Doctors are speaking out about the dire health effects of a controversial motion passed by Vancouver City Council Thursday.
The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) condemned the vote on Motion 8, which it says will dismantle key climate and health protections in the city’s building regulations.
Mayor Ken Sim framed his motion on ‘Alignment with the Provincial Building Code’ as eliminating red tape and barriers to housing affordability, but critics say it will set the city back on climate policy by renewing the option to use natural gas for heating and hot water in new construction in Vancouver.
Over 100 people registered to speak on the issue over two nights of debate this week. Just as many did in November 2024, before it was fully implemented in March 2025, when Sim last attempted to undo the ban.
CAPE Physician Volunteer Dr. Kai Irani says doctors in the organization are “upset and disappointed” that Sim returned to the idea.
“What we see is this will line the pockets of some developers and really impact the health of the majority of Vancouverites, who are renters, who do not have any say in what kind of heating — or cooling for that matter — goes into their homes,” said Irani.
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He says CAPE was surprised by the motion and struggled to muster the same support it did last time.
In 2024, Couns. Peter Meiszner and Lisa Dominato tipped the balance by voting against the idea, despite the rest of Sim’s ABC Party voting in favour. At the time, Meiszner was quoted as saying disagreement and diverse viewpoints lead to better outcomes.
“I was told that they were still leaning towards voting against it. I’m not sure exactly what changed,” said Irani.
1130 NewsRadio has reached out to Mayor Sim and Couns. Meiszner and Dominato for comment on the motion.
Citing a 2024 study, Irani says gas in homes exposes residents — especially children — to benzene, a carcinogen found in Vancouver’s gas at levels 50 times higher than in other cities.
“No amount of benzene is considered safe in the home,” he explained.
“And there is always leaks with natural gas. That is apart from the burning of natural gas, which causes global warming, which we know is getting worse and worse every year.”
Irani likened it to secondhand tobacco smoke exposure and says, over the long term, natural gas exposure results in more hospital visits, and affects mortality rates.
He says he does not take the mayor at his word that the motion is designed to deliver more affordable housing.
“We’ve heard from developers and builders who say that the costs are comparable now, and there are added benefits of having heat pumps in rather than gas furnaces. Heat pumps also provide cooling, which is essential these days with increasingly warm and hot summers and the heat domes that we are experiencing more,” said Irani.
“And we are not factoring in the health-care implication costs. We’re not factoring the climate costs, we’re not factoring in insurance costs due to climate crises. So when we say we are passing on a way of making cost savings, even if it is to homeowners, we’re not factoring all the costs.”
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He says he also doesn’t accept Sim’s notion that the move will align Vancouver with the province’s progress on liquid natural gas projects, which will also have detrimental environmental effects.
“Two wrongs do not make a right. Just because we are doing that, and adding to our LNG production, provincially and federally, that doesn’t mean we should allow gas into our homes.”
Climate advocates say they will not give up on the issue, despite Motion 8 passing.
A CAPE statement said doctors will “continue to fight for policies that prioritize clean air and a future where no child’s health is sacrificed for fossil fuel profits.”