While the slogan of the new Trump administration in the United States is “Drill, baby, drill”, lawmakers in Hawaii (HI) realize the necessity to turn away from fossil energy. A new Senate bill proposes mandatory health and climate warning labels on motor fuel dispensers across Hawaii, similar to the labels found in Cambridge, Massachusetts (MA), and in Sweden notes the Swedish Association for Green Mobility (Green Motorists).
Senator Chris Lee has introduced SB1015, a bill that mandates labels on gas pumps across Hawaii that advise consumers on the effects of fossil fuel consumption on human health and the environment.
A previous version of the bill was passed by the State Senate in 2023 but was blocked in the House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection.
SB1015 refers to Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation, the world’s first climate litigation that addresses greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transportation sector.
In a recent settlement, the Hawaii Department of Transportation commits to bold action to achieve 2045 zero emission goals and to honor the constitutional rights of Hawaii’s youth to a life-sustaining climate.
SB1015 also refers to encouraging effects from the health and climate labels in Cambridge, Massachusetts (MA), and from the eco-labels on Swedish fuel dispensers, with their color-coded climate impact rating showing fossil fuels at the highest risk level (red).
An evaluation by the Swedish Energy Agency in 2024 showed that 75 percent of the drivers in a representative sample of 1,000 motorists declared that the eco-labels would affect their choice of the next car.
Among the drivers who have seen the environmental information at the pump and on the retailers’ websites, 35-40 percent claimed that it influenced their fuel choice for their current car.
The public support for the Swedish eco-labels is large. In the recent evaluation, the number of motorists who liked the labels was more than twice as large as the number of motorists who disliked them.
The support from experts is also large. Last year, 18 leading authorities in climate, health, communication, and policymaking co-authored a call for climate and health labels on points of sale of fossil fuels.
Signatories include lead authors for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), World Health Organization (WHO) advisors, and Californian lawmakers who paved the way for the electric car revolution.
Climate change knows no borders. To have climate labels on gas pumps in Hawaii is equally relevant in Sweden as in Hawaii, and vice versa. If climate labels are adopted on gas pumps worldwide, they may help trigger an overall change of attitude towards the burning of fossil fuels, just like tobacco warning labels helped trigger a change of attitude towards smoking. It is no longer considered normal, commented Per Östborn, Campaign Manager at the Swedish Association for Green Mobility.
