[2][3] WCEL was founded in 1974 and is the oldest environmental law organization in British Columbia, Canada.
[4] In the late 1980s, WCEL played an active role in the establishment of Sierra Legal Defense Fund, now known as Ecojustice Canada, to use test litigation to protect the environment.
WCEL later narrowed its focus to drafting and advancing legislative reform initiatives and providing public legal education.
[7] From 1989 to 2009 the Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund provided $4 million in grants, which have aided in 500 legal cases in British Columbia.
[8] As an example of one legal case, marine biologist and fish farm activist Alexandra Morton used funding from West Coast Environmental Law to challenge the constitutionality of allowing fish farms in British Columbia.