Briefing: Canadian Wildfire Disinformation

The briefing identifies three primary disinformation narratives used to deflect from climate change during the 2025 Canadian wildfire season: the emphasis on arson (including conspiracy theories about 'climate change agendas'), claims of government mismanagement of resources, and accusations of 'fearmongering' by political leaders. Monitoring from April 21 to June 20, 2025, shows these narratives are most prevalent on X and right-wing outlets, often utilizing 'junk science' to discredit peer-reviewed data. The document recommends that Canadian policymakers enact laws against greenwashing, adopt a robust definition of climate disinformation, and require transparency from large online platforms to mitigate the influence of fossil fuel-backed disinformation networks.

• Disinformation during the 2025 Canadian wildfire season is primarily driven by climate denier networks, with the social media platform X and right-wing online outlets serving as the main hubs for these narratives.
• A dominant narrative focuses on arson to deflect from climate change, with some extreme conspiracy theories claiming that activists, governments, or green-backed corporations deliberately set fires to fabricate a climate crisis.
• Disinformers frequently blame federal and provincial governments for wildfire severity, citing poor forest management, shortages of firefighters, and the alleged withholding or delayed production of water bombers.
• Right-wing voices accuse political leaders, specifically Prime Minister Carney, of using 'fearmongering' and 'alarmism' to push a radical green agenda, often relying on 'junk science' to undermine legitimate climate data.
• Specific entities such as The Heritage Foundation and The Daily Skeptic have promoted claims that global wildfire areas are not increasing, with the briefing noting these claims often misrepresent data regarding controlled fires.
• A minor emerging trend on TikTok suggests that Canadian wildfires were deliberately set to worsen air quality in the United States due to rising tensions between the two countries.

APA

Climate Action Against Disinformation (2025). Briefing: Canadian Wildfire Disinformation. https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/CAAD-Briefing-Note-Canadian-Wildfire-Disinformation.pdf

Chicago

Climate Action Against Disinformation. Briefing: Canadian Wildfire Disinformation. 2025. https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/CAAD-Briefing-Note-Canadian-Wildfire-Disinformation.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Action Against Disinformation |title=Briefing: Canadian Wildfire Disinformation |date=June 2025 |url=https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/CAAD-Briefing-Note-Canadian-Wildfire-Disinformation.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateactionagainstdisinformation2025briefing, author = {{Climate Action Against Disinformation}}, title = {{Briefing: Canadian Wildfire Disinformation}}, institution = {Climate Action Against Disinformation}, year = {2025}, month = jun, url = {https://caad.info/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/CAAD-Briefing-Note-Canadian-Wildfire-Disinformation.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }