A new global report says record-breaking 2023 wildfires drove Canada's air pollution to levels not seen since at least the late 1990s and exposed half the country to pollution concentrations above the national standard.

Canada's average pollution levels were near the middle of the pack among the countries and territories included in the report, but some of its hard-hit wildfire regions rivalled some of the world's most polluted places.

The researchers estimate if 2023 levels of pollution in areas of Northwest Territories and northeastern parts of British Columbia were sustained over a lifetime, compared to staying within the World Health Organization's guideline, that could cut life expectancy by about four years.

The report produced by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of C

See Full Page