Caleb Heeringa, Sierra Club, (425) 890-9744, caleb.heeringa@sierraclub.org
To: King County Councilmembers, King County Executive Dow Constantine, King County Metro Interim General Manager Terry White
RE: Fossil fuel advertising on King County Metro buses
King County has been a key part of making Washington state a leader on bold action to reduce climate pollution, protect public health and ensure we avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. From the King County-Cities Climate Collaboration to the council’s Paris Climate Accords commitment, and the county’s recently passed Strategic Climate Action Plan, King County has continually prioritized climate action.
So it’s concerning to see the county undermine its own climate work by letting the fossil fuel industry use advertising space on King County Metro buses. For months, Metro buses have been used to display advertisements on behalf of Partnership for Energy Progress--a pro-“natural” gas front group bankrolled by the Canadian tar sands industry, oil producers and fossil fuel-championing utilities.
Partnership for Energy Progress spends millions of dollars to ensure the use of climate-damaging gas will expand in the Pacific Northwest - through power plants, in petrochemical production, and in our homes, schools and businesses. This expansion is direct opposition to the county’s climate goals, the Paris Climate Accords, and scores of scientific studies on decarbonization by Washington state, the Obama administration and the United Nations. The science is clear: we need to transition away from gas as soon as possible -- not keep expanding it.
Partnership for Energy Progress includes the following organizations:
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TC Energy, formerly known as TransCanada, which is attempting to build the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, a pipeline that would do massive damage to our climate, and violates treaty rights and Indigenous Nations right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent. They’re also pushing the Coastal GasLink pipeline in British Columbia despite demands from Indigenous leaders that it must stop to prevent COVID-19 ravaging underserved rural communities.
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Enbridge, which is the largest pipeline company in North America, which is attempting to build the controversial Line 3 pipeline in Northern Minnesota, despite opposition from Tribal Nations, and the fact Line 3 would add as much greenhouse gas to our atmosphere as 50 new coal-fired power plants.
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Western States Petroleum Association, which represents some of the world’s largest petroleum and energy companies, including Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon, Shell, and has fought against climate policy in Olympia. In 2018, WSPA bankrolled the opposition to Initiative 1631, a carbon fee measure in the state.
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Puget Sound Energy, which is building a massive liquified natural gas facility in Tacoma on the ancestral lands of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians without adequate consultation. The project’s environmental review also failed to adequately consider the project’s total climate impact, drawing criticism from the office of Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson. This year PSE also amplified a coloring book that marketed fossil fuels to children.
It’s not just about climate; these ads and the companies behind them pose direct risks to our public health. A recent study found gas stoves may be exposing tens of millions of people to levels of air pollution in their homes that would be illegal outdoors under national air quality standards. Numerous studies show children living in a home with a gas stove have a 42% higher chance of developing asthma, which disproportionately impacts low-income residents and communities of color who already live with more fossil fuel pollution. As every level of government works to manage COVID-19, King County decided to accept money and ads from companies directly damaging our lungs.
Using gas also increases the risk of household fires and explosions through methane leaks from pipes, meters, and appliances--a particular risk in earthquake-prone areas like King County. Nationwide on average, every four days a gas pipeline incident killed someone, sent someone to the hospital, or caused a fire or explosion.
The opposition to embracing clean electricity in the building sector also risks making it more expensive for us to meet our climate obligations. According to Washington’s Deep Decarbonization Pathway Study, the lowest cost pathway for achieving 80% carbon reductions economy-wide by 2050 relies on electrifying our buildings, reducing the residential sector’s use of gas by 85%.
It’s disappointing to see King County let taxpayer-funded electric transit -- a key part of the fight to reduce climate pollution -- be used to advance the interests of the fossil fuel industry. We encourage you to remove Partnership For Energy Progress ads from King County buses and commit to not selling advertising space to fossil fuel companies in the future. Will you do this?
Your commitment to the health of King County families and the future of our global climate should ensure you are not giving advertising space to corporations fighting against these things.
Signed,
350 Seattle, Sierra Club, Stand.Earth, Climate Solutions, Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.