Nelson will treat electronic cigarettes the same as tobacco cigarettes, following a motion adopted by city council this week.
The upshot is that e-cigarettes will not be allowed in city workplaces or buildings, although council decided to remove the word “ban” from the motion.
The devices will also be included in the city’s forthcoming clean air bylaw.
Councillor Robin Cherbo brought the matter to council after the World Health Organization called for regulation of e-cigarettes, as well as bans on indoor use, advertising, and sales to minors.
Nelson follows the lead of Vancouver, which recently adopted a similar motion.
Nelson’s smoking regulation bylaw, adopted in 1989 and updated last year, prohibited smoking within all city-owned premises while a clean indoor air bylaw adopted the following year further banned it in most public areas. In recent years, the city has also designated a number of smoke-free zones.
