Vancouver, Wash.: The city council in Vancouver, Washington, has approved a permanent ban on new fossil fuel developments after years of temporary moratoriums.
While new facilities that distribute, extract, refine or process fossil fuels have been temporarily prohibited by the Vancouver City Council since 2020, the council this week unanimously made the ban permanent, The Columbian reported.
“We’re concerned fossil fuel facilities pose a risk to the area’s health and safety,” Chad Eiken, the city’s community development director, said in a news release. “There are currently six bulk facilities that are susceptible to liquefaction and hazardous materials that could potentially flow into the Columbia River, wetlands, and other wildlife habitats in the case of a seismic event. These code changes are intended to reduce this risk and also minimize greenhouse gas emissions.”
