Minnesota Lawmakers Fire Off Letter to Canadian Ambassador Over Wildfire Smoke and Forest Management Practices

(KNSI) — After yet another summer of air quality alerts due to Canadian wildfire smoke, members of Minnesota’s congressional delegation, including Tom Emmer (R-06) and Michelle Fischbach (R-07), have signed onto a letter sent to the country’s ambassador urging stronger forest management practices to mitigate wildfire risk.

In the letter to Ambassador Kirsten Hillman, lawmakers noted conditions in 2023 that led to Canada’s worst year for wildfires on record, with last year’s conditions close behind, and that 2025 so far seems to be continuing the “worrisome trend.” They added that poor air quality has created suffocating conditions, limiting the ability to go outside and “safely breathe due to the dangerous air quality the wildfire smoke has created” and enjoy summer activities.

The letter alleges that a lack of active forest management and arson are reasons behind the large wildfires, but the lawmakers believe the trend can be reversed with proper action and the use of available technology for both preventing and fighting wildfires.

The group wants to know how the Canadian government plans to mitigate wildfires and the smoke that travels south into the U.S. It urges Ambassador Hillman to relay this message to the Canadian government, Natural Resources Canada, and the Canadian Forest Service.

Read the letter here.

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