President Donald Trump said Sunday that smoke from Canadian wildfires has “poisoned” the air in parts of the United States, arguing the ongoing fires are causing widespread disruption and suggesting Canada could face additional tariffs over the issue.
Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews, Trump said he recently discussed the wildfires with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during a meeting in New Jersey at the World Cup Final.
According to the president, he urged Carney to take action to stop the smoke from crossing into the United States.
“I spoke to him. I said, ‘You got to stop these fires from coming in and, you know, poisoning our air,’” Trump said.
The president added that despite the disagreement, he continues to have a positive relationship with the Canadian leader.
“I have a good relationship” with Carney, Trump said, “but you know we got to stop the fires up there.”
Trump also told reporters that the smoke has had a noticeable impact on air quality in the United States.
“Our air has been poisoned,” he said.
Smoke from wildfires that began in Canada in mid-June has continued to spread throughout July, affecting an estimated 100 million Americans across 14 states, according to CBS.
Trump said the smoke has also affected businesses, specifically pointing to Michigan.
The president said some businesses in the state have been forced to shut down because of conditions caused by the wildfire smoke.
“If we can help them, we’ll help them,” Trump said. “But maybe they should pay us some damages or something, or we should do some tariffs.”
The comments come as the Trump administration continues to maintain and expand tariffs on Canadian imports.
According to the report, Canada is currently subject to a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum products, a 10% tariff on Canadian softwood timber and lumber imports, and an additional 12.5% tariff related to forced labor that was implemented last month.
The report also noted that the second Trump administration has pursued increased trade levies against Canada and recently declined to renew the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Trump had previously raised the issue in a Truth Social post on Friday, where he argued that the recurring wildfire smoke is imposing significant costs on the United States.
“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,” Trump wrote.
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin also addressed the issue Friday, saying in a statement that the wildfires are causing “great concern” and “harm.”
The comments from Trump and Zeldin came as smoke from the Canadian wildfires continued to affect large portions of the United States.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded to criticism from the United States by attributing the fires to climate change.
According to the report, Carney said climate change is responsible for the wildfires and described it as a challenge that is everyone’s “responsibility” to address.
The exchange underscores growing tensions between the United States and Canada over the continued impact of the wildfires, with Trump arguing the smoke has harmed Americans while raising the possibility of additional trade measures as the fires continue to burn north of the border.
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