Friday, March 21, 2025
As the fossil fuel industry ramps up pressure for oil and gas expansion in this uncertain moment, Canada’s largest network of climate and energy organizations is calling for an immediate moratorium on expansion of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry.
In a this statement , Climate Action Network Canada (CAN-Rac) highlights the risks of LNG expansion—for the climate, the economy, Indigenous rights, and public health. In addition to a moratorium, CAN-Rac calls on governments to rule out directing any public funds towards the industry; to deliver a comprehensive, well-resourced Just Transition plan for workers; and to create an Indigenous Community Diversification Fund to support nations in charting their own path forward.
“At this critical moment for the country, more than 180 organizations across Canada are calling for a moratorium on new LNG projects,” said John Young, LNG Senior Strategist at CAN-Rac. “Yes, Canada must diversify trade and move away from a bullying neighbour. But doubling down on a volatile industry is not diversification. Expanding LNG would only serve President Trump’s billionair backers. The smart choice for Canadians and for the planet is to build out the renewable economy of the future, not the clomate and economic disaster of LNG.”
“British Columbia sits at a crossroads. One path would set off a carbon bomb with disastrous planetary consequences via a LNG export boom,” adds Young. “The other path would build on recent wise choices in supporting renewable energy expansion. British Columbia is blessed with vast renewable energy capacity. Fully developed and deployed for the benefit of Canadians, real energy security and smart economic development are within reach. Approving a massive increase in LNG export projects would simply expose British Columbians to the unpredictability of an increasingly oversupplied export market while causing more than $1 trillion in climate damage.”
Priority action items
Based on the overwhelming scientific consensus regarding the climate crisis and its key driver – fossil fuels – and in consideration of the many factors which, collectively, portray LNG industry expansion as a risk that humanity simply cannot afford, CAN-Rac is calling for:
- An immediate moratorium on LNG industry expansion. Any LNG project not currently under construction must be prohibited from proceeding and new projects must not be approved as governments – provincial, federal and Indigenous – plan for the net zero future on which a livable planet depends; a planet where there is no place for LNG and fossil fuel industry expansion.
- Explicitly ruling out the use of any public funds in support of the LNG industry. This includes the provision of new electricity supply for liquefaction plants.
- A comprehensive, well resourced Just Transition plan for workers affected by the moratorium. As the renewable energy transition continues at an increasingly rapid pace, workers affected by the transition must be supported.
- An Indigenous Community Diversification Fund. The Indigenous communities, always on the front lines of extraction pressure, must be put in place to support the diverse choices Nations wish to make in charting their own path to economic, social and cultural well being.
Canada’s farthest-reaching network of organizations working on climate and energy issues, Climate Action Network – Réseau action climat (CAN-Rac) Canada is a coalition of more than 180 organizations operating from coast to coast to coast. Membership brings environmental groups together with trade unions, First Nations, social justice, development, health and youth organizations, faith groups and local, grassroots initiatives.
Read the full statement here .
Featured image credit: Getty Images
