Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney dismissed the possibility that his government could do more to stop the rampant wildfires that have devastated Ontario this week and are sending toxic smoke across much of the American Midwest and Northeast, calling on the United States to do more to fight so-called “climate change.”
Carney’s comments, made during a news conference in Ontario, are the first since a wave of outrage in the United States after millions of people were told not to leave their homes on Thursday to avoid getting sick from smoke from the Canadian fires. Disillusionment over the Canadian government’s inaction is also reportedly growing among First Nations communities directly affected by the fires, including some that have been completely burned and have received little or no support from Ottawa.
Canada’s extensive forests traditionally see a regular summer fire season, which is controlled by indigenous methods such as controlled burns and removal of dry, dead tree branches and other material that serve to fuel larger fires. Over the past decade, as the Canadian government has largely abandoned forest management as a national policy, these fires have become larger, more dangerous, and more polluting. The Canadian government has no federal emergency response agency and no national fire authority, leaving the country’s provinces free to respond to fires.
The Canadian government, under the far-left Liberal Party, has repeatedly responded to demands from both indigenous communities and provincial governments to actively manage its forests and assist by blaming the fires on “climate change” and rejecting claims that it could do more. Carney continued that trend Thursday in responding to questions about the fires, specifically addressing the outrage in the United States about smoke pollution.
“We are now focused on investing in clean energy,” Carney said in French, “noting that in the United States there are now restrictions against clean energy – for example, wind energy is an example.”
“Secondly, Canada is maintaining our efforts globally and the US is reducing its efforts globally [on climate change]So, yes, climate change is everyone’s responsibility… including the United States.”
Carney’s comments did not go into detail about how the use of wind power – which requires massive turbines that pose their own marine environmental threat – would address the Canadian wildfire situation. He also did not clarify what he wanted the US government to do to address its alleged “responsibility” for climate change.
The number of out-of-control fires is on the rise in Ontario, which has worsened dramatically in the past week. Authorities documented 136 active wildfires in the province as of Wednesday evening, including ones that have destroyed entire communities in remote areas largely populated by indigenous communities. Leaders of those communities have lamented the lack of support from their government in evacuating residents, offering temporary housing, and otherwise caring for them. Speaking to a Canadian newspaper globe and mail“We lost everything,” lamented Helen Pavola, chief of the Namaygusisagun First Nation. The entire Namaygusisgagun community burned to the ground on Monday, the newspaper wrote, and the chief lamented that the government did little to help with evacuations, forcing residents to use small boats to escape the flames.
Paavola reportedly told the newspaper that “his requests for evacuation assistance from the provincial Ministry of Natural Resources had gone unheeded before the flames engulfed the settlement.”
Paavola was not the only official to lament the lack of support. talking to toronto starLegislator Lise Vaugeis, of the leftist New Democrat Party, expressed disappointment.
“Basically the Ministry of Emergency Preparedness shocked me by saying every municipality has someone in charge and talk to them,” Vaujois said.
In the United States, congressmen from affected states have condemned Ottawa for inaction, reportedly planning legislative measures to respond to the pollution of their communities. Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH) announced Thursday that he will draft legislation to impose sanctions on Canada, calling the situation an “atrocity,” sharing horrific photos of the smoke in his state.
A group of Michigan Republican lawmakers – Representatives Jack Bergman (R-MI), John James (R-MI), Lisa McClain (R-MI), and John Moolenaar (R-MI) – published a letter to Carney on Wednesday demanding concrete action and condemning the Canadian government for ignoring pleas from U.S. officials to properly address forest management.
“We were told last year that immediate action would be taken on this. This did not happen,” he wrote. “The reasons we were told were long-term underinvestment in forest thinning, fuel depletion, and prescribed burns, as well as inadequate enforcement against arson, which were being addressed. They did not matter or were not addressed strongly enough for the people we represent.”
“What funded, measurable steps has your government taken since last summer to reduce fuel loads and wildfire risk in the provinces responsible for smoke reaching the American Midwest?” He asked. “What accountability exists for provincial leaders who treat this as someone else’s problem? And what will actually be different by this time next year instead of the same result after another season of statements?”
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