Michigan is not on fire, but it sure smells like it.
Welcome to Air Quality Alert Michigan Summer, the documentary no one asked for. If you were hoping for lazy beach days, clear skies, and a BBQ that doesn’t come pre-marinated in Canadian wildfire haze, too bad. Thanks to yet another wave of smoke drifting down from our friendly neighbors to the north, Michigan is getting slow-roasted like a brisket in a smoker the size of Saskatchewan.
Wednesday marked the seventh day in a row that the National Weather Service issued an Air Quality Alert for Michigan. That’s a full week of waking up and wondering if you accidentally left your campfire burning on your front lawn. Spoiler: you didn’t. But Ontario sure did.
There are currently 742 active wildfires across Canada. It has been an exceptionally active year with regards to these wildfires, which have burned a total of 16,528,921 acres thus far in 2025. That is more than double the 20-year average of 6,060,618 acres. Smoke from these… pic.twitter.com/Map8VmDC6D [1]
— Anthony Duarte (@AnthonyDuarte03) August 5, 2025 [2]
These aren’t just any smoky skies. We’re talking ultrafine particles and big ol’ chunks of airborne junk, trapped like an unwelcome guest by a high-pressure system that’s decided to squat over the Great Lakes. The light winds are doing nothing to move the haze along, meaning it just keeps hanging out – like that one cousin who never leaves the family reunion.
The fires themselves? Hundreds of miles away, mostly in northern Ontario and Manitoba. But thanks to atmospheric betrayal and jet-stream sabotage, we’re breathing it all in like secondhand maple- scented doom. From the Upper Peninsula to Metro Detroit, Michiganders are being advised to stay indoors, limit outdoor activities, and maybe invest in a few dozen air purifiers or gas masks.
And while Michigan chokes, Washington shrugs. President Trump hasn’t weighed in yet, but Michiganders are hoping that he proposes some kind of “Canadian Smoke Tariff” to make the air great again. Honestly, it’s not the worst idea I’ve heard this week.
Meanwhile, the health advisories keep rolling in: asthma sufferers beware, kids should take it easy, pets could be in trouble – and outdoor exercise? Forget it – unless your workout routine includes hacking up a lung.
And while DC ignores the smoke haze in our state, Michigan politicians are taking notice. And how could they not when every breath comes with a side of Canadian wildfire seasoning?
Congressman and GOP gubernatorial candidate John James has penned a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney imploring him to take action according to Michigan News Source [3]. In the letter, James says, “Canada’s our closest ally and most important trading partner but their out-of-control wildfires are polluting Michigan’s air and choking our communities.” James continued, “American families deserve clean air and a neighbor who takes our security and health concerns as seriously as Canadians expect us to take their sovereignty concerns.”
Michigan has had three straight summers of smoke and pollution from Canadian wildfires.
That’s not right.
I sent a letter to the Canadian Prime Minister urging action. It’s time to work together to protect our people, our shared border, and our air.👇🏾 pic.twitter.com/Jgezj2nF7x [4]
— Rep. John James (@RepJames) August 1, 2025 [5]
If this keeps up, we’ll have to change Pure Michigan’s slogan to: “Come for the lakes, stay because you can’t see the road.”
So thanks, Canada. Maybe next summer, just stick to maple syrup exports and leave the wildfires off the menu.