British Columbia’s provincial wildfire service issued an alert on Saturday evening, stating that smoke from fires primarily located in Washington and Oregon was creating smoky conditions. The Northwest Interagency Coordination Center reported that 22 large fires were active across these two US states.
Air quality warnings are currently in place for the Kootenay Lake and Cranbrook regions in British Columbia, situated along the southeastern border with the US. This comes as the US faces its own significant wildfire challenges, with thousands of lightning strikes contributing to fires in the northeastern US.
Despite the shared environmental challenge, former US President Donald Trump and other Republicans have accused Canada of improper wildfire management. Trump, in a social media post on Friday, claimed the US had been “invaded” by dirty air and suggested that the cost of this pollution should be added to existing tariffs on Canada.
Canada has defended its fire prevention efforts. Eleanor Olszewski, Canada’s minister of emergency preparedness, stated that the country has invested C$12 billion (£6.36 billion) in fire prevention and forest sustainability over the last five years. “This is a challenge that knows no borders,” Olszewski said.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has previously met with Trump, has largely sidestepped direct criticism, emphasizing that fighting climate change is a shared responsibility. However, Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario, where numerous fires are burning, called for practical support instead of complaints. “If there’s politicians out there chirping away, well maybe what you should do rather than complain is send support, send help, because we have done the exact same thing for our American friends,” Ford stated.
Across Canada, the government reported 843 active wildfires as of Monday. Of these, 181 were classified as “out of control,” indicating active spread and lack of suppression, while an additional 532 fires were also designated “out of control” but had not yet had suppressive actions initiated.