Trump Says Canada Forest Management Shortfalls Allow Wildfire Smoke to Reach U.S.

President Trump wrote on Truth Social Friday that Canada is not properly maintaining its forests and brush, resulting in smoke drifting into the United States. He said the United States is being "unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air" and that the economic cost would be factored into tariffs on Canadian imports.

The lawmakers wrote they are "done accepting apologies in place of action" and called for measurable plans to reduce future smoke crossing the border. The letter cited underinvestment in forest thinning, fuel reduction, and prescribed burns.

Agriculture and Forestry released a June report titled Canada on Fire: The Catastrophic and Escalating Effects of Wildfires on Lives and Communities. The committee held 17 meetings, heard from 79 witnesses, and received 23 written briefs. The report concluded that climate change is accelerating fire behavior beyond existing systems and that prevention efforts have not kept pace with the threat.

It identified fuel management—reducing dry grass, dead trees, and fallen branches—as a key measure and noted that several witnesses called prescribed fire the most important risk-reduction tool.

Hale, a Canadian fellow at Advancing American Freedom, told Fox News Digital that Canada's wildfire policies have failed to prioritize forest management. He cited a policy of not keeping reservoirs, not cutting firebreaks, and not thinning forests, attributing the approach to the influence of environmental groups.

Jason Hayes, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said the practical solution is to thin forests and conduct prescribed burns before fires start. He noted that many fires occur in remote northern areas that are difficult to reach. The report also cited testimony about shortages of wildfire-management expertise and an aging fleet of firefighting aircraft, including 22 older CL-215 aircraft still in provincial fleets.