'It's the Wild West': New Westminster councillor wants more regulations for vape shops in B.C.

The City of New Westminster is calling on the province to implement more restrictions on the sale of vape products in Metro Vancouver.

“It’s the Wild West out there,” said New West Coun. Daniel Fontaine. “You can have 10 vape shops side-by-side next to a school. We would never allow this with liquor stores or stores that sell cigarettes or cigars. Why we would be permitting stores that

The city has brought a resolution to the annual Union of B.C. Municipalities convention later this month asking that the provincial government bring retail stores used primarily for the sale of electronic nicotine or e-cigarettes under the umbrella of the provincial Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch. The resolution proposes to create restrictions that would regulate where and how many retail stores selling vapour products would be able to receive business licences in a community.

In December 2024, after noticing a proliferation of vape stores, Fontaine put forward a motion asking staff to look into options to limit not just the number, but also the location of vape stores in New West. Fontaine didn’t specify if he had a limit in mind but would prefer that they not be located near schools.

In general, there are no special requirements to receive a business licence for a retail outlet that wants to sell vapes, although business owners must notify the Health Ministry of their intention to sell restricted e-substances at least six weeks before their first sale.

E-cigarettes currently fall under the framework of the B.C. Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Act, which governs where certain products can be sold or advertised for sale.

B.C. limits sales of vape products based on type. Age-restricted shops, where government ID is required, may sell all e-substances, including flavoured e-substances.

Non-age-restricted retail outlets, like gas stations and convenience stores, may only sell e-substances that taste or smell of tobacco. No other flavours are allowed to discourage youth.

Stacey White, owner of Thunderbird Vapes on West Broadway in Vancouver, a 19-plus establishment, said she has concerns about the proposal.

“If these rules are going to apply to vaping products they should also apply to conventional forms of nicotine products,” said White.

White’s store is regularly inspected by officers of the regional tobacco and vapour products enforcement program. Retail outlets can be ticketed for violations of the Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Act, such as selling products with packaging that makes a health claim, promotes vapour products or tries to appeal to youth.

A number of other laws, regulations and policies restrict the sale of vaping products in the province, including the E-substances Regulation under the Public Health Act, which restricts the content and volume of e-cigarette cartridges.

White said the bigger concern is that compliance officers don’t have enough tools to enforce the regulations around nicotine strengths, which would require testing.

“What we have found frustrating, from talking to sales reps and customers, is that we might be the only compliant store in the city. Financially that is devastating.”

Under B.C.’s regulatory framework, a pre-filled or disposable cartridge with a restricted e-substance can be no more than two millilitres, and a container used to refill a cartridge can be no more than 30 mL. Under federal Nicotine Concentration in Vaping rules, the maximum concentration of nicotine is 20 milligrams/mL allowed in a vapable product.

“There are a lot of products floating around out there that are labelled as 20 milligrams that are not. They just change the packaging to get around the regulations. There seems to be little enforcement to remove those products.”

Fontaine said he believes that moving vaping retailers under the umbrella of the Liquor and Cannabis Regulations Branch would bring about stronger enforcement of the rules around the sale of vaping products.

Fraser Health expressed strong support for exploring options to limit the number and location of vape shops when Fontaine brought his motion to New West city council in late 2024.

In a letter to council, Dr. Carolyn Wonneck, Fraser Health’s medical officer, wrote: “The proliferation of vape shops in communities raises concerns about public health and youth exposure to harmful substance. Evidence has shown that proximity and density of retail vape outlets is a key predictor of youth nicotine use. Areas with high concentrations of vape retailers see increased rates of vaping in adolescents, who are particularly influenced by availability and environmental factors like marketing and advertising.”

Said Fontaine: “It’s time for the province to step up and acknowledge that these products are harmful, and to see if there are more things we can do to prevent people from vaping.”

In a statement, the Health Ministry confirmed that it is responsible for “administering tobacco and vapour product control legislation and regulations, and said in part: “Though there are similarities between how liquor, cannabis and tobacco and vapour products are regulated, B.C. primarily approaches the control of tobacco and vapour products with a public health and health protection focus.”

Their statement didn’t address whether they would support Fontaine’s proposal.

dryan@postmedia.com