Sara Moore
Science Editor
The 2026 wildfire season has the potential to become the fourth worst in Canada’s history. The usual Canadian wildfire season spans from April to October, but this year saw a slow start with destructive consequences. This was due to the combined effect of drought, higher temperatures and stronger winds as a result of climate change. Ontario, one of the provinces hit hardest by the fires, received below average precipitation levels in June and July. This was worsened by an average temperature increase of 2°C compared to historic temperatures and the arrival of a stationary high-pressure system, known as a heat dome, in late June. As such, there was a drastic increase in the number of fires in July, with a count of 1,655 fires and over 3.1 million hectares burned. Ontario has experienced the greatest number of fires this season, but every province has been impacted in some way. As of August 31, there are 607 active fires across the country, and almost 4.5 million hectares of land have burned.
As a forested country, Canada is no stranger to wildfires, but the intensity and level of destruction has increased in recent years. The country experienced their worst wildfire season in 2023 with over 6,000 fires destroying 15 million hectares of land. Last year, the nation experienced their second worst wildfire season as 7.3 million hectares burned. This inspired the federal government to set aside $316 million over a period of five years to support Canada’s first national aerial fleet. Unfortunately, the preparations were not enough and over 20,000 people have been displaced by this year’s fires. The fires are especially taxing on First Nations peoples, as 81 groups have been impacted and over 11,000 people have been evacuated from their homes. First Nations peoples are disproportionately impacted by wildfires; a report by the Canadian government found that in 2023, 42% of evacuations came from areas where more than half the population was Indigenous. As Canada prepares for the conclusion of wildfire season, questions remain about what will be done to better prepare for next year.
The effects of the wildfires were felt not only by Canadians, but by people across the United States. In mid-July, the Northeast and Midwest regions of the U.S. reported some of the country’s worst air quality on record due to smoke during the height of the wildfires. While air quality levels were not as bad as they were during the 2023 wildfires, air quality alerts were issued across Michigan, Wisconsin and New York.
On July 15, New York City (NYC) mayor Zohran Mamdani stated, “Air quality has reached unhealthy levels in parts of NYC due to smoke from Canadian wildfires.” This led to concern over the air quality for the World Cup finale, which took place on July 19 in NYC. Although levels were listed as “very unhealthy” on July 17, rain helped to clear out the smoke, bringing air quality to a “good” level on the 19th.
In the wake of wildfire smoke spreading across the U.S., President Trump responded by threatening to place tariffs on Canada. In a social media post on July 17, Trump wrote, “we are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their Forests, and Brush therein, and the United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air. This is Willful Negligence, and becoming a yearly occurrence, costing the United States Billions of Dollars, which cost of this pollution must of necessity be added to the TARIFFS Canada is currently paying.”
In response, Canada’s Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience, Eleanor Olszewski, released a statement saying, “since 2020, Canada has invested $12 billion in forest sustainability and fire prevention.”
Ontario Premier, Doug Ford, did not address Trump directly, but left reporters with this thought at the end of a press conference: “Climate change is everyone’s responsibility — truly everyone’s — including the United States.”
