US President Donald Trump has blamed Canada for the thick wildfire smoke blanketing large parts of the United States, accusing the country of failing to manage its forests and warning that the economic impact could be factored into future tariffs.
In a post on Truth Social on Friday, Trump said Canada had failed to properly maintain its forests and brush, resulting in unhealthy air drifting into the US.
“We are holding Canada responsible for the fact that they are not properly maintaining their forests and brush,” Trump wrote.
“The United States is being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted and unhealthy air.”
He described the situation as “willful negligence” and said he would speak with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to discuss the issue.
Trump also suggested that the financial cost of the pollution to the US should be added to tariffs already imposed on Canadian goods.
More than 100 million people across 18 states and Washington, DC, are currently under air quality alerts as smoke from Canadian wildfires spreads across the Midwest and eastern US. Air quality has reached “very unhealthy” and “hazardous” levels in some areas, stretching from northeastern Minnesota to southeastern Virginia.
Although the US Supreme Court recently blocked Trump from using emergency powers to impose tariffs, his administration has continued pursuing new trade measures through other legal channels that require investigations and public consultation.
Trump has repeatedly criticised Canada over issues ranging from lumber exports to automobile manufacturing, arguing that the country has taken advantage of the US economically.
While the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), negotiated during Trump’s first term, had shielded thousands of Canadian products from higher tariffs, the Trump administration earlier this month declined to renew the agreement in its current form.
The president’s latest comments indicate that environmental issues may now become another point of friction in the already strained trade relationship between the two countries.
