Canada says it can fight climate change and be major oil nation. Massive fires may force a reckoning

Happy Cardinal, right, looks at what remains of his cabin, destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Happy Cardinal, right, looks at what remains of his cabin, destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada’s fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

FORT MCMURRAY, Canada (AP) — During a May wildfire that scorched a vast swath of spruce and pine forest in northwestern Canada, Julia Cardinal lost a riverside cabin that was many things to her: retirement project, gift from from her husband, and somewhere to live by nature, as her family had done for generations.

“That was our dream home,” said Cardinal, a member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, as she scanned the cabin’s flattened, charred remains in September. “It’s like a displacement.”

Thousands of wildfires in Canada this year have incinerated an area larger than Florida, releasing into the atmosphere more than three times the amount of carbon dioxide that is produced by Canada in a year. And some are still burning.

Two burnt cabins destroyed by wildfires, one belonging to Julia Cardinal, left, are visible near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Two burnt cabins destroyed by wildfires, one belonging to Julia Cardinal, left, are visible near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Burnt spoons, forks and knives lie on the ground among the remains of Julia Cardinal's cabin that was destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Burnt spoons, forks and knives lie on the ground among the remains of Julia Cardinal's cabin that was destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Julia Cardinal, right, shows a photo of what her cabin looked like before it was destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Julia Cardinal, right, shows a photo of what her cabin looked like before it was destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Julia Cardinal, left, and her husband Happy Cardinal stand for a portrait near what remains of his cabin, destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Julia Cardinal, left, and her husband Happy Cardinal stand for a portrait near what remains of his cabin, destroyed by wildfires, near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Home to dense forests, sweeping prairies and nearly a quarter of the planet’s wetlands, Canadian leaders, including liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, have long insisted the country can exploit its natural resources while protecting biodiversity and leading the global fight against climate change. But the seemingly endless fire season, which created hazardous air in many U.S. states thousands of miles away, is putting a spotlight on two aspects of Canada that increasingly feel at odds: the country’s commitment to fighting climate change and its status as the world’s fourth-largest oil producer and fifth-largest gas producer — fuels that when used release carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere and intensifies the dry conditions for wildfires to swallow millions of acres.

“They’re portraying Canada as environmental,” said Jean L’Hommecourt, an environmental advocate belonging to the Fort McKay First Nation. “But the biggest source of the carbon is here.”

Jean L'Hommecourt, an environmental advocate and member of the Fort McKay First Nation, looks out of her window on a smokey day due to wildfires in Fort McKay, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Jean L'Hommecourt, an environmental advocate and member of the Fort McKay First Nation, looks out of her window on a smokey day due to wildfires in Fort McKay, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A truck carries oil sand at Suncor's facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A truck carries oil sand at Suncor's facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

OIL FOCUS AND ADVOCACY

Canada is among roughly 100 nations that have pledged by midcentury to reach “zero emissions,” or take as much greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere as it contributes. At last year’s U.N. climate conference, known as COP27, it also joined other rich nations to promise more money for developing countries to fight climate change.

Yet to the same conference, Canada brought the second-largest delegation of fossil fuel executives of any country in the world, an analysis by The Associated Press found. Eleven executives from major Canadian oil, gas, and steel companies, including Enbridge and Parkland Corporation attended COP27 — where countries set climate priorities and timelines for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. The only country to send a larger delegation of fossil fuel executives was Russia, AP found.

Canada’s leaders have insisted for years that the country can both exploit its natural resources and lead the global fight against climate change. But wildfires are putting a spotlight on its commitment to its fossil fuel dominance. (Nov. 9) (AP Video by Victor Caivano/Produced by Victor Caivano and Teresa de Miguel)

“We’re not there to drive an agenda, but we do have a perspective to offer,” said Pete Sheffield, chief sustainability officer at pipeline and natural gas giant Enbridge Inc., echoing what other Canadian energy executives told The AP about their attendance at COP27.

One such perspective is that Canadian oil producers can keep extracting oil at current rates, and with the help of technology, clean up their own operations so the country can still hit its climate targets. But even if Canada’s oil producers manage to do so, their plans don’t consider the greenhouse gas emissions that result from when customers use their products to power cars, heat homes, take flights, and so forth.

FILE - The McDougall Creek wildfire burns on the mountainside above houses in West Kelowna, British Columbia, on Aug. 18, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.(Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP, File)

The McDougall Creek wildfire burns on the mountainside above houses in West Kelowna, British Columbia, on Aug. 18, 2023. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

OIL, FIRES AND SMOKE

In the western province of Alberta, where many ferocious wildfires burned, huge deposits of thick crude oil, mixed with tarry sand, sit beneath the forest and near the snaking Athabasca River. Extraction from this area, referred to as the “oil sands,” uses huge amounts of energy, making Canada’s oil — most of which is extracted here — some of the world’s dirtiest.

In Alberta, the industry’s mark on the landscape is profound: over an area larger than New York City, oil companies have carved chunks of earth into open-pit mines plunging hundreds of feet deep, created lake-sized chemical runoff pools and left otherworldly stacks of neon yellow sulfur byproduct. On the sides of roads in the oil sands, air cannons boom periodically to keep birds away from the vast toxic ponds and scarecrows dressed as oil workers float above them.

On a recent morning, dozens of oil workers boarded a charter plane in Calgary that would take them deep into Alberta’s wilderness where black bears, caribou, and moose roam. There, operators boarded buses to oil sands projects, where they would work 7-, 14- or 21-day shifts.

Trees line Suncor's oil sands operation near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. Extraction from this area, referred to as the "oil sands," uses huge amounts of energy, making Canada's oil — most of which is extracted here — some of the world's dirtiest. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Trees line Suncor’s oil sands operation near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A black bear appears on the shores of Lake Athabasca near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A black bear appears on the shores of Lake Athabasca near Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A sign marks bear sightings on a road at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A sign marks bear sightings on a road at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Steam rises at Suncor's oil sands facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.(AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Steam rises at Suncor’s oil sands facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

During other weeks, the fires in Alberta burned so close that oil companies had to temporarily shut down oil and gas production, and average Canadians couldn’t safely breathe the air. In September, smoke from wildfires in the neighboring provinces of British Columbia and the Northern Territories blanketed Fort McMurray, an Albertan city of 68,000 where community centers bear the names of oil companies. The skies were a hazy, rust color.

“This is to the point where you don’t even want to be outside,” said Brittnee McIsaac, a school teacher who often had to keep her students inside for recess because it was too dangerous to breathe the smoke-filled air.

McIsaac, whose husband works in the oil industry, said that the smoke this year, combined with a major wildfire in 2016, have made more people in town concerned about climate change, even if many residents get their paychecks from the nearby oil patch.

“It really takes a toll on the mental health; just how dreary it is every day,” she said of the smoke.

People eat barbecue at a festival despite heavy smoke from wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
People eat barbecue at a festival despite heavy smoke from wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Brittnee McIsaac, a school teacher, walks her dog on a smoky day because of wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Brittnee McIsaac, a school teacher, walks her dog on a smoky day because of wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Still, Canadian producers have no plans to slow down. Since 2009, oil sands extraction has grown. Today, Canada produces about 4.9 million barrels of oil a day, with oil and gas contributing almost a third of the country’s emissions in 2021. Oil and gas make up about 5% of Canada’s GDP, while in Alberta, the heart of Canadian oil country, the sector accounts for about 21%.

Carmen Lee-Essington, vice president of Cenovus’ oil sands operations, said the company plans to extract all the oil below ground at their Sunrise plant. Cenovus estimates that could last until 2070. That is decades after when scientists warn that the world needs to have moved beyond fossil fuels and rely almost entirely on renewable forms of energy.

“When that time comes, we will abandon the facility here. We will decommission it, the metal and all the infrastructure that you see will be shipped off-site,” said Lee-Essington.

A worker drives by crude oil tanks at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A worker drives by crude oil tanks at Cenovus’ Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A worker shows a cup of oil extracted from hundreds of meters underground with the steam-assisted gravity drainage system at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A worker shows a cup of oil extracted from hundreds of meters underground with the steam-assisted gravity drainage system at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A worker poses for a photo at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A worker poses for a photo at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
Carmen Lee Essington, vice president of Cenovus' oil sands operations, right, walks by steam-producing towers at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. Essington said the company plans to extract all the oil below ground at their Sunrise plant. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Carmen Lee Essington, vice president of Cenovus’ oil sands operations, right, walks by steam-producing towers at Cenovus’ Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

SUSTAINABLE FUTURE?

Part of Canada’s reasoning to produce so much oil and gas in the 21st century is that it’s a stable democracy with stricter environmental and human rights laws than other oil giants that the West has historically relied upon. Canada is the largest foreign supplier of oil to the U.S., exporting an amount equal to 22% of U.S. consumption.

But climate scientists warn that current levels of oil and gas production will mean Canada won’t reach net zero emissions, never mind the additional contributions to climate change from wildfires along the way.

Scientists at Climate Action Tracker, a group that scrutinizes nations’ pledges to reduce emissions, label the country’s progress as “highly insufficient,” stressing that Canada needs to implement its climate policies much faster to reach its own targets. For the high-carbon energy sector, much of the plan rests on the build-out of carbon capture, a technology that pulls in carbon dioxide, either at the source of emissions or from the air. But carbon capture is energy intensive, expensive and years away from operating at scale.

“There’s no way Canada can reach our 2050 target if oil and gas doesn’t do its fair share,” said Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change.

Tubing transporting gas, steam and oil emulsion stand above the vegetation to allow for animals to pass underneath at Cenovus' Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Tubing transporting gas, steam and oil emulsion stand above the vegetation to allow for animals to pass underneath at Cenovus’ Sunrise oil facility northeast of Fort McMurray on Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

The wildfires, which scientists say will burn more and longer as the planet warms, will add to the challenge of cutting emissions. They also pose significant health risks to Canadians and anyone who comes in contact with the smoke.

In June, a fire got close to the subarctic, mostly indigenous hamlet of Fort Chipewyan, in northern Alberta. A former fur trading settlement, it abuts one of the world’s largest inland deltas. In warmer months, the village can only be reached by boat or plane, since the main road into town is made of ice that melts in the spring. When the wildfires approached, residents first tried fleeing by boat, only to realize that water levels at the massive Athabasca Lake had gotten so low, they couldn’t leave. Soon after, the Canadian military sent its aircraft to evacuate people to Fort McMurray, where hundreds of people stayed for weeks.

In the blaze, Julia Cardinal and her husband Happy Cardinal would lose their cabin, which was about a 45-minute boat ride from Fort Chipewyan. Several months later, the trauma of the fire is still vivid.

“That was our home,” said Julia Cardinal, as she walked over the burned cabin, identifying the pots, pans and nails that survived the blaze. “There are some things we will never, ever replace.”

Still, the couple’s feelings are complicated. While they understand the role of climate change in the fires, and the impact of oil on the climate and lakes and rivers surrounding them, they are not quick to blame the industry. Happy Cardinal was an oil sands worker until retiring three years ago.

“That’s where my money comes from,” he said.

A person rides a bicycle on a smokey day due to wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A person rides a bicycle on a smokey day due to wildfires in Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A truck carries oil sand at Suncor's facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A truck carries oil sand at Suncor's facility near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Friday, Sep. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A burnt tree from recent wildfires stands in Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.(AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A burnt tree from recent wildfires stands in Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050.(AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
A scarecrow floats on the surface of a tailings pond to keep birds from landing in the toxic wastewater from oil production near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

A scarecrow floats on the surface of a tailings pond to keep birds from landing in the toxic wastewater from oil production near Fort McMurray, Canada, on Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Burnt trees from recent wildfires stand in a forest in Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. Wildfires are bringing fresh scrutiny to Canada's fossil fuel dominance, its environmentally friendly image and the viability of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Burnt trees from recent wildfires stand in a forest in Fort Chipewyan, Canada, on Sunday, Sep. 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

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AP data journalist Mary Katherine Wildeman contributed to this report.

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Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Naishadham is a reporter on the AP climate and environment team. She mainly covers water in the American West, the Colorado River and environmental policy.