B.C. budget does nothing to support climate action, advocate says

One climate activist group says it’s “deeply worrying” that there is no new funding in B.C.’s 2026 budget to support climate action.

The Sierra Club BC claims that instead of including measures that would protect nature, the budget focuses on industries at the expense of the environment.

Jens Wieting, senior policy and science advisor at the environmental organization, says that it is especially concerning that the budget’s focus appears to be driven by tariff threats from the United States.

“We are part of the international community, we have international commitments and global responsibility to protect nature and take climate action for future generations,” he said in an interview with 1130 NewsRadio.

“By abandoning and backtracking on these important commitments, we are kind of pursuing a similar course like Donald Trump in the U.S., and we have to stand up to these efforts of undermining international commitments.”

The budget showcases an ongoing emphasis on resource extraction, mining, and fossil fuels.

“For example, old-growth forests are reduced to a fraction, but there’s ongoing emphasis on logging and mining.”

Wieting says that the budget misses important financial information on conservation progress.

He wants to remind the government of its promise to double its conservation efforts to 30 per cent by 2030.

Back in 2023, Premier David Eby’s administration pledged $1 billion for that cause, but it has now failed to disclose how much of that still remains.

No new funding for the CleanBC plan

Wieting says that another clear indicator that the government oversaw the environment in its budget is that no new funding for the CleanBC plan was announced.

“Last fall, we saw the CleanBC review with many important recommendations on how to ensure an ongoing shift towards clean energy, renewable energy, to more heat pumps, EVs, and public transport, but we have not seen funding in this budget to actually enable these urgently needed policies,” he said.

The Sierra Club BC says that implementing those policies is important across Canada since the country is behind its peers in the G7 when it comes to reducing emissions compared to 2005.

The CleanBC plan aims to lower greenhouse emissions by 40 per cent below 2007 levels by 2030.

 “It’s paramount to shift funding away from destructive industries towards supporting a diverse economy in B.C., and that must include protecting at-risk ecosystems and shifting support to renewable energy and readily available climate solutions like heat pumps and EVs.”