Hi John,

Canada’s largest oil and gas lobby group, the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), is trying to exploit the COVID crisis and deliberately hide it from the Canadian public.

A secret memo from CAPP to the federal government reveals that the lobby group is using a global health crisis as an excuse to move forward on every measure they have ever lobbied on, most of which have nothing to do with COVID-19 or its impact on oil and gas companies. CAPP’s list of under-the-table requests include:

• Stop moving forward with any new climate policies
• Cancel plans to reform the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, putting Canadians at ongoing risk from toxic chemicals
• Defer plans to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP)
• Pause the planned increase of the federal carbon price
• Exempt projects with big carbon footprints from having to undergo environmental impact assessments, indefinitely
• Delay federal methane regulations, or let weak provincial regulations take over

Giving in to the oil and gas lobby’s requests puts Canadians at risk, threatens birds, fish and other wildlife, and obliterates any hope for Canada in meeting its international obligations to fight climate change. Tell the federal government to publicly reject these demands.

The health of Canadians and the right to transparency should not be compromised during these times. Push back against the industry’s attempt to take advantage of the COVID crisis to secretly weaken our chance of a healthy and climate-safe future. 

In solidarity,

Dale Marshall
National Program Manager, Climate