@jennyyeremiy.bsky.social‬:

“BP, Chevron, Shell, and other oil majors back arts and community groups to protect their business models, subpoenaed documents show.”

Rolling the dice with our futures, think “ESSO Minor hockey Week”

Ecocide #ICC #crimes

Case for Sue Big Oil class action lawsuit falls on receptive ears and gains more municipal support, Nelson joins Sue Big Oil by Timothy Schafer, May 12, 2025

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.”

BC Climate Lawsuit Grows: Nelson backs legal action to protect residents from climate change costs by Contributor, May 11th, 2025, Castlegar Source

Nelson has become the latest municipality in a growing legal movement across British Columbia demanding accountability from the world’s largest fossil fuel companies for the rising costs of climate change. With Nelson’s decision, over 390,000 British Columbians are now represented by local governments committed to a class action lawsuit to make Big Oil pay its fair share. The proposed lawsuit – which would be the first of its kind in Canada – follows a global trend of holding polluters accountable, backed by new research showing companies like Chevron are responsible for trillions in climate-related damages.

Council voted yesterday to work with other local governments to bring the case and to contribute financially when it goes ahead. Nelson is the eleventh BC municipality committed to suing Big Oil and the second in the Kootenays and BC Interior (after Slocan).

“Nelson residents are already paying a heavy but hidden cost to deal with wildfires, drought and other climate impacts resulting from the reckless burning of fossil fuels.” noted Greg Amos, Nelson resident and coordinator of West Kootenay Sue Big Oil. 

“I’m grateful that the City of Nelson has shown the moral courage to work with other BC communities to force American and multinational oil and gas giants to finally pay their fair share. It’s their products and marketing that are driving the climate crisis while they make massive profits.”

“Nelson is already paying a lot to protect residents from climate impacts, and could face millions of dollars in climate damage in the event of a disaster,” said Laura Sacks, Co-Founder of the West Kootenay Climate Hub. 

“I’m heartened to see democracy in action, as Nelson Council thoroughly discussed pros and cons and passed a resolution that addressed those concerns. West Kootenay Climate Hub, West Coast Environmental Law, and the West Kootenay Sue Big Oil team applaud their climate leadership and hope that other local governments will soon follow suit.”

“The wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles, Lytton, Jasper and Fort McMurray, were tragic – and very likely would not have happened in the absence of climate change, caused primarily by fossil fuel pollution,” stated Andrew Gage, Staff Lawyer with West Coast Environmental Law. 

“The fossil fuel industry has known for 50 years that oil, coal and gas combustion would lead to catastrophic climate harms, but rather than pursue clean alternatives, they raked-in trillions of dollars in profits whilst promoting false solutions, blocking climate regulations, undermining climate science and spreading misinformation. These companies, more than anyone else, have the financial means to help our communities and a responsibility to make amends: they should be required to pay their fair share for the damage they’ve caused.”

The proposed Sue Big Oil class action lawsuit would be the first of its kind in Canada, but there are similar examples in other jurisdictions. Seventy US cities and states, including California, Honolulu and Chicago, are already suing Big Oil because they recognize that major polluters are responsible for the climate crisis and have a responsibility to compensate communities for some of the harms. A paper published in Nature in late April demonstrated the scientific basis for apportioning liability for climate related harms between global fossil fuel companies, calculating that Chevron’s contribution to climate change, for example, has caused between $791 billion and $3.6 trillion in heat related losses between 1991 and 2020.

Nelson joins Slocan, Burnaby, Cumberland, Squamish, View Royal, Sechelt, Gibsons, Qualicum Beach, Port Moody and Pemberton, in committing to work together to bring a class action lawsuit against global fossil fuel companies.

With Nelson’s decision, momentum is growing for legal action to hold fossil fuel companies accountable. As climate costs continue to rise, communities can no longer shoulder the burden alone. West Kootenay Sue Big Oil, West Kootenay Climate Hub, and West Coast Environmental Law urge other local governments to stand with Nelson and the 10 other municipalities already committed to this groundbreaking lawsuit. The more communities that join, the stronger the case–and the clearer the message: polluters must pay their fair share

Nelson council signs on to Sue Big Oil campaign, but with conditions, Nelson will not have to hire its own lawyer, would not have its name on the court documents, and no further payments would be expected by Bill Metcalfe, May 7, 2025, Grand Forks Gazette

Nelson City Council has voted in favour of signing on to the Sue Big Oil class-action suit, but with an important caveat.

If the lawsuit is not certified by the B.C. Supreme Court as a class action by 2030, Nelson will withdraw its pledged contribution.

That contribution consists of $11,500 (about one dollar per resident) to be put in reserve until the total contributions from B.C. municipalities reach $500,000, at which time the court will be asked to certify (approve) the suit as a class action. Then a trial would begin.

This process is being co-ordinated by West Coast Environmental Law, a Vancouver non-profit organization.

The lawsuit will ask the court to order that oil companies compensate municipalities for costs incurred because their products have caused damage due to climate change. This includes the need for preventive measures like upgrading storm water systems and mitigating the risks of wildfires and flooding.

At the May 6 council meeting, Councillor Rik Logtenberg said it has been proven that during the 1990s several of the major oil companies knew the burning of fossil fuels causes climate change. They then embarked on a concentrated international public relations campaign to deny this, thereby swaying public opinion toward climate change denial.

Meanwhile, he said, cities have to spend money on preventing the effects of increasingly extreme weather and cleaning up after it.

“The oil companies lied,” he said, “leading to direct harm, and continues to cause harm to the City of Nelson, and to Nelson residents. The municipal purpose of this case is very clear: that we need to recover costs.”

He said this is part of a council’s job.

“We engage in all sorts of activities related to protecting our financial interests and the well-being of our residents.”Excellent. Corrupt Alberta politicos abuses citizens in their cruel pornographic lust to protect polluters and illegal aquifer frac’ers.

A class action is a lawsuit started by one person (or municipality) on behalf of members of a group that have a similar claim against a person or company. In this case, the claim would be advanced by the lead plaintiff – one municipality (its identity not yet decided) – on behalf of all municipalities in B.C. Whether or not they formally sign on, all are members of the class by default, at no expense.

The $11,000 pledged by Nelson can be seen as fundraising to get the process started. Nelson’s name will not be on the legal documents. The only name would be that of the lead municipality. The City of Nelson will not have to hire its own lawyer, and no further money would be asked of Nelson.

If the claimant municipalities win at a trial and the companies are forced to pay for damages caused by climate change, a share of the proceeds could flow to any or all municipalities in the class including Nelson.

B.C. law establishes that if a class of plaintiffs lose a class-action lawsuit, they cannot be ordered to pay winner’s legal costs.

So far, 10 other municipalities have signed on to the class action: Pemberton, Squamish, Burnaby, Cumberland, Slocan, View Royal, Sechelt, Gibsons, Qualicum Beach, and Port Moody.

In February, the Regional District of Central Kootenay board voted not to join Sue Big Oil.