Projects of National Interest: LNG is not clean energy, it harms people's health.

Bélem | Brazil, November 13, 2025 – In reaction to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s announcement of a new batch of “projects of national interest” (PONIs) in the midst of the COP30 climate negotiations, Melissa Lem, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) President said:

”While we welcome investments in clean electricity, massive funding for LNG is a dangerous step backward. Unlocking clean power, as the federal government claims, cannot coexist with new fossil fuel projects that accelerate climate change: LNG is not clean energy, and it is not natural.

Expanding liquefied methane gas infrastructure drives more hydraulic fracturing, which is linked to asthma, heart disease, preterm birth, cancers, and other serious health impacts, disproportionately affecting Indigenous and rural communities. It is unconscionable to greenlight the Ksi Lisims LNG project without full Indigenous consent and without addressing the devastating health risks.

Research shows that people living near fracking operations face higher rates of lung and heart disease, childhood cancer, birth defects, and premature death. A majority of British Columbians support pausing LNG development until a comprehensive, independent cumulative health impact assessment is completed. The science is clear: LNG endangers both the climate and the health of people in Canada.”

The list includes the Ksi Lisims LNG terminal, currently facing legal challenges from the Lax Kw’alaams Band and the Metlakatla First Nation. The terminal would be supplied by the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) pipeline, which also faces opposition from Indigenous land defenders.

The announcement comes as momentum builds at COP30 around a Just Transition, a principle that ensures people and communities have real choices in decisions that affect them, which makes it a stark contrast to today’s approval.

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CAPE is also featured in CAN-RAC’s coalition reactive statement here.

About CAPE:

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) is a physician-directed non-profit organization working to secure human health by protecting the planet. Since its founding in 1994, CAPE’s work has achieved substantial policy victories in collaboration with many partners in the environmental and health movements. From coast to coast to coast, the organization operates throughout the country with regional committees active in most provinces and all territories. cape.ca

Media contact:

Loujain Kurdi
Communications Manager | Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment
647-762-9168
media@cape.ca

Projects of National Interest: LNG is not clean energy, it harms people’s health.

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Projects of National Interest: LNG is not clean energy, it harms people’s health.

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