Cambridge, Massachusetts will become the first US city to roll out bright yellow climate warning stickers on gas pumps
The city of Cambridge in Massachusetts has become the first US city to mandate climate warning stickers on fuel pumps at gas stations.
A city spokesman said the bright yellow stickers would be rolled out across the city 'fairly soon', after a city ordinance requiring the stickers was passed in January.
The stickers warn drivers that the burning of gasoline, diesel and ethanol has 'major consequences on human health and the environment including contributing to climate change'.
The city of Cambridge in Massachusetts has become the first US city to mandate climate warning stickers on fuel pumps at gas stations. Sticker pictured above
They are intended to highlight the link between refueling a vehicle and the climate crisis.
Speaking to The Guardian, the city spokesperson said: 'The gas pump stickers will remind drivers to think about climate change and hopefully consider non-polluting options.'
They will be placed on all fuel pumps across Cambridge, which is home to Harvard University and MIT.
The city is attempting to slash planet-heating emissions by 80% and offsetting the remainder by 2050, making it carbon neutral.
Transportation makes up 28 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in the US, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, with emissions coming primarily from burning fossil fuel for cars, trucks, ships, trains, and planes.
James Brooks, founder of the environmental campaign group Think Beyond the Pump, said earlier this month that labels are designed to be 'intentionally disruptive'.
'Labels are designed to create a feeling like someone has broken a rule or violated a law,' he said.
The bright yellow eco-stickers will be placed on all fuel pumps across Cambridge, which is home to Harvard University. Above, stock image of a man refilling his car
'This feeling, along with increased social pressure, like smoking labels, can translate to a collapse in trust for the current system, thereby increasing the public appetite for alternatives.'
Environmental campaigners have been pushing for labels with more dramatic depictions of the consequences of global warning including burning forests.
Sweden already has similar eco-labels in place after the Swedish government passed a law in 2018 requiring the signage on all petrol stations in the country by May of this year.
A similar proposal to implement the stickers in Berkeley, California, in 2014 was unsuccessful.