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CTV News
26 minutes ago
- CTV News
As Canada wildfires choke U.S. with smoke, Republicans demand action. But not on climate change
The Statue of Liberty is visible through haze due to Canadian wildfire smoke during sunset Aug. 5, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura) The sternly worded statements and letters are filled with indignation and outrage: Republican U.S. lawmakers say Canada has done too little to contain wildfires and smoke that have fouled the air in several states this summer. 'Instead of enjoying family vacations at Michigan's beautiful lakes and campgrounds, for the third summer in a row, Michiganders are forced to breathe hazardous air as a result of Canada's failure to prevent and control wildfires,' read a statement last week from the state's GOP congressional delegation, echoing similar missives from Republicans in Iowa, New York, North Dakota, Minnesota and Wisconsin. They've demanded more forest thinning, prescribed burns and other measures to prevent fires from starting. They've warned the smoke is hurting relations between the countries and suggested the U.S. could make it an issue in tariff talks. But what they haven't done is acknowledge the role of climate change — a glaring and shortsighted omission, according to climate scientists. It also ignores the outsized U.S. contribution to heat-trapping gases from burning fossil fuels like coal and gas that cause more intense heat waves and droughts, which in turn set the stage for more destructive wildfires, scientists say. 'If anything, Canada should be blaming the U.S. for their increased fires,' said Jennifer Francis, a climate scientist at the Woodwell Climate Research Center in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. On Tuesday, the Canadian government announced almost $46 million in funding for wildfire prevention and risk assessment research projects. But Corey Hogan, parliamentary secretary to the federal energy and natural resources minister, said international cooperation is needed. 'There's no people that want to do more about wildfires than Canadians,' Hogan said. 'But I think this also underlines the international challenges that are brought on by climate change ... we need to globally tackle this problem.' The country has 'been fighting wildfires in this country at unprecedented rates since 2023,' when Canada saw its largest wildfire on record, said Ken McMullen, president of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs. This year's first fire started in April, one of the earliest on record, and 2025 is now the second-worst year. As of Thursday, more than 700 wildfires were burning across the country, two-thirds of them out of control, with more than 28,000 square miles (72,520 square kilometres) burned in 4,400 wildfires so far this year, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. That's almost five times the surface area that's burned so far in the U.S. this year. Most wildfires are started by people, sometimes on purpose but mostly by mistake, though McMullen said lightning is the culprit in many of Canada's fires, especially in remote areas. McMullen said he has no interest in debating the role of climate change, but data show that something has changed. Sloughs and basins have dried up and water that once lapped at people's back doors in Canada's lake communities now is often hundreds of feet away. 'People can make up their own mind as to why that is,' he said. 'But something clearly has changed.' Denying climate change U.S. President Donald Trump has called climate change a hoax — a belief echoed by many in the GOP — and his administration has worked to dismantle and defund federal climate science and data collection, with little to no pushback from Republicans in Congress. He's proposed to revoke the scientific finding that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare — the central basis for U.S. climate change action. He's declared a national energy emergency to expedite fossil fuel development, canceled grants for renewable energy projects and ordered the U.S. to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement, aimed at limiting long-term global warming to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) above preindustrial levels. The Associated Press reached out to more than half a dozen Republicans who criticized Canada but none returned phone calls or emails. Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine said the wildfires are jeopardizing health and air quality in her state, too, but faulted Republicans for failing to meet the crisis head on — beginning by acknowledging climate change. 'Rather than accept this reality and work together to find proactive, common-sense solutions for preventing and mitigating these fires, Republicans are burying their heads in the sand,' she said. Wisconsin Rep. Gwen Moore, a Democrat, criticized her Republican colleagues' letter to Canada's U.S. ambassador, saying those 'who are in denial about climate change shouldn't be writing letters prescribing people's actions to try to contain it.' Difficult solutions McMullen, the Canadian wildfire expert, said battling the fires isn't as simple as many seem to believe. The country and its territories are vast and fires are often in remote areas where the best — and sometimes only — course of action if there are no residents or structures is to let them burn or 'it is going to just create another situation for us to deal with in a year or two or 10 or 20 years from now,' McMullen said. Prescribed burns to clear underbrush and other ignition sources are used in some areas, but aren't practical or possible in some forests and prairies that are burning, experts said. McMullen has advocated for a Canadian forest fire coordination agency to help deploy firefighters and equipment where they're needed. But as for stopping worsening fires, 'I don't think there's much they can do,' said University of Michigan climate scientist Jonathan Overpeck. He noted that hotter temperatures are melting permafrost in northern Canada, which dries out and makes the vast boreal forests far more likely to burn. Instead, the two countries should collaborate on climate change solutions 'because our smoke is their smoke, their smoke is ours,' Overpeck said. 'As long as this trend of warming and drying continues, we're going to get a worsening problem. 'The good news is ... we know what the cause is ... we can stop it from getting worse.' ___ Tammy Webber, The Associated Press The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
CTV News
26 minutes ago
- CTV News
Premier Danielle Smith, Alberta Next panel to get feedback at third town hall
Premier Danielle Smith is set to host another Alberta Next town hall, this one in Edmonton. Mason DePatie reports. Loading the player instance is taking more time than usual Loading the player instance is taking more time than usual EDMONTON — A travelling panel collecting public feedback on Alberta's grievances with Ottawa is set to make its third summer town hall stop tonight. Premier Danielle Smith and 15 other members of her Alberta Next panel are scheduled to be in Edmonton to brainstorm with people about possible future referendum questions. The premier has said one of the reasons for the panel is to address concerns that are inspiring separatist sentiment in the province. Its agenda focuses on six policy ideas, including pulling out of the Canada Pension Plan and creating a provincial police force to replace the RCMP. Earlier events were held last month in Red Deer and Edmonton. At those town halls, some Albertans offered support for the proposals, some protested at the gates and others dismissed the panel as a self-serving political exercise meant to stir up discontent and division. It is set to host events in Fort McMurray and Lloydminster in two weeks. The panel has also faced criticism for presenting online survey questions that left no option to disagree. The government later added options to some survey questions. The changes were made after 32,000 people had already filled out the surveys. The premier's office has said the survey results for the different versions will be separated. Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has dismissed the panel as a way for Smith to curry favour with extreme elements of her United Conservative Party to keep them from splintering off. He's also said the government is using it to conjure up unreliable data to support things it already wants to do. Alberta public opinion pollster Janet Brown has said the government's effort is not a polling exercise but a public engagement exercise and that changing the survey questions midstream underscores that. She has said the survey will offer a good idea of who participated in the process but it's not a random representative sample that reflects public opinion. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 14, 2025. Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
CBC
27 minutes ago
- CBC
Ontario ordering public servants back into office full time
Premier Doug Ford's government is ordering Ontario public servants to work from the office four days a week starting this fall and then full-time in January. It's a change from a policy that has been in place since April 2022, when provincial government employees were mandated to be in their offices at least three days per week. The announcement came Thursday from Treasury Board President Caroline Mulroney. It says employees of the Ontario Public Service and its provincial agencies, boards and commission will "increase their attendance to four days per week" starting Oct. 20 and transition to full-time hours in-office effective Jan. 5, 2026. The news follows on the heels of moves by four of Canada's big banks — RBC, Scotiabank, BMO and TD — that staff at their Toronto headquarters must spend at least four days a week in the office, effective this fall. It also comes just two weeks after AMAPCEO, which represents some 14,000 professional, administrative and supervisory employees in the Ontario Public Service, ratified a new collective agreement. The union says access to working from home was a key issue in bargaining and the province was "determined to eliminate" flexible work provisions in that bargaining. last September. There's been some evidence since that the policy is not being strictly enforced.
