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National Observer
14 minutes ago
- National Observer
More Republican lawmakers demand legal action over Canadian wildfire smoke
More Republican lawmakers are calling out Canada because of wildfires sending smoke billowing across the international border into their states. "If Canada can't get these wildfires under control, they need to face real consequences," said Wisconsin state Rep. Calvin Callahan in a news release Wednesday. "We won't sit back while our air becomes a health hazard." Callahan joined other Republican state lawmakers from Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota in filing a formal complaint against Canada to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin and the International Joint Commission, a binational organization that resolves disputes on shared water and air quality. The Republican lawmakers called for an investigation of Canada's wildfire management practices and for potential remedies under international law. Callahan joins a chorus of Republican politicians at other levels of government who have been voicing concerns about Canada's wildfires. Michigan Rep. Jack Bergman sent a letter to Canadian Sen. Michael MacDonald on Monday calling for stronger forest management policies and more accountability from Canadian officials. Both are members of the Canada—United States Inter-Parliamentary Group. "It is critical that forest management and wildfire mitigation be treated as a bilateral environmental and public health priority," the letter said. "If Canada can't get these wildfires under control, they need to face real consequences," said Wisconsin state Rep. Calvin Callahan in a news release Wednesday. "We won't sit back while our air becomes a health hazard." Michigan Rep. John James sent a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney last week saying his constituents are choking on toxic wildfire smoke. Citing a letter other Republican members of Congress sent to Canada's Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman in July, James said that "since then, rather than progress, we have seen escalation." James said Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew's declaration of a second state of emergency in that province "confirmed what many Americans have feared: that Canada is not doing nearly enough to stop these fires before they start." The American lawmaker also criticized Kinew's comments in response to the initial letter. "This is what turns people off from politics," Kinew said in July. "When you have got a group of congresspeople trying to trivialize and make hay out of a wildfire season where we've lost lives in our province, there's no place for that in politics," the premier added. "If you can't get likes on Instagram from your own skills as a politician, don't bother trying to throw other people under the bus during a state of emergency." A husband and wife were killed by a fast-moving wildfire northeast of Winnipeg in May and thousands have been evacuated from their communities. James said Kinew's comments dismiss the health impacts the wildfire smoke has on neighbouring states. The Republican said the smoke amounts to a public health emergency "and it is actively damaging the U. S. — Canada relationship." The increasing pressure from Republicans comes as the bilateral relationship between the two countries remains tense. On Aug. 1, U.S. President Donald Trump boosted tariffs on Canadian goods to 35 per cent after a new security and economic agreement failed to materialize ahead of the president's deadline. The duties do not apply to goods compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade. Canada is also being hit with Trump's steel, aluminum, copper and automobile tariffs. Natural Resources Canada said in July that wildfires are a global problem caused by the effects of climate change, including prolonged drought. The president has called climate change a "hoax" and his administration dismissed all of the scientists working on a flagship climate report. Many Republicans point to the 2023 Canadian wildfire season, which was the worst on record. Fires blazing across the country that year sent thick smoke into the United States and even across the Atlantic Ocean to northern Europe. Canadian officials have warned that this year's wildfire season could shape up to be the second-worst on record. The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre, a non-profit owned and operated by federal, provincial and territorial wildland fire management agencies, said on its website that 744 active wildfires were burning across Canada on Wednesday. U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra said Tuesday that Canada's recent wildfires offer a "stark reminder" of the countries' shared challenges. In a statement shared by the U.S. Embassy, Hoekstra said the United States and Canada have "a long history" of supporting one another in times of crisis. "Canadians stood with us during the tragic California wildfires earlier this year, and we are committed to standing with Canada now," he said. Wildfires burning across multiple American states, including California, have been sending smoke into nearby communities.
CTV News
14 minutes ago
- CTV News
First Nation disappointed as B.C. court rejects challenge to Mount Polley dam level
The Mount Polley mine is seen near the town of Likely, B.C., on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2014. (Jonathan Hayward / The Canadian Press) VANCOUVER — The B.C. Supreme Court has dismissed a First Nation's bid to stop the level of a tailings dam being increased at the Mount Polley mine site, which suffered a catastrophic dam collapse that spilled millions of litres of waste and water 11 years ago. The Xatsull First Nation claimed the province's approval of the plan to raise the level of the dam in B.C.'s Interior by four metres was improper and done without 'meaningful' consultation with the nation. But Justice Michael Tammen ruled Wednesday that the provincial government's consultation with the Xatsull was proper. 'I view the consultation here as deep and, importantly, the process employed by the province provided Xatsull with ample opportunity to present their perspective,' Tammen said. The First Nation said in a statement it was disappointed in the ruling. 'This is the same facility that breached and devastated Xatsull's territory in 2014 — the worst mining disaster on record. Its impacts are still harming our Nation's rights, culture and way of life today,' it said. 'We will be reviewing the decision as well as exploring our options to determine next steps.' Tammen found the province fulfilled its duty to consult, and said that had he found otherwise, he would not have hesitated to grant the Xatsull's wishes to have the decision approving the plan reconsidered. Tammen said Mount Polley Mining Corp.'s plan to raise the tailings storage level was 'comparatively modest,' and the rationale for provincial approval 'readily apparent.' The court had been expected to rule on an application for an injunction Tuesday with a decision on the nation's judicial review to follow, but Tammen dismissed the Xatsull's legal challenge outright and found no basis to grant an injunction to stop the plan moving ahead. Tammen said raising the dam as proposed 'does not increase the scope of operations at the mine, nor does it increase the ecological footprint of ongoing mining operations.' The judge said the tailings dam failed 'catastrophically' in 2014, which 'has in turn caused widespread and long-lasting environmental damage and corresponding impacts to Xatsull's Aboriginal title, rights, culture, and way of life.' 'Xatsull is obviously and understandably extremely concerned with the potential for a further failure and thus has a corresponding interest in ensuring that the mine is being operated in an environmentally responsible and safe manner,' he said. The judge said he didn't want to dismiss, diminish or minimize the 'deleterious' effects of the tailings dam failure, which is still the subject of civil litigation and Fisheries Act charges against the company. Lawyers for Mount Polley and provincial government claimed the risk of a future tailings dam failure was 'speculative,' while the judge characterized 'it as remote and incapable of even approximate quantification.' The judge ruled that the province's duty to consult relates to only 'current government conduct' rather than any past wrongs or failings, and must focus on 'adverse impacts' from a specific proposal and not 'larger adverse impacts of the project of which it is a part.' Tammen said it was reasonable for B.C.'s environmental assessment office to consider impacts on the First Nation's constitutional rights as a 'starting point' during the consultations that happened during the permitting process. 'That process was aimed at the overarching safety and design issues that were at the heart of Xatsull's concerns,' the judge said. 'If Xatsull asserted other impacts … beyond the risk of further failure of the (tailings storage facility), they had ample opportunity to make those known to the (environmental assessment office), but did not do so.' Chief Rhonda Phillips said earlier this year that the province was allowing the work to proceed without a valid environmental assessment certificate at the site of the spill that sent millions of tonnes of water and tailings into the environment on the nation's territory in B.C.'s Cariboo region. The Xatsull said in June that the mine's operator agreed not to deposit tailings at the facility that would require the dam to be raised until the court issued its decision on the injunction. Phillips had said 'meaningful' reform is needed in the aftermath of the 2014 spill because the provincial government is still approving 'risky storage methods' while failing to adequately consult the nation. This report by Darryl Greer of The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2025.
CTV News
14 minutes ago
- CTV News
‘Our only route in or out': Residents concerned over weight restriction on rural bridge
Heavy vehicles can no longer cross Peck's Cove Bridge in southeast New Brunswick. The Peck's Cove Bridge near Rockport, N.B. is tucked away in the very southeast corner of the province, and it has seen better days. The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DTI) recently restricted its weight load of 43.5 tonnes down to 20 tonnes due to its deteriorated condition. Tantramar Mayor Andrew Black said that means in case of an emergency, heavy fire trucks wouldn't be able to get to people who live on the other side. There's no detour currently in place, but DTI spokesperson Jacob MacDonald said they've reached out to the local fire department to discuss how emergency vehicles could get to the eight to ten homes in the area. 'That's a major concern to people who live on the other side of the bridge. We do have our own plan for fire suppression. it's not perfect, but at least it's something to alleviate fears,' said Black. The people who do live on the other side of the bridge are worried what would happen if there was a structure fire in the rural area. 'If a fire does start here, that is our only route in or out,' said Ted Tompkins, who lives a few kilometres away. 'If the bridge fails, what are we to do?' MacDonald said a tender for repair work or replacement for the bridge is expected for 2028. Peck's Cove Bridge Peck's Cove Bridge restricted its weight load of 43.5 tonnes down to 20 tonnes due to its deteriorated condition. (CTV Atlantic/ Derek Haggett) 'Although DTI is currently reviewing options to tender at an earlier date,' said MacDonald. Also a concern for the few residents in the Rockport area are the dry conditions and the possibility of a forest fire. On Tuesday, the Province of Nova Scotia banned hiking and other activities in the woods due to the risk of wildfires. 'Everything is crisp and dry,' said Tompkins. 'You understand what Nova Scotia just did, I heard it on the news. Well, it's no different here.' Tompkins' neighbour Crow Robichaud lives about a kilometre up the dirt and gravel road. 'If you look at Nova Scotia the same thing is happening there. It's tinder dry, there's been no rain. You crunch through the woods,' said Robichaud. There are fire pits near a beach not far from where Robichaud lives and she believes the province should ban fires in the area because of the fear of what might happen if fire trucks can't reach them. 'Fire service is something that you need. Your insurance wants you to have it obviously. So insurance rates are going to sky rocket for people that live down here,' said Robichaud. Black said the municipality asked the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for a fire ban in the Rockport area. 'We had sent a letter to the administrator of DNR asking for an on-going fire ban on the other side of the bridge. That was denied, but the province has a plan of action in case something were to happen, if a wildfire were to spread for example,' said Black. There are other issues as well. Black said concrete trucks can't get across for any construction projects and sewage removal for people on septic tank systems is also an issue. 'There has been a work around, but again, it's not perfect,' said Black. Black said the municipality found out about the weight restriction a few months ago, but after the fact. 'This happened with the Wheaton Covered Bridge. It happened with the closure of the road to Dorchester. We were informed after those events happened which is really not a way to communicate with an order of government,' said Black. The bridge restoration or replacement project remains in the planning stage, so the magnitude of the work and an estimated cost are not yet known. 'The bridge is located along a coastal road, which is prone to flooding from sea level rise and this will be kept in mind as options for work are considered,' said MacDonald. Lighter snowplow trucks can be utilized, MacDonald said, so plows will be able to cross the Peck's Cove Bridge during the winter. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
