A self-styled grassroot group that has received significant fossil fuel industry funding is continuing to run ads claiming that liquefied natural gas (LNG) “will reduce global emissions,” despite a watchdog council’s ruling in January that the ads amount to greenwashing. Though the ruling by Ad Standards Canada was issued months ago, the ads have continued to appear on billboards, radio, public transit, and in major newspapers.

The ruling by Ad Standards Canada, an industry self-regulatory body that evaluates ads and ensures compliance with the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards, was shared anonymously with the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) after the doctors launched a campaign to ban fossil fuel advertising in 2022. Canadian health organizations like CAPE have been advocating for the tobacco-style ban on fossil fuel advertising to protect public health, asserting that fossil fuel companies’ representation of their industry’s harms mirrors the misleading tactics previously used by tobacco companies.