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

By SUMAN NAISHADHAM and VICTOR CAIVANO
Associated Press

FORT MCMURRAY, Canada (AP) — Thousands of wildfires in Canada have incinerated an area larger than Florida since May. Early estimates say the fires have released into the atmosphere more than three times the carbon dioxide that Canada’s entire economy does in a year. And they’re still burning. Canada’s leaders, including liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, have insisted for years that the country can both exploit its natural resources and lead the global fight against climate change. But the wildfires are putting a spotlight on its commitment to fighting climate change and its fossil fuel dominance.