Thanks to Bill C-59, corporate claims about the good their businesses do for the climate now may be reviewed. But what about governments? Do they greenwash, too?
Fossil fuel companies and industry organizations use revolving doors of employment, closed-door meetings, casual encounters, and personal relationships to expand their influence on laws and policies, especially when it comes to climate change.
Just days before the Paris Olympics open, Lululemon Athletica Inc., is facing a first-of-its-kind formal complaint in France filed by a grassroots environmental organization in Canada and the United States.
It hasn’t even been signed into law yet, but an anti-greenwashing provision in a federal omnibus bill making its way through the House of Commons is already having an impact on how the fossil fuel industry and its boosters conduct themselves.
The consortium has previously spent millions of dollars on a countrywide public relations blitz aimed at demonstrating that the oilsands is committed to helping fight climate change. But as of Thursday, all that remains on the group's website is a notice saying Pathways has removed its content due to concerns around an anti-greenwashing provision in federal Bill C-59.
It’s no surprise that companies promoting “net-zero fossil fuel production” — an oxymoron if there ever was one — might be worried about stronger laws against false and misleading environmental claims.
In a speech timed for World Environment Day, the U.N. chief drew on new data and projections to make a case against Big Oil. The European Union's Copernicus service, a global reference for tracking world temperatures, said that last month was the hottest May ever, marking the 12th straight monthly record high.
A majority of Canadians are rightfully concerned about affordability. Conservative media, politicians and advertisers amplify these economic concerns and use them to turn us against taxes and government spending.
It’s lucky Canada isn’t a corporation or the Competition Bureau would have to investigate a series of our national governments. The Canadian government has been making overblown promises about reducing emissions for decades.
Researchers have found that plans by gas companies to blend natural gas and hydrogen in an effort to reduce their emissions will likely backfire by creating more gas leaks.
The proposed law would prevent businesses from advertising misleading statements about greenhouse gas emissions associated with their practices. It would also target claims about the effectiveness of their climate efforts and require them to back their sustainability claims on a public website.