Photo: File

Nelson's Sue Big Oil West Kootenay chapter outside of Nelson City Hall in October.

Sue Big Oil has an ally in the City of Nelson.

A request from West Kootenay Sue Big Oil (SBO) for the city to pledge $11,500 — which is approximately $1 per resident — toward legal fees in support of a class action lawsuit against major fossil fuel companies has been approved.

Coun. Rik Logtenberg said the legal claim of the issue was clearly defined.

“The legal rationale is very clearly defined, that is that the companies lied, this lie led to direct harm, this lie continues to cause harm to the Corporation of the City of Nelson and to Nelson residents, and the municipal purpose in this case is very clear: we need to recover costs,” he said.

“Whether we engage in all sorts of activities related to protecting financial interests and the wellbeing of our residents, including going to the Supreme Court … essentially, we need the money and this is one avenue to secure it.”

The move is not symbolic, he added, since there will be a direct benefit to the community.

“Climate change is real and it is caused by burning fossil fuels and the companies admit to this,” he continued. “While we are all responsible for climate change, some people are more responsible than others … and in this scenario of proportional liability the oil companies share an overwhelming burden here.”

Class action lawsuit

The Sue Big Oil initiative contends the fossil fuel industry has known about the harmful effects of its activities for decades but has continued to profit while contributing to climate change.

“Municipalities are facing increasing costs associated with climate adaptation and recovery from extreme weather events, and this lawsuit seeks to recover a portion of those costs from the industry,” said SBO spokesperson Greg Amos, when he presented the idea to the RDCK board of directors on Jan. 16.

Along with lawyer Therin Rhaintre, Amos explained about the relationship between fossil fuel companies and climate impacts and the class action lawsuit. He said people are already feeling the impacts of climate change on the health and safety of the community: heat domes and weeks of smoke-filled skies already causing damage and harm.

“We know there are mounting costs associated with protecting us from these impacts as well as cleaning up after extreme weather events,” he said.

Fossil fuel emissions cause climate change and the oil industry has known of these harmful effects for more than 50 years, he added, but has continued to make massive profits at the cost of health, safety and future.

There is reason to believe a lawsuit of this sort can be successful, said Rhaintre.

“Evidence shows that this has been the greatest disinformation campaign, globally, in history,” she said. “There is documented evidence to prove this in court.”

She said a class action lawsuit brought by municipalities rather than the Province of B.C. makes sense because the province is not moving to bring legislation into play.

“It is a highly effective and cost effective way to get a big pot of money rather than waiting more years until we have to” triple property taxes, said Rhaintre.

Several municipalities in British Columbia — including Burnaby, Squamish, Slocan, Gibsons and Sechelt — have already signed on to this suit.

Amos explained that the legal action intends to recover a fair share of climate-related costs and “encourage the fossil fuel industry to take responsibility for its contribution to climate change and climate-related damages, which include infrastructure deterioration, extreme weather events, and increased health and safety concerns.”

Keep reading

• Jan. 20 — West Kootenay chapter of Sue Big Oil makes case for RDCK to join class action lawsuit
• Feb. 28 — Case for class action lawsuit against Big Oil fails at RDCK board level