Exciting news! Vancouver City Councillor Adriane Carr has tabled a Motion in support of the Sue Big Oil campaign.
If the motion passes, the City would add a fund for a class action lawsuit against fossil fuel companies to the draft 2023 city budget – with $1 per resident or about $662,000.
Needless to say, this would be a major step towards Suing Big Oil, and will encourage other communities to do the same.
But the Mayor and Council need to hear loud and clear that Vancouverites want them to pass this motion. And there’s not much time, because the motion is scheduled to come before Council on Tuesday, July 19th!
If you’re a Vancouver resident who cares about climate change and the impacts on your community – let’s make sure your voice is heard.
It’s outrageous that Vancouver will need to pay over a billion dollars to protect residents from rising sea levels caused by climate change and the burning of fossil fuels, while oil giants like Shell, Chevron, Exxon Mobil and others pocket billions of dollars in profits.
From floods and heat waves to wildfire smoke and rising seas, Vancouver taxpayers simply cannot afford to pay the full costs of climate change that our city will be experiencing – and is already experiencing. The true costs of climate change must be reflected on the balance sheets of these corporations, and polluters must start to pay their fair share for the damage they’re causing.
Here’s what we need you to do:
- Write to Council. This handy form will send a message to the Mayor and all Councillors. Take a few minutes before Tuesday, July 19 to tell them about the costs of climate change that you see and fear, and why you support holding global fossil fuel companies accountable for their fair share of climate costs rather than leaving those costs entirely to taxpayers.
- Register to speak by phone or in person to Vancouver Council. To register use this form (select agenda item B2) by 8:30am on Tuesday morning. Although you’re signing up for Tuesday’s meeting, in practice you’ll most likely be speaking Wednesday afternoon or evening. You can speak to them for up to 5 minutes about why you support Sue Big Oil and setting aside $1 per resident towards a class action lawsuit.
We encourage you to use your own words in speaking or writing to Mayor and Council. You can also look at the resources on the Sue Big Oil website, including our communications guide.
Here are some additional themes you might want to raise:
- You are a resident of Vancouver.
- Have you and/or people you know in Vancouver been impacted by climate change?
- How do you think climate change will harm people in Vancouver in the future?
- What are some of the costs that you think Vancouver will incur to protect you and others from climate change?
- Who do you think should pay for climate costs? Do you think that taxpayers should pay the full cost of climate impacts, or do you think that the City of Vancouver should work with other local governments to recover at least some of those costs from global oil and gas companies?
This is a huge opportunity for the movement to Sue Big Oil. Council will vote on the Motion to Sue Big Oil this coming Tuesday. You can make a difference by writing or phoning City Council as soon as possible. Until global oil and gas industries are made to pay their share of the costs of climate change, our communities will continue to pay the price.
It’s time for polluters to pay. Support Motion B2 this Tuesday.
