Borderline breathable

Rhinelander was ranked the city with the sixth worse air quality in the nation on Thursday morning, according to the Wisconsin State Climatology Office, with an air quality index (AQI) score of 175. Six of the ten worst AQI cities were located in Wisconsin that morning.

The city with the worst air quality, Milwaukee, scored 190 on Thursday morning. Later that day, both Milwaukee and Green Bay would exceed an AQI of 200.

The U.S. Air Quality Index values scores of 151-200 as red alerts, indicating “some members of the general public may experience health effects; members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects.”

Scores from 201-300, which Milwaukee and Green Bay eventually reached on July 31, trigger a health alert, indicating “the risk of health effects is increased for everyone.” Scores beyond 300 are considered hazardous emergency conditions.

A new normal?

The semi-persistent haze is quickly, and worryingly, becoming a regular part of summer in the Upper Midwest over the past few years.

The poor air quality, a result of massive Canadian wildfires, has at times put a damper on outdoor activities this summer — a calling card of the Northwoods economy.

Republican lawmakers, including Wisconsin representative Tom Tiffany (R-Rhinelander) authored a letter to Kirsten Hillman, ambassador of Canada, earlier in July, asking what the Canadian government plans on doing to reduce the “suffocating” wildfire smoke that’s migrated across the border and affected Wisconsinites and Minnesotans.

“Our constituents have been limited in their ability to go outside and safely breathe due to the dangerous air quality the wildfire smoke has created,” the congressional representatives wrote. “In our neck of the woods, summer months are the best time of the year to spend time outdoors recreating, enjoying time with family, and creating new memories, but this wildfire smoke makes it difficult to do all those things.”

The group of legislators requested in their letter that Hillman share the Canadian government’s “plans on mitigating wildfire and the smoke that makes its way south.”

“Canada has been a friendly neighbor of the United States and the states we represent, so given the significance of this issue we urge you to relay this message to your government,” the letter said.

Days later, Wab Kinew, premier of Manitoba — one of the hardest hit provinces — accused the U.S. representatives of “trivializing” the wildfires with their letter and referred to them as “ambulance chasers” during a press conference.

“I would challenge these ambulance chasers in the U.S. Congress to go and do the same, and to hear how much the American firefighting heroes who are here love our province,” Kinew said. “This is what turns people off politics. When you’ve got a group of congresspeople trying to trivialize and make hay out of a wildfire season where we’ve lost lives in our province. There’s no place for that in politics.”

“Wisconsinites shouldn’t have to deal with poor air quality and health issues week after week because Canada refuses to manage its overgrown forests,” Tiffany told The Lakeland Times on Thursday. “I have called on Canadian officials to get serious about proactive forest management. It’s essential not only to prevent the tinderbox conditions fueling these wildfires but also to protect the health and well-being of Wisconsinites.”

Official response

On July 15, Canadian officials responded directly to the letter, stating that their nation shares the same concerns about the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires.

“The United States and Canada have a long history of wildfire collaboration, including a formal MOU, and we regularly exchange resources and personnel in response to escalating wildfire events,” Aaron Annable, consul for the Canadian foreign policy and diplomacy service, wrote in a letter to the representatives. “Canada is grateful for the assistance the U.S. has offered this year, with over 600 personnel deployed to date. Similarly, in January 2025, Canadian fire agencies deployed over 60 personnel and additional aircraft resources to help battle the wildfires in Los Angeles.”

Annable concluded his letter by welcoming the U.S. representatives to a meeting to further discuss the issue. Rep. Tiffany’s staff met with the Canadian Embassy staff last week, according to Tiffany’s communication director.

Potential causes

In their letter, the Congressional representatives suggest a “lack of active forest management” has been a “key driver” of the wildfires.

“With all the technology that we have at our disposal, both in preventing and fighting wildfires, this worrisome trend can be reversed if proper action is taken,” the letter said.

The Canadian Natural Resources Department (NRC) has stated the frequency and behavior of wildfires has changed over time “chiefly as a result of the complicated influences of climate change and climate variability.”

NRC uses “climate change” to refer to alterations made to the global atmosphere as a result of human activity and “climate variability” to refer to changes that occur through natural processes over which humans have no control.

“This complex combination of influences makes it difficult to identify clearly whether any measurable changes in the patterns of wildland fire over the last few decades can be linked directly to climate change,” the NRC website says. “Nevertheless, pattern changes do appear to be underway.”

More to come

The 2025 wildfire forecast from the NRC projected fire weather severity to be “above average” for the border provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta in June and July.

Additionally, NRC projected British Columbia, the western-most border province, would enter “well above average” levels.

The August 2025 forecast charts all four provinces as “well above average,” so with wildfires showing no signs of slowing down in August, it’s recommended Northwoods residents familiarize themselves with the AQI guidelines.

AQI levels, forecasts and more information about respiratory health can be found at www.airnow.gov.

Michael Strasburg may be reached at [email protected].