertising on the grounds that it uses tactics previously employed by tobacco companies to deliberately mislead the public about the safety of their products.According to Dr. Melissa Lem, a Vancouver family physician and CAPE president: “These ads are textbook cases of greenwashing, right down to the colour of the ads. We felt compelled to make this decision public because people in Canada have the right to not be misled about LNG’s harmful impacts on the climate, the environment and our health.”.The ads promote Canadian LNG as an alternative to displace coal-fired power in Asia and features quotes from several speakers including BC Premier David Eby as being supportive of LNG budding export terminals on the province’s West Coast.Alberta politicians including Premier Danielle Smith have been supportive of increased LNG exports as a way of reducing emissions under Article 6 of the Paris Accord.Some studies have suggested Canada could offset its entire emissions by exporting natural gas offshore.But CAPE accused Canada Action, which claims to be ‘non-partisan’, of in fact being funded through several prominent Calgary energy companies including ARC Resources with ties to the UCP government.“Just as Canada’s ban on tobacco advertising protects public health, we need a ban on fossil fuel advertising to stop stoking demand for products that harm our health.”Consequently, CAPE has sent a letter to companies where the ads are known to have run — including TransLink, BC Transit, the Times Colonist, Pattison and Lamar, among others — demanding the ads be taken down, for correction ads to be placed and for a comprehensive system to screen green claims to be put in place going forward. “Let this be a wake-up call to the BC government. LNG is no climate solution. There is increasing evidence of higher rates of impaired fetal growth, premature birth, asthma flares, childhood leukemia, heart failure, and mortality in communities exposed to the fracking industry. It is time for the BC government to consider the emerging science on fracking and human health in their energy policy decision-making,” it said in a statement.Thus far is there is little chance the ads will be coming down, however. Although Ad Standards enforces the advertising code on behalf of the industry, it has no enforcement power to compel Canada Action to discontinue the ads.
Anyone from Calgary has no doubt seen the ubiquitous ‘I (heart) Canadian Oil & Gas’ bumper stickers and banners.But now the Advertising Standards council of Canada is calling the Calgary-based group behind the campaign to task for what it says are “misleading” claims the British Columbia LNG will reduce global emissions akin to tobacco advertising.In a ruling under the Canadian code of advertising standards released Tuesday, the regulatory body said in a unanimous decision that Canada Action did not provide “sufficient evidence” to support its claim that BC LNG will reduce global emissions. .In it, the council said the ads “distorted the true meaning of statements made by professionals or scientific authorities,” “promised a verified result without competent and reliable evidence” and created an “overall misleading impression… that BC LNG is good for the environment, amounting to greenwashing.”Members of the council also raised concerns about the ad’s bright green background “that was used to emphasize an environmental benefit that liquefied natural gas does not truly have.”The ruling comes after a group calling itself the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) in 2022 launched a campaign to to ban fossil fuel advertising on the grounds that it uses tactics previously employed by tobacco companies to deliberately mislead the public about the safety of their products.According to Dr. Melissa Lem, a Vancouver family physician and CAPE president: “These ads are textbook cases of greenwashing, right down to the colour of the ads. We felt compelled to make this decision public because people in Canada have the right to not be misled about LNG’s harmful impacts on the climate, the environment and our health.”.The ads promote Canadian LNG as an alternative to displace coal-fired power in Asia and features quotes from several speakers including BC Premier David Eby as being supportive of LNG budding export terminals on the province’s West Coast.Alberta politicians including Premier Danielle Smith have been supportive of increased LNG exports as a way of reducing emissions under Article 6 of the Paris Accord.Some studies have suggested Canada could offset its entire emissions by exporting natural gas offshore.But CAPE accused Canada Action, which claims to be ‘non-partisan’, of in fact being funded through several prominent Calgary energy companies including ARC Resources with ties to the UCP government.“Just as Canada’s ban on tobacco advertising protects public health, we need a ban on fossil fuel advertising to stop stoking demand for products that harm our health.”Consequently, CAPE has sent a letter to companies where the ads are known to have run — including TransLink, BC Transit, the Times Colonist, Pattison and Lamar, among others — demanding the ads be taken down, for correction ads to be placed and for a comprehensive system to screen green claims to be put in place going forward. “Let this be a wake-up call to the BC government. LNG is no climate solution. There is increasing evidence of higher rates of impaired fetal growth, premature birth, asthma flares, childhood leukemia, heart failure, and mortality in communities exposed to the fracking industry. It is time for the BC government to consider the emerging science on fracking and human health in their energy policy decision-making,” it said in a statement.Thus far is there is little chance the ads will be coming down, however. Although Ad Standards enforces the advertising code on behalf of the industry, it has no enforcement power to compel Canada Action to discontinue the ads.
